Tolkien Collection Haul – April 2016

This month I went a little overboard with my online purchases; but once I put everything together, it didn't seem as excessive as I thought!

Top shelf:

• "Hobbit Nightmare" t-shirt
• The Return of the King
• Unfinished Tales (Unwin)
• The Lord of the Rings
• Der Herr Der Ringe film trilogy
• LEGO LOTR 3DS game
• Gandalf figure
• Pippin bobblehead
• "Starry Middle-earth" t-shirt
• The Story of Kullervo

Bottom shelf:

• The Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings in traditional Chinese characters
• The Lord of the Rings from Modern Classics
• Le Seigneur des Anneaux (1970s)
• Le Seigneur des Anneaux (2000)
• The Lord of the Rings
• Rough Guide to The Lord of the Rings
• The Two Towers (50th anniversary edition)
• Smith of Wooton Major
• The Silmarillion (Unwin)
• The Hobbit (movie tie-in)
• The Hobbit
• The Hobbit (Unwin)
• The Hobbit (movie tie-in)  

----------
Follow me on Instagram for more pictures of my #TolkienCollection! 

Hobbits for Kids in Care: An Initiative of the Brisbane Tolkien Fellowship

From Peter Kenny, chairman of the Brisbane Tolkien Fellowship:

Donate a Hobbit Book to our cause for children who are in Foster or Statutory Care.

Our goal is to achieve a target of 1500 Hobbit Books before October 15^th. The books will be presented at our Annual Dinner Dance to The Pyjama Foundation.

Each book will be presented as a gift to a child who has been removed from the family home. These children are removed from their homes due to some form of abuse, trauma or neglect.

It is hoped this initiative will put a smile on the faces of these children.

About The Pyjama Foundation

The Pyjama Foundation helps bring some quality and normality to the lives of over1300 children in foster care from Cairns to Melbourne in Australia.

During each year we raise money to cover costs for our events and presence at Expos. Profit at the end of each year is donated to our nominated charity The Pyjama Foundation. 

The Pyjama Foundation, provides children in foster care the opportunity to change the direction of their lives with learning, life skills and confidence.

Through the Love of Learning program, volunteers called ‘Pyjama Angels’ are recruited, screened, trained and then matched with a child in care and spend time with them once a week, focusing on learning-based activities.

Pyjama Angels read books aloud with their child, play educational games and help children with their homework. Most importantly, the volunteers give foster children a chance to reach their life potential, despite a fragile start. Children in care have the lowest education outcomes nationally.

By improving their learning skills, The Pyjama Foundation is making a positive, life-long impact.

Visit their website to learn more about their wonderful work… http://www.thepyjamafoundation.com/

How can you help?

• Purchase a Hobbit Book and post it to The Brisbane Tolkien Fellowship. 
• Purchase on line and forward directly to The Brisbane Tolkien Fellowship. 
• English publications of The Hobbit. 
• If you wish to donate more than one book, that is most welcome.

Postal Address:
Brisbane Tolkien Fellowship
P.O. Box 323
Everton Park
Queensland 4053
Australia

Mother's Day Gift-Giving Guide

With Mother's Day a mere two weeks away, here are some gift ideas for your Middle-earth loving mother (or mother-in-law)! Show her how much you love her with some Tolkien-inspired goodies!

T-shirts are always fun! This one is great coming from children of any age.

Get it here: https://teespring.com/lotmom?pr=MOMDAY

This shirt is perfect for the new mother or mother-to-be.

Get it here: https://viralstyle.com/FlyingPen2512/hobbit-mom-ltd

The Arkenstone necklace is a perfect gift for your Hobbit-loving mom! 

You can find it at BadaliJewelry.com!

 This Evenstar/Leaf of Lorien necklace is a unique piece mom is sure to love! Get it from LeveledUpAccessories on Etsy.

HobbitShop is currently having a Mother's Day sale on a number of items, from jewellery to bedding and more! Check it out at HobbitShop.com

REVIEW: Smaug Ring and Arkenstone Necklace/Earring Set from Badali Jewelry

Being the huge fan that I am of Badali Jewelry, I was absolutely honoured to have the opportunity to review one of their officially licensed Hobbit jewellery sets: the Arkenstone necklace and earrings and Smaug ring. 

The Arkenstone – which is represented by a Swarovski crystal sphere – rests in Smaug's claw in both the earrings and necklace, while the ring features the dragon clutching the stone with both claws. The crystal accurately portrays Tolkien's description of the jewel, which was said to “[have taken] all light that fell upon it and changed it into ten thousand sparks of white radiance shot with glints of the rainbow” (The Hobbit, p. 217). In different lighting, these gems give off a whitish to rainbow hue, making this jewellery set loads of fun to photograph.

The antiquing option was applied, which I found highlights some of the details, especially in the Smaug ring. I was in love with it the minute I opened the box! It fits perfectly on my index finger: it does not slide or rotate, and despite its size and shape does not feel bulky or catch on anything. I am in love with Badali's products because you can see and feel the love and care that goes into making each piece. I have never been anything but happy with my collection, as every one of their items goes well with casual outfits and formal attire alike; and I know they will hold up for a very long time!

I took close to 50 or so photos yesterday when these items arrived (*not an exaggeration), but I narrowed it down to just a few photos. Click the images to see them full-size.

 

The necklace is so elegant – it really stands out without seeming "in-your-face".

Just look at the detail!

You can get your own officially licensed Hobbit and Lord of the Rings jewelry at BadaliJewelry.com:

• Smaug ring ($89 regularly; currently on sale for $71): http://badalijewelry.com/The-Lord-of-the-Rings/Lord-of-the-Rings-Rings/Smaug-8482-Ring.html 
• Arkenstone Necklace ($39): http://badalijewelry.com/The-Lord-of-the-Rings/Lord-of-the-Rings-Necklaces/The-Arkenstone-8482-Necklace.html 
• Arkenstone Earrings ($55): http://badalijewelry.com/The-Lord-of-the-Rings/Lord-of-the-Rings-Earrings/The-Arkenstone-8482-Earrings.html 

You can also find Badali Jewelry on

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/BadaliJewelrySpecialties

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/badalijewelry

Twitter: https://twitter.com/BadaliJewelry

For more pictures of my Badali purchases, follow me on Instagram!

New Tees from Pop Up Tee!

I'm a sucker when it comes to buying t-shirts from Pop Up Tee; every now and then, I peruse the website to see what new designs are available. While I was in love with every design they currently have up, two really stood out: Hobbit Nightmare and Starry Middle-earth – I had wanted the latter for awhile, but waited too long and it disappeared from the site last time.  Now that it was back, I couldn't miss out on it a second time!

Hobbit Nightmare

Starry Middle-earth

Most impressive was the fact that I ordered these two shirts about two days ago, and they arrived earlier this morning. They felt a bit starchier than other shirts I have ordered, but once I took them out of the packaging and tried them on they immediately began to soften up. I didn't want to take them off!

**A tip for Pop Up Tee shoppers: be sure to try multiple queries in the search bar in order to see all available designs; I usually try the obvious Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, but sometimes typing in specific characters' names will bring up even more results.**