DIY - 3 HOLIDAY "IN-A-JAR" GIFTS

You guys, I'm such a sucker for "in-a-jar" gifts. Remember Christmas in a Jar? And Dreams in a Jar? Here are 3 more fun ideas for the holidays that you can make yourself...

• Party in a Jar
• Brownies in a Jar
• Gift Card in a Jar

They're the perfect gift for teachers, neighbors and hostesses, don't you think? Which one is your favorite?

STOCKING STUFFERS FROM UNCOMMON GOODS

1. Dinner Party Guest Book; 2. Love Letter Napkins; 3. Woolzies Dryer Balls; 4. Caterpillar Bud Vase; 5. Lumen LED Shadow Projectors; 6. Aquamarine Branch Ring; 7. Salts of the World Test Tube Set; 8. Soup and Crackers Bowl; 9. Make Your Own Ukulele Kit  

10. Bimodal Architectural Blocks; 11. Agate Coasters; 12. Carve A Stamp Kit; 13. Marimo Moss Ball Light Bulb Aquarium; 14. A Tree Grows Necklace; 15. Wine Pairing Towel Set; 16. What I Love About You By Me Book; 17. Wooden Martini Glasses; 18. Tipping Teacup

19. Wine-o-saur Wine Bottle Holder; 20. Flavor Infuser Water Bottle; 21. Baby Milestone Cards; 22. Geometric Candles; 23. Line Posters; 24. Real Sugar Maple Leaf Night Light; 25. DIY Lip Balm Kit; 26. Magnetic Flower Vase; 27. Stitch The Stars Calendar

Maybe this year, my stocking will be filled with prezzies from Uncommon Goods. They truly have the best selection around if you're looking for unique designer items and custom products. I rounded up 27 of my favorite gifts, for the gals, the guys, and the babes, all small enough to fit inside a stocking.... okay, maybe an extra large stocking.

I really like to support Uncommon Goods. They're based in Brooklyn, and not only do they work with independent artists and designers (half of what they sell are handmade and one-third of their products are recycled/upcycled), but since they're a B-corp, they meet rigorous standards of social and environmental performance and accountability. Good people, good practices, good products. And I love how they want our input on the items them carry.

Do you do stockings at your house? What goodies would you like to see in yours?

12 Clever Gift Wrapping Techniques

NOV15

In our house, the way a gift is wrapped is every bit as impor­tant as what’s inside. All the fun is in the antic­i­pa­tion! Here are 12 orig­i­nal gift wrap­ping ideas and tech­niques to get you inspired.

All of the tuto­ri­als are from the Finnish blog Oh Pack­age!, one of our new favorite go-to sites for cre­ative pack­ag­ing ideas. Be sure to check out the fab gift wrap and sup­plies in the online shop as well!

Now let’s get wrapping…

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #1: Mul­ti­color Twine KnotsIt’s so fun to col­lect col­or­ful baker’s twine that you end up with far more than needed for cook­ing. Plus who wants to get turkey juice on candy-striped bak­ers twine? It’s too pretty for that! So why not dress up a card­board box or Kraft paper with it? It looks so fes­tive that it works for almost any occasion.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #2: Washi Tape Mono­gramAny excuse to col­lect rolls of col­or­ful Washi tape is a good one. What a great, easy way to per­son­al­ize a package—and you get to avoid wor­ry­ing with a tag.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #3: Braided YarnWho knew a sim­ple weave of yarn could look so mod­ern? Get­ting the recip­i­ent to bust through this pretty pack­ag­ing will take some convincing.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #4: Pin­wheel BowPin­wheels are one of those child­hood sym­bols that never loose their magic, and they trump a plain old bow any day. In this tuto­r­ial, the process for cre­at­ing one is shown in just two photos—and once again, you get to make use of more pretty notions: buttons!

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #5: Folded Paper & Twine
This tech­nique looks impres­sively hard, but it’s really super easy! Just fold the paper as shown in the easy-to-follow tuto­r­ial, tape the sides, and presto!—another clever alter­na­tive to a bow.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #6: Sil­ver Foil & Paper Cuts
You can cre­ate pack­ag­ing wor­thy of the MoMA store with these hand­made angels paired with del­i­cate sil­ver twine. The sweet lit­tle cake paper is the per­fect touch too!

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #7: Cookie Cut­ter Tags
Acces­soriz­ing a larger gift with a mini gift is a fun way to hint at what’s inside or give a trin­ket that will be cher­ished, but is per­haps too small to be wrapped. Attrac­tive cook­ing uten­sils, orna­ments, or toys also work great.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #8: Baker’s Twine Snowflake
This awe­some tuto­r­ial shows you how to shape an elab­o­rate snowflake design with pins and baker’s twine. Sprin­kle the pack­age with a few cutout dots and you’re set with one beau­ti­ful bundle.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #9: Baker’s Twine Pom-Pom
In five easy steps Oh Pack­age! shows you how to use a fork and some twine to fash­ion a fes­tive Pom-Pom. Why stop with only one when they’re this easy to make?

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #10: Cross-Stitch Gift Tag
Another great alter­na­tive to the ordi­nary gift tag. All presents would ben­e­fit from this heart­warm­ing touch.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #11: Washi Tape Can­dle Card
What a great project for lit­tle ones to do next time you attend a birthday—it’s a gift all on it’s own.

