Happy Halloween!!!!

Happy Halloween!  We wish you all a fun and safe Halloween with lots of sweet treats!

color your toes fabulous

As I have stated in the past, we love pedicures!  It is a simple self-treat in life and so, so worth every penny.  An hour by yourself, some much needed quiet time and the gossipy magazines we never have time to read...what a guilty pleasure!  I am very particular about my color choices on my toes (living in Phoenix my toes are often exposed).  I recently wanted to have the perfect color for our beach vacation and found a fabulous light pink at my local pedicure spot.  Here it is: 

Constant Craving

I am happy to report the polish I picked is made in the USA.  Total bonus!  The polish is made by Deborah Lippmann and her nail lacquers do not contain toluene, formaldehyde or DBP, nor are they tested on animals.  Deborah started out as a manicurist and now has an entire line of fabulous nail lacquers...a truly American story.  To read about her journey, click here.  Here are a few other colors that I love.

Dark Side of the Moon

My Old Flame

Do You Think I'm Sexy

All of her nail lacquers are made in the USA (some of the treatments she sells are imported).   To shop the Deborah Lippmann line online, click here.  To find a store near you who sells Deborah Lippmann nail lacquer, click here.

Color your toes fabulous!

smARTWORKS!

Temperatures are beginning to fall (how can it be almost winter again), and wearing something warm and cozy is starting to sound so delightful.

 Our mom found these adorable scarves at a local boutique and both of us loved them.  They are made by smARTWORKS and are made in the USA.  Each scarf is hand crafted in Massachusetts with exquisite wool, cashmere or cotton.  They are big and small and the colors are vibrantly beautiful.  You can wear them in so many ways, whether it be with a winter coat or a cute shirt.  Here are some of our favorites:

The Mckenzie

The Shannon

The Willow

My favorite: The Trinity

To shop the entire collection, click here.  We love them for ourselves but think they would make a fabulous, unique holiday gift too.

Here's to being cozy!

Bread Basket

I have been to Williams-Sonoma a little too much lately...love that store!  During one of my last trips I saw the neatest serving piece.  It was a beautiful Oval Stoneware Bread Basket.

The basket is made in California, which we love.  The neatest part about this basket, though, is that you put it in a 350 degree oven for 15 minutes before lining it with a cloth napkin and warm bread.  Then you place it on your table and the thick base radiates heat keeping the bread warm.  How cool is that?  I am thinking that this will be a great addition to my Thanksgiving table.  How about the caramel color?  I think that it would be perfect!

Here's to keeping your buns warm!

Supergoop!

My husband and I just got back from the most beautiful vacation in the Turks and Caicos. We had the most wonderful and relaxing time.  Expecting #3 this winter means this will be the last trip like this in a looooong time (better save up that relaxing feeling)!  We were there for a wedding and it really was just a breathtaking island of beauty.  Here is the view from our room.

First thing I wanted to share with you all is that the hotel had Tervis Tumblers in all of the rooms.  Those are made in Florida- how cool is that?  And I wanted to share with you a new product (made in the USA) that I fell in love with while I was on vacation.  Supergoop!  The bride left in our welcome bags a a few packets of Supergoop! Sunscreen Wipes.

They are awesome!  I have never seen sunscreen in a wipe form until now.  They were perfect at the beach when you needed a little extra coverage!  And so easy to apply.  I think this will be a new necessity for my children next summer.  What I also love about this company is that their sunscreen is free of parabens, petrochemicals, fragrances, and phthalates.  They have a variety of products that are all made in the USA (with the exception of one- Save Face Serum). Here are a few of Supergoop!'s awesome products.

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To shop Supergoop! online, click here. To find a retailer near you, click here.

Keep your skin safe!!

Epicurean Cutting Boards

We love to cook, and what makes cooking more fun than having some new kitchen gadgets and utensils.

This summer at a group cooking class in Door County, Wisconsin we were turned on by the founder/owner of The Savory Spoon (quick plug for the cooking school, it was fabulous!!) to Epicurean cutting boards.

 

 They come in simple, modern designs made out of eco-friendly materials that we have fallen in love with!  They are knife-friendly (they won't ruin your knives like glass or stone will), non-porous (won't harbor bacteria), AND you can throw them in your dishwasher to clean (this scores big points with us).  We are hooked on these boards, which is why we were so excited to find out they are Made in America.

There are a variety of different designs to choose from.  We like these too:

Click here to find a retailer near you.

Blocks, blocks and more blocks

As children, we used to build castles and cities, roadways and train tracks all with wooden blocks.  We had a huge blue jean bag that was filled with all sizes and shapes of blocks.  Our imaginations did all the designing and our hands did all of the construction. Most of the time we built these castles right in the middle of the kitchen floor.  What better place then to be than right under our mom's feet?  Sorry mom!

