{memory lane} this year in pictures

on this last day of 2011, i thought i'd do a little reminiscing. this year was incredible in so many ways - we went to london and pitkin and washington dc, celebrated three weddings and welcomed two new nieces and a nephew, moved halfway across the country and had tons of fun exploring our new city, sadly said goodbye to one sweet puppydog, went to a basketball game, a baseball game, and a football game, and spent as much time as we could with our amazing friends and family. i'm not sure that life gets too much better than this, but i'm excited to find out what 2012 has in store for us!

{wishing you the happiest of new years!}

{weekender} home for the holidays

hope you had a happy and safe holiday! we just got back from another long weekend in dallas. highlights included decorating cookies with our niece on christmas eve, visiting with old family friends, fancy champagne cocktails, and pub trivia with our nearest and dearest. we had a fantastic time, but we sure are happy to be home!

{happy holidays}

we're headed back to the lone star state for christmas -

here's wishing you all a very safe and happy holiday!

{may your days be merry and bright!}

{20 items or less} gift guide: the happy couple

so we all know that this is the most wonderful time of the year - but did you know that something like 26% of engagements happen in november and december? in fact, my mister proposed to me just six short years ago last week {whoa}. annnd one of my dearest friends {and college roomie} just recently got a shiny new gift from her beau! so since love is in the air, i've decided to share my twelve gift picks of christmas {all under $100!} for the newly-engaged {or newly-wed, or newly-cohabitating} couple in your life:

 1.hand-stamped vintage forks, $27; 2.turquoise tealights, $98; 3.ampersand, $32;

4.custom monogram embossing plate, $32; 5.desk embosser, $29

 6.custom mr. & mrs. luggage tags, $50; 7.rustic white cake pedestal, $14{!};

8.something blue shoe clips, $14; 9.hammam striped hand towels, $10-$17 each

10.ray & dawn mugs, $26 each; 11.bride & groom entertaining cookbook, $35;

12.tea for two tidbit plates, $42

happy shopping!

{20 items or less} gift guide: creative types

this one was easy for me - i'm a creative schizophrenic who loves design, photography, illustration, color, fashion, et cetera et cetera. i crave beautiful things and useful things and nothing excites me quite as much as a brand new box of crayons or a blank sketchbook. below are my twelve favorite gift picks of christmas {all under $100!} for the creative type in your life:

 1.handmade mini sketchbook, $7; 2.twig colored pencils, $38;

3.do something lovely chalkboard, $55; 4.pretty polaroid notecards, $10

 5.creative, inc., $11; 6.color appeel oil pastel crayons, $10;

7.chalkboard wall decal, $14; 8.la sardina lomography camera, $70;

9.magnetic color cubes, $16

10.typography paperweights, $8 each; 11.mad men: the illustrated world, $15;

12.double-sided tape measure bracelet, $16

happy shopping!

{20 items or less} gift guide: the hip hippie

chances are you know at least one eco-conscious individual, no? someone who recycles, shops locally, loves nature, wants to give peace a chance? {psst! just because they eat organic produce doesn't mean they don't like pretty things!} below, my twelve eco-lovely gift picks of christmas {all under $100!} for the hip hippie in your life:

1.agate coasters, $64 for 4; 2.darfur peace baskets, $30 each;

3.recycled glass hurricane, $78; 4.vintage leather belts, $29 each;

5.latex-free yoga mat, $23; 6.reusable shopping bag, $9

7.vintage book-covered ornaments, $6 each; 8.organic woodgrain towels, $6-$19;

9.olive wood serving set, $30; 10.recycled glass terrarium, $38;

11.recycled glass owl tumblers, $30 for 2; 12.reusable sandwich bag set, $16

happy shopping!

{local love} the denver zoo

i don't know if you know this about me or not, but i freaking love zoos. so it's actually kind of surprising that we haven't made it to the denver zoo until now. we went this afternoon and it was amazing - the zoo was completely deserted. it was just us and the animals {and okay maybe like five other people but that's it}. it was so...intimate. we saw lions eating lunch, tigers posing for pictures, hyenas napping, the cutest arctic fox ever, a monkey eating snow, grizzly bears impatiently awaiting dinnertime. there was only one otter but that's okay because there was totally a polar bear.

p.s. we can officially cross this off of our colorado bucket list!

{20 items or less} gift guide: new parents

i'm at that age when lots of my friends are having {or already have} babies, which is exciting and terrifying {does that mean we're grown-ups??} at the same time. i happen to know a few expectant parents right now, so i've come up with twelve gift picks of christmas {all under $100!} for the new mommies and daddies in your life!

