Getting {a little} Carried Away - A {little} Giveaway!

As a good Southern girl, Vera {Bradley} has been a part of my life since adolescence. I had a number of patterns and smaller pieces in the early years, but I think the collection officially started in 1999 with Red Coin.....Blaine's mom gave me the classic Duffel and Garment Bag my first Christmas as his girlfriend; my mom added to the collection and I still use the pieces today, nearly 12 years later {which is part of the beauty of Vera Bradley, the distinct look is rather timeless and since most pieces are machine washable, they truly stand the test of travels}.

{Thought it would be tough to find the name of my first Vera,
but her website has a fun "find your first pattern" tool here!}

Since Red Coin, I've added pieces of Vera for various uses and the Peanut has started her own Vera Bradley collection, so I was thrilled when The Cottage Collection at The Grey Fox called to ask little 'ole me to try out the Get Carried Away Tote. I selected the Twirly Birds Pink pattern {in memory of Marsha jump-starting my addiction collection; 10% of net proceeds from the sale of Twirly Birds Pink are donated to the Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast Cancer and other breast cancer projects/services}.

The tote, measuring 18 1/4 x 15 1/2 x 7 1/2, is perfectly sized for truly getting CARRIED AWAY {which is my specialty...ask Tax Man}. The bag has quickly become a favorite, and I've happily tried out a number of "carried away" uses.

First, the tote carried us off to the pool - full of every imaginable necessity, with plenty of room to spare.

1. Two beach towels

2. Sunscreen
3. Wet Happened Bag {with dry clothes in the above image, replaced with wet suits post-pool}
4. Honest Ade for me {have you tried these? delish alternative to the 1/2-1/2 Chik-fil-a tea to which I'm addicted}
5. LE's water bottle {drinks fitting nicely in the interior, plastic-lined pockets which keep them from making other items in the bag wet}
6. Ample supply of pool toys
7. LE's hat and classic jelly shoes for around the pool prancing
8. The latest issue of Coastal Living {I didn't get to read it...I was at the pool, alone with my nearly three year-old, what was I thinking?}

The tote zips closed beautifully to hold all the contents inside, or those little flaps can stay tucked inside to be a bit more like a bucket bag....which was a great option to hold the "carried away" teacher gifts we took to LE's teachers today {on her last day of her first year of preschool!}.

1. LE's post-school Moo Moo Milk {in that same plastic-lined pocket I mentioned above}
2. A Happy Everything Mini with Sinful Brownies for the beloved music teacher
3. 2, "A Thyme to Celebrate" cookbooks with monogrammed aprons and Sinful Brownies for the two ladies that will always hold the special title of our girl's first teachers}
4. Target return {which is still sitting in the bag, traveling back-and-forth to my car each morning}.

Speaking of, my favorite use of the Tote has been as a back-door catchall, to carry away the daily necessities. Each day takes us to school, to Nana and Papa's house, on playdates or to classes, to work and/or on a number of errands, and though we no longer need a diaper bag {Hallelujah!}, we do have a thousand items that need to go out the door with us. Get Carried Away sits by the back door, ready to be loaded each evening with the next day's needs. It also has grand travel plans for the summer - to be Carried Away on a number of beach trips, to be Carried Away on LE's first trip to NYC and in the meantime....

My little bag lady stuffs it full with her own daily necessities {you know, plastic ice cream sandwiches and wooden doughnuts, beads and baubles, books and stuffed animals}.

{Keep in mind she is a Peanut, but this photo nicely demonstrates the bag's vast size}.

Here are my suggestions for you:

• If you are local, head over to The Cottage Collection at The Grey Fox {206 E 6th Avenue} to get yourself Carried Away {the bag retails for $88}. While you are there, you will likely be tempted {just like me} by the Stephen Bonanno Sandals, the vast Pandora collection, the precious kids' gifts and toys from Melissa & Doug, Hatley and many others.
• Click HERE to like The Cottage Collection at The Grey Fox, so you are among the first to know about things like: the Summer Sale, which started today and features 25% off retiring patterns and styles
• If you are family member or Tax Man, make note that I'd love to expand my collection to include the Rolling Luggage pieces from Vera :)

And, why should I get to have all the fun? Let's Get Carried Away with a little giveaway! Leave me a quick comment about your own first Vera Bradley pattern or the locale where you would like to Get Carried Away to this summer, and LE will randomly select one of you to receive a $25 gift certificate to The Cottage Collection at The Grey Fox, so you have a little something to put towards your own Vera collection! The official drawing takes place on Wednesday, June 1, so be sure you leave a comment by midnight on Tuesday, May 31, 2011.

Fine Print Disclosure: Spinning Through Life is a personal blog written and edited by me. The contents of this blog are purely my own opinion. I received complimentary Vera Bradley product from The Cottage Collection at The Grey Fox in exchange for my honest review and feedback of the product.