Merry Christmas

A little "New Yawk" shout out of holiday wonders on this Very Merry Christmas.  I will not be blogging this last week in December as I'll be curled up fireside with family and friends but will return Jan. 2.  

“I believe. I believe. It’s silly, but I believe.”

Miracle on 34^th St. (1947)

Festive door in the Village, getting a floral delivery. Sat morning

 Lovely Lincoln Center when hitting The Nutcracker.  Friday night. 

Rockefeller tree.  Monday night.  

Live large, 

Frances 

Crafty Christmas

I can't seem to stop myself. It's Christmas Eve so I need to back away from the Visa.  That said, there's a few more cool gifts that deserve a shout-out.  Bookmark'em for the friends in new year.

Personalized really cool necklace.  Spotted this year at the Martha Stewart Holiday Party,  this cool necklace lets you do the customizing.   

And a little something from hand knitted for your favorite doggie... and with a tag this cute, who cares about the present?  Both from AHM Design

Lastly, handmade stuffed pet portraits by Sian Keegan.  Like 3D art, these adorable creations bring art alive. 

Enjoy the magic of Christmas Eve.  Remember there are no strangers on this magical night. 

Live large, 

Frances

Return to Sender

Last week, an envelope caught my eye when sorting through the mail.  My clever friend, Allison Dewine, a magazine food editor friend turned Whole Foods recipe developer, had sent me a card with an adorable return address label on it.  Newly married, she was letting her Christmas card recipients know her new address, having moved after the wedding this summer. Normally, I tend to glaze over return labels as a bit too cutesy for me but this was more clever than cute.  Her label got me thinking about other alternatives to make the labels as cool as the card.


Check out this chic rubber stamp as an alternative to illegible script.   Primele Studio on Etsy that run $64 each.

And another one, Paper Finger, who offers 8 different calligraphy styles to choose from at $65 a pop.  I spotted this a few days ago at Gap's Cool Hunting Shop on Fifth Avenue when hitting the Amy Sedaris book signing for her latest (hilarious) book.

One of my favorite stationery shops is Rock Paper Scissors based in lovely Franklin, Tn.  They sell a great rubber stamp for only $28.   Check'em out

And they come in a cool modern font like this...

I had one of these made when I moved a few years ago from Kate's Paperie.    One word of advise from a gal who messed up one too many envelopes, practice using your stamp and use a well inked pad.  You just need a few dry runs to make a pretty stamp.



Live large,
Frances

ps. Thanks, Dewine, for the inspiration!

Personalize it

I always feel badly for folks who share a birthday with Jesus.  Some of my very favorite people in the world are born this month and yet, everyone gets so caught up in Christmas and New Year's Eve that these birthdays can get pushed aside.   Getting them something personalized means in the middle of the holiday chaos, you thought of them.  It takes more effort to do one of these gifts but they're worth it.  Here's a few things to consider...

Monogrammed vase from Maidofclay.com's etsy shop. 

Custom silhouette image from Jenny Lee Fowler's etsy shop also charm me. Sure, silhouettes have had their day but she does modern takes on this traditional art at a great price point.

Another way to say "I didn't forget you, Miss December birthday" is ordering up some of these yummy cookies from Flourpot cookies  Adorable, to hand out at a birthday lunch.  

Or a personalized wooden bangle or bowl from Paloma's Nest.  (Don't worry, year can be excluded if you stop counting at 30).  

Or consider a custom watercolor of their home, if that is their pride and joy.  

Or of their beloved pooch from Doghouse Pet Portraits.  This artist's work feels fresh and captures each dog's spirit.  

Or personalized stationery from Rifle Paper Co.

Now go order the cake...

Live large,
Frances

Taking Hot Chocolate at Tiffany's

Last weekend among the masses of tourists making their way down Fifth Avenue, I stumbled into Tiffany's to use up a gift certificate that was about to expire.  It's fallen off my radar the last few years so the visit felt more like a "to do" than fun shopping experience. Maybe I felt like they had sold out and were now making everything in China or maybe it just felt too mass but it wasn't me.  That said, I found myself going past the nice greeters to complete my mission with low expectations and a growing headache.

