Resolutions

With one day left in 2010 (eek! where does time go?), I've this wee list of resolutions for 2011.

• Maintain my new habit of always putting away my clothes
• Walk every day (even if it is just around my office complex)
• Allocate time every day to relax (I tend to burn my candle at both ends)
• Spend less time watching tv and surfing the net, and more time reading and cooking

Image via Maquette.

Critic

I'm reading Garlic and Sapphires, and am adoring every page (thank you, Gregory). With the conclusion of every chapter, I'm yearning to be a food critic more and more.

Merry Christmas

Happy Christmas, my lovely readers. Wishing you all a very happy holidays with plenty of joy in the New Year.

Bike

What a genius bike rack and storage solution!

Packaging

I love these proposals to minimize the amount of visual clutter on consumer products. I think the clean design of these packages builds upon the appeal of similarly streamlined brands, such as Apple, who have enjoyed significant commercial success. Via A2591.

Party-Time

Tonight, I begin our preparations for our mini Christmas Eve party for my mom's family. On the menu? Chicken skewers with chipotle sauce, red pepper and goat cheese crisps, homemade egg rolls, tomato crostini with balsamic vinegar, fudge and festive cupcakes. Now off to the kitchen! Image of red pepper and goat cheese crisps via Real Simple.

NYE

Our plans (which finally took shape today) include a gourmet dinner at a location that is a surprise for my husband, my favourite French Connection dress and a party with friends to cap off the evening. How will you be celebrating the arrival of 2011? Isn't this photo of New Years Eve fireworks around Quidi Vidi Lake (near our house) amazing?

Leaves

Quirky and genius! I love these leaf cutouts. They make me miss long fall walks in the woods. Via NY Times.

Quilts

CarsonToo's quilts are so cozy-looking and modern. Love!

Classifieds

If you have a one-in-one-out policy (like I am trying to implement - meaning if I buy something, I have to donate/sell something else - ideally if I buy a sweater, I have to donate a sweater to the Good Will), this guide should help when trying to sell furniture online. Via Lunch Breath.

Tidy

Answer me this: why doesn't my bed ever look this good unmade and strewn with clothes?

P.S. Since moving into our new house, I have never left one piece of clothing lying around anywhere. It is almost like I don't know myself (I'm notorious for having large piles of clothing in my bedroom). I am sort of living in fear that I'll break my now-good habit. Have you ever experienced that same fear?

Hair

My dream hair.

Ornaments

Typically, I prefer my holiday ornaments made of tin, dipped in crayola colours (and sequins!) and spherical. However, Abbey's plan to make 20 (homemade) ornaments in 20 days is a sweet idea. Above are my favourites. You can see them all here.

Christmas Music

What Christmas songs are you listening to this year?

With tonight's lecture, I'm listening to Simini's The Mummers' Song, The Pogues's Fairytale of New York (which was just profiled on Being Erica's Christmas special) and my favourite, The Royal Guardsmen's Snoopy vs. The Red Baron. Image via Cox and Cox.

Corner Stores

In finding the perfect photos for my mummering post, I came across the most fantastic series of photos of small-scale commercial life in Newfoundland and Labrador - a collection of our convenience stores. Erected to sell milk and bread to neighbourhood patrons, to exchange allowance for candies and chocolates with school-aged children, and to create an alternative location for the purchase of beer (yes, you can buy beer in NL at a convenience store), these everyday haunts have a certain beauty, and Bojan has captured them fantastically. I've included some of his works that are in our neighbourhood.

Mummers

Tonight is date night at the Clarke household, and we're kicking off our formal Christmas celebrations with paninis and a public lecture on mummering at The Rooms. Images of last year's St. John's Annual Mummer's Parade via Bojan.

Icon VIII

Audrey Hepburn in stripes and a bun via Hannah Rahel.

Cabin

Greg and I dream of a summer cabin on a coastline somewhere. How about one on the Norwedgian coast, my love? Images via My Scandinavian Retreat.

Music

1 artist. 1 genre. 1 image. 1 font. I'd love to see folk or adult contemporary in the next iteration. Via Edits by Edit.

Skating

As a child, my brother (and mother... and sometimes me) would flood our backyard and make a skating rink. We had endless hours of fun with pick up games of hockey and skating until our toes were slightly frost-bitten.

This ice skating party has me completely inspired to go back to that tradition and convince my mom to flood her yard yet again so that I can host such a soiree. Our new house would be swell as a venue, but our stone, tiered-patio is less than ideal for an impromptu hockey rink. I suspect, however, that we'll have to settle for our neighbourhood's annual skating party at St. Bon's on January 2 (which BTW is also such a fun idea, I love that our neighbourhood has an annual skating party!). All images via The Sweetest Occasion.

Chocolate

Striped chocolate bars? How cool! Via Ruby Press.