I always find myself looking for something special to wear to holiday parties around this time. I’m apt to over-prepare, actually. I don’t have that many parties to go to, and I’ve worn the same sequined top for New Year’s Eve three years running. (I might decide it’s a tradition.) Still, I just really love finding a just-right dress.
My first places to look are Anthropologie and Boden—you might recall this holiday roundup of Boden dresses a couple of years back—but I’ve looked to a few other standbys for this list. Where do you look first?
A few years ago, there was an swell of support for bottles of olive oil to replace flowers and or wine as the best gift to bring your host. Jenny Rosenstrach made my favorite argument for the switch, describing how olive oil is preferable to wine because it “usually catches you by surprise and because it can be stretched out for weeks, forcing you to remember the giver’s generosity every time you make a homemade vinaigrette or a eat a bowl of Sunday Minestrone, which demands a high-quality drizzle upon serving.”
I’m going to suggest that a cellar of Fleur de Sel—and in particular, Fleur de Sel de Camargue—be this year’s olive oil. They’re about $7 a piece and already come in a nice little package, so you could just add a ribbon.
Last year on Christmas eve, on a whim, we decided to try making snow globes for the kids to give out to friends and family. We didn’t get everything 100% right—note the yellow snowman and the embossed jars—but I love how they turned out! It was a really cute, simple project for all of us to do together. The kids were so proud of them and were thrilled when we drove around town to hand them out.
Whenever I’m looking for last-minute craft inspiration, I tend to first flip through Martha Stewart’s Crafts for Kids—which is where I found this. I also love anything Jodi Levine comes up with (a regular Stewart contributor) and recommend her Paper Goods Projects.