DIY Gift Wrap Idea #12: Tis­sue Paper Pom-PomNext time you want to go really bold, for­get the yarn and go straight to the tis­sue paper. This tuto­r­ial shows you how to make one big and beau­ti­ful pack­age topper.

For more great ideas on pack­ag­ing gifts, be sure to check out the Oh Pack­age! blog!

Christmas Ice Cubes

 Freeze berries and rosemary sprigs into ice cubes and you added a festive touch to every drink!

I used little plastic cups, but any ice cube tray will do.

Add berries and rosemary to half-full plastic cups or ice cube trays and then top them off once they’re frozen. Ideally use filtered water, then you will get clear ice cubes! Serve in champagne or your favorite Christmas cocktail.

Crunch the candy, dip the rim of the glass in lemon juice, then dip it in the candy sprinkles.

For more holiday cheer, check out this awesome cranberry cake… and these marshmallow diamonds!

Not food but still awesome are these holiday greeting tags, a camera strap giveaway and a string art Christmas tree!

Be inspired and have a wonderful day!

Christmas Cards

Madly in love with these illustrated holiday cards from the wild and creative imagination of miss Laura Berger. I'm fairly certain we'd be friends in real life.

Are you planning to send out holiday cards this year? We're taking some photos tonight. Which means, if all goes according to schedule, they might actually arrive in mailboxes before the New Year! That would be a first for us.


{Images by Laura Berger}

SCANDINAVIAN CHRISTMAS

Hanging stars, antler chandeliers, rustic wood piles, flickering candles, clean white walls and minimal trees. Scandinavian Christmas homes never cease to inspire.


{Images 1 and 3 via Femina; 2 and 4-10 via My Scandinavian Home}

Celebrating the big 4 !

It all started with someone discussing a cooking hobby over the internet – introducing me to a blog… How excited I was when my first blog was put out there. I waited hours on end to hit the re-fresh button, waiting for some people out there to come and read, comment, criticize, slander, love what I write …! The journey started there… And then it has been a no looking back kind of a game. Each experience  amounting to a dash of frantic typing, hitting back space, re-typing and then editing, finding pictures, scouting for content which readers love.

The best kind of blog posts have been those which have been straight from the heart, ….The Cherry Eyed Sherpa I still remember writing this in one shot … and without editing putting it out there. I cannot imagine having to change any one of those words on the world wide web… I meant every word I have said. And then to get all those amounts of emails from all of you sharing similar stories and experiences makes me feel special, that I have a gift of words, which I should put to some greater good.

I was laughed at and ridiculed for obsessing over my blog… spending way too much time I could have used in maybe making some money, cause a blog is for the passionate, not for those who think money is the end goal of spending time on something. And then there are those out of the blue calls from a friend in the middle of the night telling you how she saw Wilderness as a reference for a post by someone in Australia !!! Like when did the 3^rd world become an inspiration to the 1^st world ??

Today, I am going to be short on words… today is about Thanking you all for reading, commenting, emailing, facebooking, twittering and all those modes of communicating and reaching out to me. Encouraging me to use my idle time and just writing !

DELICIOUS NON-ALCOHOLIC DRINKS

Earlier this year I decided to stop drinking. I was never much of a drinker in the first place, That said, I still enjoy the act of having a festive “drink” when I’m out with friends celebrating something. So instead of drinking what everyone else is having, I have learned to ask bartenders about mocktails or anything they can make easily without adding alcohol. Those requests have led to some of the most deliciousdrinks I’ve ever had , so I decided to share some of my favorite non-alcoholic drink recipes for anyone looking to mix up something special for end-of-the-summer celebrations. Served in a punch bowl, these can be great drinks for anyone at a party (including younger guests) but you can easily dress them up in a fancy coupe with a garnish for older guests who want something that looks a little more sophisticated. I hope you’ll enjoy these drinks as much as I do! 

Image above: Chelsea Fuss’ Elderflower Drink is as summery as it gets. 

Click through for all of my favorite mocktails after the jump!

Lemon Thyme Lemonade: Helen from Tartlette shared a delicious recipe for a summer lemonade that gets an extra boost of flavor from fresh thyme.

Sarsaparilla Strawberry Float: I love a strawberry drink and this recipe from Anton Nocito is a fresh, summery spin on one of my favorite treats: an ice cream float. The post includes a recipe for a sauce you can add that uses alcohol, but you can easily leave it off for a non-alcoholic drink.

Almond Joy Milkshake: For those of you who want something a little more decadent, Top Chef’s Spike Mendelsohn shared his recipe for a rich Almond Joy-inspired milkshake. This would be a delicious way to end a backyard BBQ!

Kumquat Spritzer: The Kitchn created one of my favorite mocktails that uses kumquat to add a dash of super fresh, super citrus flavor.

Chai Blossom: I love the taste of chai any time of year. This recipe from Bon Appetit makes it a bit more summery by using chai tea bags, lemon and lime.

Strawberry Basil Soda: The Kitchn also created this refreshing strawberry basil soda that reminds me of being a little kid again. The flavors are sweet but not too sweet and the basil is a nice counterbalance to the fruit.