1.chewbeads necklace set, $70; 2.baby's handprint kit, $38;

3.welcome baby beauty set, $30; 4.sterling silver charms, $42 each;

5.striped cashmere sleep mask, $44; 6.stress-diffusing candle, $32

7.dad's root beer, $27 for 12; 8.the baby owner's manual, $17;

9.hand-stamped keychain, $12; 10.manly-man diaper bag, $51;

11.father-son tee & onesie {father-daughter options also available} $50;

12.kiehl's energizing face wash, $18

happy shopping!

{20 items or less} gift guide: gift wrap

it's what's on the inside that counts, of course, but i'm certainly a sucker for pretty packaging {presentation is everything, right?}... with that in mind, i've rounded up my 12 picks of christmas {all under $15!} to make your holiday presents shine.

 1.christmas in the city paper, $10; 2.double-sided reindeer paper, $8;

3.candy canes paper, $8; 4.modern printable gift tags, $5

 5.letterpress hanukkah tags, $4; 6.menorah paper, $8; 7.animal doily sheet paper, $4;

8.snowflake paper {2 sheets with 4 gift tags}, $14

9.felted acorn gift tags, $10 for 3; 10.embellished pillow boxes, $8 for 2;

11.bakers twine, $3 for 20 yards; 12.gold striped washi tape, $5

happy shopping!

{local love} firefly handmade

hi friends! i'm taking a break from gift guides for a moment so i can tell you all about the incredible firefly handmade market i went to this weekend with my friend e: over seventy super-talented local artists selling their beautiful products in the stunning boulder museum of contemporary art building. three floors of handmade crafty goodness and endless inspiration {not to mention plenty of really fantastic gift ideas}. oh, and cupcakes!

{20 items or less} gift guide: furry friends

all year long our kitties give us cuddles and kisses and unconditional love {oh and endless entertainment}, so it's only fair to fill their tiny stockings at christmastime {even though all they really want is an empty cardboard box}... below i've rounded up my twelve gift picks of christmas {all under $40!} for the furry {or feathery/leathery/fishy/scaly} friends in your life:

 1.fresh breath cat treats, $8; 2.graphic cat mat, $3;

3.personalized ceramic bowl, $25; 4.pet-friendly seed bombs, $7 

5.coco elephant and 6.jerry giraffe chew toys, $15 each;

7.aromatherapy pet candles, $32 each; 8.canine blanc treats, $20

9.hand-painted bunny bowl, $11; 10.mulberry branch chew treats, $10;

11.modular fish hotel, $40; 12.carrot-roll horse treats, $10

happy shopping!

{20 items or less} gift guide: the fashionista

the best thing about the holidays {besides spending time with loved ones and making general merriment}? getting dressed up for holiday parties! below are my twelve gift picks of christmas {all under $100!} for the fabulous fashionista in your life {or maybe just for you?}:

1.nail lacquer trio, $42; 2.chain & stone statement earrings, $72;

3.versace for h&m belt, $99; 4.rhinestone-encrusted iphone case, $98;

5.ridiculously amazing berry suede pumps, $99

6.givenchy enamel bangles, $68 each; 7.crystal reindeer ring, $75;

8.fringed wallet, $60; 9.hello kitty compact mirror, $35;

10.faux fur cossack, $45; 11.100 years of fashion illustration, $40

12.armani exchange oversized sunglasses, $65

happy shopping!

{20 items or less} gift guide: calendars

i've never been big on calendars, but some of these are making me seriously rethink my philosophy...i've rounded up my twelve gift picks of christmas {all under $35!} for the calendar girls in your life:

1.booklet calendar, $11; 2.letterpress wall calendar, $28;

3.mini gallery calendar, $30; 4.botanical calendar, $28;

5.photographic desk calendar, $30; 6.harvest calendar, $22

7.modern desk calendar, $30; 8.geometric wall calendar, $32;

9.banner year calendar, $16; 10.perpetual calendar, $29;

11.landscape dishtowel calendar, $18; 12.critters calendar, $28

happy shopping!

{20 items or less} gift guide: kiddos

we are superduperblessed with lots of amazing kiddos in our life {the kind that make us think we could totally do that one day}...until then, we just get to spoil them as best we can! below, my twelve gift picks of christmas {all under $100!} for the kiddos in your life:

1.mini foosball table, $36; 2.fort-building kit, $85;

3.charley harper coloring book, $7; 4.hercule elephant, $46;

5.lego yoda watch + toy, $25; 6.cookies for santa plate, $10

7.beeswax crayons, $18; 8.abc bilingual flashcards, $20;

9.slap watch, $16; 10.cuddle up crocodile, $49; 11.thumbprint notecard set, $20;

12.discovery kids color-me castle {can i have this?} $15

happy shopping!