Handmade for the Tooth Fairy

It only took six years, eight months and a bunch of days, but my little big guy finally lost his first tooth.  We (he) had been waiting so long, you would think we - ahem - the Tooth Fairy would have been ready with a super-special $2 bill and a new toothbrush.  But instead, our little big guy got two fairly crumply singles folded up and stuffed into his tooth fairy pillow.  While I would've loved the task of hunting down (or even making) a sweet pillow for my son's special day, my mother-in-law -- Keeper of All Things -- had saved my husband's childhood tooth pillow and given it to him for the holidays.  Good thing too, or else he would've had to stick his tooth in a ziploc. Have a kid on his or her way to losing a first tooth?  Check out some of my favorite tooth pillow options from Etsy:

Also, if you're curious what the Tooth Fairy's going rate is, just check out this awesome post.

Photo credits: My Everyday Graces, Laugh Rabbit Jr., Inklore, Naomi Joy Designs

Inspiration for an Unexpected Home Office

Best laid plans.

I don't know about you, but when I move into a new space (which is more often than I'd like), I try to have it all planned out before the big day.  The furniture, the wall colors, where the lamps will go.  Everything.

But sometimes things don't turn out exactly like you expect.  There's enough space for the couch on that wall, but looks terrible.  Your pots and pans don't actually fit in the cabinets.  The TV is perfect right there, but the deck door allows a little beam of the neighbor's outdoor light in exactly when you want to watch The Real Housewives airkiss and then rip each other to shreds.  You get the picture.

Anyhoo, it turns out that one of the AWESOME things we didn't count on was that our fabulous extra-narrow cherry farm table that used to be in our dining room fit perfectly in our new kitchen, so we didn't have to buy a kitchen table and it freed up a whole room.  Frankly, I've always thought formal dining rooms were sort of a waste of space, so rather than doing a home office/guest room combo (our original plan), we have the unexpected opportunity to have an entire room dedicated to an office (can you hear the chorus of angels?).  I'd like our space to be:

Peaceful, with lots of work space,

multi-purpose,

separate, but equal,

and of course, well-styled.

Image credits: House Beautiful, Southern Living, Cottage Living, Stacy Style (who, by the way, rocks, and if you tweet you should follow her @stacystyle)

IKEA Hack: DIGNITET as Inspiration Board

A recent exchange with my friend Christine -- who's currently redoing her office -- reminded me of something I meant to post long ago.  I'm also in the (endless) process of updating my home office into a lovely creative zone, and I needed to find a solution for a long wall that my desk faces.  I thought about shelving (too heavy, visually and literally), a mirror (up at 5:30 a.m. to write? no thanks), and a series of prints (I've done that little trick in three other spaces in the house)...but nothing seemed right.  Then as I was cruising IKEA one afternoon, I came across the DIGNITET system in the Textiles department.  Meant to be used as a curtain wire in lieu of a rod, the DIGNITET system had all the right qualities for my wall.  It was super long (up to 197 inches), could be hung from the wall or the ceiling, was lightweight, and was easy on the wallet ($14.99 + $4.99 for each package of clips).  I snagged a kit plus two boxes of clips and a couple of days later (when I finally got around to installing it) I had the foundation for an ever-changing inspiration board.  Love it.

Image credits: IKEA; Paige Lewin and her slammin' photography skills (I'm working on it)

I heart Fred.

We gave these to my stepmom for Christmas.  Aren't they great?  I almost kept them for myself, but decided that would be so un-Christmasy.

I've seen the clever products from Fred&Friends for many years, but this was the first time I bought.  I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Image credit: M-Cups from Fred&Friends (I got mine -- er, my stepmom's -- locally at Paper Source)

Holiday Gift Guide: Posh Peacock Paper Goods

As a risk-averse working mom who has many creative interests outside my day job, I am inspired when I hear about women who have left a career track to start a cottage business.  I'm even more inspired when that leap has been taken by a close friend.  But the absolute best is when that close friend has started her own biz creating ridiculously pretty and simple paper goods that you want to fill your desk and the desks of everyone you know.

Such is the story of Christine Koh, one of my oldest and closest friends, and the self-taught designer behind Posh Peacock.  Deciding she would rather "perish than publish," Christine left the academic world (she is a former music and brain scientist) to pursue her creative interests...and we are all the luckier for it.

I started buying Posh designs before the business really launched in 2006, and have been a customer ever since.  Christine's design work ranges from custom paper goods to web design to small business and non-profit identity, and it's all beautiful.

Some of my favorite picks?  Semi-custom stationery, calling cards and the limited edition bird cards (I'm such a sucker for birds).  And because Christine operates at light speed, there's still plenty of time to order for gift-giving.

Image credits: Posh Peacock