My favorite things at the store isn't the famous diamond department or the Paloma Picasso sterling silver giftware but instead up on the fourth floor in the china department.  They've got classic patterns like the basketwork that just seem to stand the test of time.  Case in point, their holiday china. Maybe it's a southern thing but holiday china does help get me in the spirit.

As soon as I entered the floor, the shop felt different than on prior visits... fresher... they had a festive tableau that set the stage and the atmosphere felt genuinely celebratory.

Staff was handing out hot chocolate with Tiffany blue marshmallows in Tiffany labeled cups and served them with pretty cookies. Shoppers rejoiced! What a change from grumpy staffs and sale racks found at other such shops.  From the patient staff to the extra touches, they were working hard to make the experience feel special and it worked.

Unexpectedly pleased, I found the store to be a real gem and look forward to a return trip.  Maybe next visit they'll be serving breakfast.

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Foodie gifts

Wanna take your stocking stuffers up a notch or have that last minute gift ready for the hard to buy for friend?  Consider the world's greatest kimchi?  Armed with a hilarious name, it's got great packaging but the real pleasure is the product-so good!  

Last year from the impressive David Stark I got Frankie's Olive Oil and it's become my instant crowd pleaser.  Before, my standby was the Whole Foods brand and while I've dabbled in the good stuff, I was never propelled to buy till now.  It's $27 dollars worth of greatness. 

Bloody Mary mix is a nice way gift to balance out all the sweets of the season.  In the South where Christmases aren't always cold, we've been known to pour a few over that holiday week and even better if there's good football on the tube.  McClure's has the richness that store bought versions normally don't have.  

Hands down, the Best Pickle I Have Ever Had.  The jar is huge and the pickles are serious.  

But if you really just need a little something pretty or small to stuff in that old stocking, consider the Mast Chocolate bars. They are gorgeously wrapped in beautiful papers but even better, they taste as great as they look.  Handmade in Brooklyn by brothers who look like they front some indie band, they've gotten a ton of buzz but for once, it's worth it. 

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Gifts that Matter

Having just posted about the worst gifts of 2010, I thought I'd highlight my favorite gift catalogue of the season, no, make that the year.   While not every gift can be lasting and well thought out, it does help to have a resource that gives you options on price points and hits different passions to have as a go-to for gift giving.  For me, it's the World Vision Catalog.  


This holiday, consider this amazing site for your gift giving needs. So well done, it allows you to customize your gifts for the recipient's interests.  Got a friend who is a teacher or has a heart for education?  For $32 (that would be 2 terrible bacon wallets from my worst gift list) buys education for one child for one year by providing school uniforms, books, supplies and school fees.  


Into sports?  Consider spending $16 (that's 3 large lattes at Starbucks) to buy 2 soccer balls for kids that provides endless pleasure to kids who have so little.   Got someone in your life who truly has everything?  Consider spending $16 for 2 chickens which provide food via their eggs for whole families and money from the sale of extra eggs.  The list goes on and on... from poverty to social justice, your donation buys something concrete which goes to solve the problem. 


Talk about a gift the keeps giving.... 


It's easy to make a buck.  It's a lot tougher to make a difference.  ~Tom Brokaw



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Worst Gifts of 2010 Award

There were many contenders for Worst Gift 2010.   

First, there was the "Mr. T in your pocket" gadget.  It's actually a keychain that speaks Mr T's famous phrases.   What I say to this?  "I pity the fool... who buys this thing."

The second contender is the inflatable turkey.  There's not much more to say to this. It does nothing nor says anything.  It's simply a blowup turkey.  Why people?? 

The next contender is the bacon wallet.  Bacon, it seems, is having its moment in the world of gag gifts. I found bacon bandaids, bacon breath mints and bacon teeth floss. One is grosser than the next.  This wallet is especially gross because it really looks like slabs of raw bacon.  Think Lady Gaga at the VMAs.  I asked then and I say now, "Why?" (again)

This one actually has merit as it fixes things but honestly, it's not 1890 when everyone had one pair of undies.   For what this kit costs, you can get your man several new pairs. Splurge, people. 

