Contributor Monica Lynch designed these adorable holiday wrapping papers and coordinating gift cards just in time for some Christmas goodies! I love the non-traditional direction she took with it: hot cocoa and peppermint pattern, smores with mallows and graham crackers (topped with origami mallows on a stick, of course!), and painted ribbons. They’re all available to download for free. All you have to do is print them off! And if you’re feeling extra festive here’s a fun class on the proper way to wrap gifts (because you never realize that there is proper technique until you’re in the thick of it!).

Retrieve the files below! And find out how to make the origami marshmallows.

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Guys, I have a case of the Ebenezer Scrooge! We haven’t done much Christmas anything. I’m preferring to stay home and get things done and eat Trader Joe’s Jo Jos. I think with the upcoming year I should learn how to take a chill pill and maybe…exercise? Well, I guess we did one Christmasy thing while my mom was here over Thanksgiving. This. Christmas in Color here in Utah where you drive through this maze of lights synced with all sorts of Christmas tunes. It’s super rad.

AND, for all you on Snapchat (my favorite thing to do as of late), I decided to do 24 Days of Christmas Karaoke/Lip Sync, which is basically me revealing too much about what goes on behind the scenes of all of our “calm” pictures.

Happy weekend! Do something joyful!

Links for your weekend!

Win a bike! (like from our bikes here!)

Buy one get one free at Creativebug, for al you wanting to take some art and craft classes! 

I’m loving following along on Heather Bullard’s France trip! 

The history of ballet bodies. So interesting! Especially hearing my mom’s take on it (she and her sister danced with the NYC Ballet with Balanchine!) 

It’s baaaaack! 

Gorgeous mural

all my floral dreams coming true

I want this just for the cover. And the more I learn about her, the more I like her.

photo by Jessica Peterson from our shoot with Benefit. More behind the scenes photos next week! 

I’ve seen a lot of ceramic bells lately, especially on Instagram at the homes of some really inspiring and creative people. So I thought that I would try to make something myself. But since I don’t have access to clay or a kiln, I’ve been looking for something similar to reuse. I found these small bell shaped ceramic cups at the flea market and I thought it would be fun to turn them into decorative bells. The cups have a bit of a pastel colors but in another color scheme with some metallic paint they would also be perfect for Christmas!

photos and project by contributor Therese Wikman of Miss Vintage Valentine  Read on →

You know the type–the person who has everything they need and are impossible to shop for (my Secret Santa name this year, for example!). What do you do? One thing I like to do is to give a gift in the form of a framed picture. It’s meaningful, it’s something they don’t have, and you can never have too many framed pictures. It’s a trusty default.

I’ve partnered up with Preservation and Creation once again (remember the advent city and name tags?) to show you how to give to the person who has everything. And it’s perfect for last minute shoppers (guilty!). Find out below how you can get 30% off their prints!

One way to add extra love into an heirloom gift is through the wrapping. As you all know by now, I believe a well-wrapped gift can add value and sentiment to the actual gift. We came up with a free printable wrapping paper that is worthy of being hung up on a wall too. It’s a couple of black and white Dutch baroque paintings that are absolute stunners! With a ribbon completing the look, it would be a fun discovery for the recipient on Christmas morning. Read on →

Nothing rings in the holidays more than delicious hot chocolate and giving, so this holiday season I’m thrilled to partner with GODIVA to help warm our hearts and hands with hot chocolate along with meaningful ways to give. A great combo! We wanted to do our own special take on the traditional hot chocolate to celebrate GODIVA’s partnership with Toys for Tots this season, where from December 1st until the 15th of December, they are donating $1 to children in need with every cup of hot chocolate beverage you purchase at their store. Doing good by drinking chocolate? Yes, please!

We came up with three unique hot chocolate sundae recipes (ice cream and hot chocolate? Oh my!) made from GODIVA’s Hot Chocolate and each with their own “toy” topper in honor of the partnership: gingerbread hot chocolate sundae with a singing in the rain gingerbread man toy topper, peppermint hot chocolate sundae with a peppermint toy topper, dark chocolate caramel swirl with caramel marshmallows toy toppers. Guys, prepare to be dazzled.

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