Now days everything is plastic and imported.  But one company has perfected the good old wooden blocks and has stayed true to production in the USA.  The company is Beka  It was started by three brothers in Minnesota.  To read their story, click here.  Here are a few of the sets that they sell.

And they make other great products as well such as...

puppet theaters

and art tables.

To shop Beka products, click here.
Get building!

Little Giraffe

The softer the better when it comes to babies!  With my first child I received as a gift the most deliciously soft blanket I had ever come across.  It was made by Little Giraffe.  It was a simple blanket made with the plushest chenille and a satin boarder.   I fell in love with the blanket and so did my son.  So when I had my daughter, she had to have one as well.  And, I just finished ordering a blanket for baby #3.  Can you tell I'm a fan? 

I'm even more of a fan now that I recently found out these awesome blankets are made in the USA!

They come in multiple colors, sizes and patterns, and they are all super soft and luxurious...click here to shop.

When I first received a Little Giraffe blanket, I thought wouldn't it be awesome to have one of these blankets for adults?  Little did I know, they make those too!  Maybe a holiday gift this year pour moi!

American Pumpkins

We love this time of year- the cool air, football season, the smell of pumpkin and cinnamon, carmel apples, etc.  This year we suggest that you support your local farmers and buy some pumpkins from a local patch- American pumpkins!  Carving pumpkins is such a fun family tradition and brings us a lot of great memories.  And if you are not into carving this year, check out some of these ideas from Real Simple magazine.  We think they are too cute!

Perfection in a pillow

We have found "l'oreiller parfait"...the perfect pillow!  These pillows are tres chic and would be a fabulous addition in everyone's home.  Petit Coterie is a company based right here in America and they have the most beautiful products: pillows, napkins, totes, etc.  They have a french country feel to them and are selling fast!  Here are a few of our favorites:

Wouldn't these be great together?

And we love these for the holidays!

Best of all, we love that Petit Coterie has made a commitment to manufacturing their products in the USA and that their business has helped other small American businesses expand.  The fabric they use is printed by a family owned business that has expanded along with Petit Coterie's increase in sales.  As Michelle from Petit Coterie put it: "I think it is like a chain reaction. One small business helps another small business and each has been able to hire more employees."   

This is exactly what American businesses need.  Thanks Petit Coterie!


To shop their collection, click here.

Get Organized!

It has arrived!  My new Erin Condren life planner and I am obsessed.  I know a lot of you keep your calendar on your iphone or outlook, but I still love the planner that you write in.  I have been searching the Internet and stores for the perfect planner that would keep my family organized, be chic and not be the size of a coffee table book.  Not only did I find one- it is made in the USA. Bonus!  Erin Condren makes the most adorable note cards, invitations, calendars, etc. as well as the "life planner".  Here are a few examples of the front covers.  

I ordered mine in Multi Taffy Stripes.  You could have pictures added to the front- so cute!

Here are a few pictures of the inside of my planner.

Check out this video that tells you all about the life planner!  I am so excited to fill this planner up with all my life's activities!!! 

If you would like to Shop Erin Condren's products, click here.

Get a plannin'!

Batter Bowls

Who doesn't love a big, yummy weekend pancake breakfast?  My kids love helping make pancakes- chocolate chip, banana, pumpkin- yumm!  After making pancakes, the stove looks like a tornado hit it. The tricky part is getting the pancake batter onto the griddle carefully without a huge mess.  So I thought wouldn't it be great to have a bowl with a spout?  Well there is one already out there and made in the USA!   Bauer Pottery makes the absolute cutest batter bowls!

Their pottery comes in a ton of bright colors that are so cheerful and bright!  And they have a ton of other products as well from plates to butter dishes.  Check a few out here.

To shop Bauer Pottery, click here.

Coloring with Crayola

Call me strange, but I love the smell of a new box of crayons!  I love when you open the top and view all the beautiful colors with their sharp, untouched tips.  It brings back such great memories of coloring as a child. The crayons these days come in so many different shapes and sizes...hours of fun in a box!

 I went searching for a Made in the USA set of crayons not long ago and was surprised to find that Crayola manufactures crayons in America!

And then I realized that a lot of their products were made in America...

Their watercolors

Their bath drops

I contacted Crayola to inquire about their Made in the USA products and they responded, "At our manufacturing facility near our global corporate headquarters in Pennsylvania, we manufacture the majority of our products, including Crayola crayons and markers ~ 3.5 billion crayons and hundreds of millions of markers."

Wow, that is a lot of crayons and markers!  So when you see a Crayola product check the back to find out where it is manufactured, but many are made right here in America 

Have a colorful weekend!