The final contender for the worst gift of 2010 is this.  Words escape me.  Who are the people buying this stuff??    Who does one give such a gift to?  All the "cool kid" stores in NYC are carrying this yet I don't get it.  At all.  I'd get more pleasure from taking a Benjamin and flushing it down the toilet.  

Santa, I sure hope I don't find any of this stuff in my stocking. 

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That's a wrap!

I have wrap envy. While I own scores of beautiful papers and ribbons, the act of wrapping always evades me. I can do it for a shoot. And like many young girls, actually did that as a job to earn some extra money in high school yet today, it's more like slap on a tag on a brown bag and call it a day.  If Heidi Klum was rating my packages, I'd be asked to leave the runway.

Poor friends and family have been relegated to back of the bus, with presents looking more like a middle school child did them that adult with more style than she shows when gifting. So imagine my glee when one of my favorite stores, Anthropologie, started offering gift wrap this season.  Check out their facebook page for a fun video on ways to dress a present.

Here's a few other ideas :

Let the tag do the talkin' for you...

REALLY love this. Feels modern and fresh and you have to have a steady hand to cut the names out but the beauty is in it's simplicity. It's also a great way to use up that last little bit of paper that we all have.

With the onslaught of packing and Japanese tapes at craft stores, there's really no excuse to not dedazzle something this season.   This idea from Paul Lowe is nice because it uses the cylinder shape.

Paul gives really good ideas here too.  Blow up your child's artwork for personalized wrapping or use a beautiful image from a magazine.  Use old books (never tire of this one) or get a vintage silhouette from etsy or ebay and use. This involves advance planning so not so good for those of us who like to wrap on Dec. 24.  The office supply stores sells those tags for almost nothing.  Or cut out using scissors (old school) or tag maker (new school) in matching material.

Kate's Paperie has had a high bar in wrapping for years.   They really are artists in their creations.  I especially like this super-simple-yet-so-pretty number.

My favorite. Maybe it's because I just had my 20 year high school reunion but blowing up the yearbook and covering the box gets a laugh from the recipient before they even open the box.  That's always a good start.

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White Christmas

While red and green may get all the glory, an all white Christmas is powerful in it's cleanness.  Here's a few more simple holiday decorating ideas to prove the point.

So elegant and yet homespun... 

Really easy to execute (store bought iced cookies + some ribbon but sure effective). Thanks, Donna Hay!

Sometimes it's the small things we do that make holiday entertaining special.  It may be the same cocktail but you've got cool ice tree molds, for instance.  

Another simple, pretty placecard idea. 

Add a little jingle jingle to the door.  Don't you want to know when Santa comes in?

Check out the beautiful Rockefeller Tree, picture taken last night. Love the "old camera" app.  Check it out if you have an iPhone.

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To Wreath or Not to Wreath

Wreaths are a hallmark of Christmas decor and a simple instant seasonal hit.  Good news? They don't require ornaments or some big installation or much hoopla. In fact, my favorite versions are rather plain janes until you hang'em.


Case in point, this gorgeous boxwood square number from Frontgate.  It also comes in a round version for you purists.  $79 and up

The Magnolia Company has classic magnolia wreaths that sing with simpleness. $59 and up

This wild version needs a slightly masculine or simple interior. $50 and up

Leave it up to Williams-Sonoma to have a chic one as well.  $29.95 and up

None of these jazzy enough for you?  Check out this silver painted one from Magnolia Company too.  Hang with a bright red or turquoise thick ribbon to add some pop.  The red version was part of the White House decorations in 2009.  $123 and up  

HSN is fast becoming my favorite online retailer. It's crazy all they carry.... Check out party planner to stars, Colin Cowie's white faux wreath that's on a timer!  $79 and up

Happy hangin'!

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