When the weather outside is frightful. (We got a foot of snow last weekend!)

Embriodered mittens 5 ($100) by dadaya
Housemade peppermint hot chocolate mix ($10) by Edible Dreams

Kimono embroidered sweater ($120) by Jo’s Knits for Kids
Golden lace diamond point shawl ($98) by K G Krafts

In-line fleece scarf ($19.50) by foil
Ruby red dotted baby booties ($34) by pedrosprout

Belgian chocolate spoons, set of 12 ($15) by Nicole’s Homemade Treats
Victorious afghan ($315) by Spiffy Spooner

Fiona and her cub ($35) by Creative Thursday
Porcelain tealight Delight N3 design ($35) by Wapa Studio

Next Wednesday, I want to share some of the handmade items that I bought for my friends and family for Christmas. It’s been so hard to keep quiet!

I’m going home, sort of, for Thanksgiving – not to my childhood home, but to my sister’s house which is not too far away from where I grew up. This time of year is very evocative for me. We would pile into the station wagon (all seven of us) and drive 6 hours to visit my grandmothers in Milwaukee every year.

At one grandmother’s house, we played bocce. Inside. I can still hear those balls banging against the hall doors. We drank a seemingly unlimited supply of soda, got to eat those little boxes of cereal, played games and built towering structures with blocks all weekend long with our rowdy cousins.

At my other grandmother’s house, we sat quietly and ate Thanksgiving dinner. After I finished eating, I would read back issues of Reader’s Digest or admire the delicate items in my grandmother’s china cabinet.

And the day after Thanksgiving? Bowling. Bowling for dollars.

So, today’s handmade picks are inspired both by my childhood home (a farm, with several big red barns, a corn field and lots of pets running around), and by memories of my grandmothers’ homes and many years of fun-filled Thanksgivings.

Old Barn, 8 x 12″ photograph ($30) by Jude McConkey
Long Sleeve Chicken Baby Tee  ($17) by Silk Oak
Chevy Station Wagon, letterpress set of 5 cards ($12) by Pistachio Press
Upcycled Cereal Box Tote Bag ($38) by It’s Our Earth
Soda Pop, Series of 3 Prints, Limited Edition ($50) by Color Box Design
Box with Secret Compartment from Readers Digest Book ($35) by Hooligan Sisters
Organic Building Blocks ($22) by Little Sapling Toys
Red Bowling Set ($34) by Green Bee Goods

For all of you in the US, I hope you have a great holiday. See you back here on Monday!

The first day of school is (EEK!) Tuesday! I’ve been thinking a lot about routines and how to get (and stay!) organized. I’d been toying with the idea of designing a daily routine poster to remind the girls of the things they need to do each day, so I was happy to find these free printable Morning Routine cards by Amy Locurto of Living Locurto over at One Pretty Thing:

This is a good start – I need all four of these cards (which come in pink/green too). Although, now that I think about it, my kids do these in the exact opposite order.

I also need afternoon cards. She has a routine chart here (also yours free to print):

I need a chart with the dreaded H word, which comes after the snack.

I need evening cards too:

- Pick out an outfit for tomorrow (more on this in a minute)
- Get your backpack together (remember your library book, permission slip, lunch money, etc.)
- Pick up the toys and clothes in your room
- Pajamas on, brush your teeth
- Read a story, lights out

Ok, I guess I do need to put together a daily routine poster.

Incidentally, here’s another great organizing idea from Living Locurto: free printable days of the week hanger tags to help sort out a week’s worth of outfits for your kids. I like this idea because my kids have a ton of clothes, and they tend to want to wear the same two or three outfits over and over again. So, picking out a week’s worth gently encourages them to try new outfits.

If you’re on Twitter, you can follow Living Locurto @LivingLocurto and One Pretty Thing @OnePrettyThing.

I hope you have a great holiday weekend! See you back here on Tuesday.

I wanted to scream like a little girl in a candy store when I saw this do-it-yourself papel picado banner on Style Me Pretty.

Pure. Genius.

We gringos see elaborate ones in Mexican restaurants, or for Day of the Dead celebrations, but you can make them yourself with a few easy-to-find craft supplies. You will still be a gringo, though.

Just think: pretty decorations for a party, a unique way to brighten your kid’s bedroom, or even tiny ones for a dollhouse.

Click here for the full instructions (though it’s pretty easy to figure out on your own, I think).

On an unrelated note: Karin is taking a break for awhile, so you chumps guys are stuck with just me for awhile. But hopefully I can keep you entertained, interested and coming back.

Happy Monday!

Time to get a new clock.

Our kitchen clock went kaput. Finito. It’s toast. And apparently I need to replace it because I look at the empty space on the wall (out of habit) about 20,000* times a day.

*approximately

So, here’s a little clock round-up, in case you too are in the market.

The Doily clock by and furthermore,

The Cosmic Clock at Chiasso:

The Bouquet clock by decoylab (I really like her fun cuckoo clocks too):

The Petal Links Modern wall clock by PILOTdesign:

The Bengt Ek Clock, at Scandanavian Design Center:

And this one is my favorite – the Pendulum Number 6 clock by Oliver Hemming. You can get it at Unica Home:

Bonus Saturday post!

I dig this table and chairs from Way Basics. For $135, it’s stylish, requires no tools, is made of 99% recycled materials, and is recyclable. You can choose from several colors, or something very neutral.

I also really like these spinning cubes for storage (they come in espresso, if you’re not into the colors):

I will be hawking baked goods for my daughter’s co-operative preschool all day today. I’ll have photos of the pretty packages for you on Crafty Monday, with links to my inspirations.

If you wanted to, you could buy me this Offi Scando coffee table (note the handy magazine pocket/crumb catcher/built-in matchbox car ramp):

Other expensive things you could buy me include (but are not limited to), this Lollipop Blossom rug from Anthropologie:

The Tate bed from Crate and Barrel

And Goldiehome bedding from 2Modern:

Next Wednesday’s requests: yachts, the Hope Diamond, and a majority stake in Abu Dhabi’s hotel industry.

I really want an updated, modern rug for my living room, and I drool like a baby over this Jonathan Adler “Plume” rug:

Here’s a slightly (only slightly) cheaper way to get essentially the same pattern into my house – these Jill Rosenwald “Swag” plates:

Just as soon as I win the lottery.

I am really itching to repaint our dining room. As you may have seen, we’ve got a lovely deep dark orange wall and accents, but I am so sick of the orange…and in an old row house with only a few side windows, it makes for a pretty dark room. I would love to paint it a white or a cream, or maybe try a new accent color that feels new and fresh…something like this….

This is our kitchen and dining area. The kitchen is somewhat newer and, while not my taste, it is respectable…but the place has some basic flow problems that make it a source of constant frustration and which cause us to go visiting open houses every weekend, in search of the perfect open family friendly space. We love our neighborhood, but we don’t love the railroad car feel of the space… People are always sitting on the kitchen floor.
So recently we’ve been thinking about fixing the layout of our kitchen – removing the rest of that dividing wall and making a more open space with a bar height counter and shelving underneath. I’d also like to paint the cabinets white and change the back door to increase the light.

Some inspiration shots: