Made in the USA: Reasons to Love The Pampered Chef

I have always loved The Pampered Chef and recently I found one more reason to love them.  After arriving in Alaska, my loaf pan broke.  This is the pan I bake all of my bread in.  The entire end broke off.  I was a little more than bummed.  Then, my sister (she’s in high school!) informed me that it has a 3 year warranty. What?!

Yes!  Your Pampered Chef stoneware has a 3 year warranty.  They will replace your stoneware if it breaks within 3 years.  This information made my day!

So how do you get a replacement if your stoneware breaks?

To get a replacement, all you need to do is find your sales receipt (if you still have it) and give The Pampered Chef a call.  I did not have my receipt, but they were able to help me look it up.

This part is important!  Next, you need to mail The Pampered Chef a chunk of your broken stoneware.  If you don’t mail it in, you will be patiently waiting for a package that will never arrive.  I may or may not know from experience. =)  The woman who took my replacement order forgot to tell me that I needed to mail a chunk in.

After The Pampered Chef receives your chunk (at least the size of your palm), they will ship you your replacement pan!  Here is my new pan (and my broken one)!

Oh, and I forgot to mention, these pans are made in the USA!  That’s just icing on the cake.  (hehe) So spoil yourself and spend the few extra dollars on the real thing.  You get what you pay for.  And you get delicious results like this!

The Pampered Chef has not offered me any compensation for this post.  I am just a loyal customer.

Made in the USA: Check Your Cup!

Go ahead, I will wait!  Check the bottom of your Starbucks paper cup, it’s made in the USA!  Actually, it might be best to drink your coffee before you check, otherwise you might end up with a hot lap.

It didn’t even occur to me to check things like this, you know, these little things we consume regularly but we are not actually conciously buying.  We buy the coffee, but we don’t think about buying the cup too.

I discovered this little tidbit of information the other day while cleaning snow off the bottom of my cup after taking pictures of my new coffee cup cozies that are now available in my shop.  So enjoy your cup of Starbucks a little bit more knowing that your neighbor made that cup.  And while you’re at it, pick up a new cozy for that cup!

 

 

 

 

 

Made in the USA: Crayons and a Coloring Book

As my New Year’s resolution for 2013, I am only buying new items that are made in the USA.  I will keep you up-to-date with all the great items I find.

We went to Target today to pick up a few things and just look around.  We walked through the bargain section and immediately, Ava spots an Elmo coloring book.  I don’t know what it is about Elmo.  She doesn’t watch that much TV to even really know who he is, but when she spots him, she goes crazy.  The coloring book was only $1.00 and I have no problem spending a little money to foster her creativity.  My worry was that it was made in China and I would have to tell her no.  I picked it up, and much to my surprise, it’s made in the USA!  I couldn’t believe it.  So Elmo came home with us.

We haven’t bought her any crayons yet, so we needed a pack for her to color in her new coloring book.  I was unsure about these too.  We checked out a basic 8-pack of Crayola crayons.  They are made here too!  Be careful with the crayons.  We looked at an 8-pack of the large washable crayons and they were made in Mexico.  Why they’re not all made here completely blows my mind.

We looked at a sled, the trashcan lid style for Tony and me.  Hey, mommy and daddy want to have some fun too.  The sled was made in Maine.  We didn’t get the sled because its been very warm here (40 degrees) and a lot of the snow has melted and what’s left is just an icy slush.  As soon as it snows again, we will be picking one of these up.

Have you found any items made in the US that have surprised you?

A New Years Resolution for the USA

Like everyone else, I usually make a New Years resolution come January 1st.  I quit making resolutions relating to weight loss years ago, that’s a total joke.  But, for the past 2 years, I made resolutions that I was able to keep.

For 2011, my resolution was to not buy any clothing.  I had a closet overflowing with stuff that I never wore.  It was time I put those perfectly good clothes to use.  A few months into the year, I found out I was pregnant.  How would I make it through an entire pregnancy without buying anything?  I got lucky. Tony bought a storage unit that had a box full of brand new maternity clothes, IN MY SIZE!  2011 was a success!

My resolution for 2012 was to quit my job and stay home with my new baby before her first birthday (in November).  This may not sound like that big of a deal, but I was the only one working at the time.  I was determined to make it happen, no matter what.  Well guess what?  I was able to quit my job in mid-October.  We had to move to Alaska to make it happen, but I wouldn’t change a thing.  This move has defined us as a family.

So what is my New Years resolution for 2013? I will only buy items made in the USA.

I bought a pack of “thank you” notes at Fred Meyer a few weeks ago.  I wasn’t completely shocked to see that they were made in China.  But why?  How much more expensive would it really be to print paper “thank you” notes in the USA?  This got me thinking.  I know that I’m only one person and I really won’t make a huge difference, but what if more people started doing this.  What if US made products (they do still exist) started selling more and China made products started selling less?  What if?  Why not try to bring more jobs back to our neighbors, one purchase at a time.  I know that this idea is a little out there considering most Americans are obsessed with consuming.

So here are my rules:

• Anything purchased new must be made in the USA.  Assembled in the USA does not count.  It must be made here.
• I will allow myself to purchase items made anywhere if they are purchased second-hand or if I obtain them for free.  My reasoning behind this rule is that they have already been “consumed”.  I’m saving the item from the landfill and giving it a second life.
• Food does not count.  I will still purchase food items grown elsewhere.  I will choose US grown items over imports, but I’m not going to tell my toddler that she can’t eat bananas for an entire year.  I would have one very unhappy little girl.

I will post my progress regularly and showcase any awesome “Made in the USA” products I find along the way.

What do you think about my New Years resolution? Are you interested in joining my challenge?