Ask Design Mom Question: I have to know about your hair! I have naturally curly hair as well and I NEED to know what products you use in your hair. (Shampoo, Conditioner, Gel or Mousse… seems so personal but all of these things affect the result.) I have wasted tons of money on so many products and they all give different results. Also, do you air dry or diffuse? Thanks, Missy Design Mom Answer: Here’s the basic process that works for me: In the shower, I shampoo lightly and then heavily condition and let the conditioner soak in for a few minutes while I’m soaping up. I’m fairly relaxed about products — something luxurious from the salon is always a treat, but I’m equally satisfied with a variety of drugstore brands. Right now, my favorite is Infusium because the conditioner is really thick. After the shower, I gently(!) towel dry my hair. I don’t run my fingers through it or brush or comb it — the key is to not separate the curls. Next, I fill my palm with a mix of leave-in conditioner and hair gel — again, I’m not too particular about brands — and work the combo through my hair. (Note: don’t brush or comb or pull your fingers through your hair to work in the product, just kind of moosh/scrunch it in everywhere.) Then I let my hair air-dry till it’s about 75% dry — while I put on my makeup and get dressed. Finally I flip my head upside down and use a hair-dryer with a diffuser to finish drying the roots. Diffusing with my hair upside down gives more lift at the roots so the curls don’t look like they’re dragging. Last two tips: 1) I only get my hair fully wet every 3rd or 4th day. For showers during non-shampoo days, I just pull it up into a bun so it doesn’t get wet. 2) At hair appointments, I make sure to keep my layers trimmed — especially around my face. Otherwise the curls get too heavy and my hair forms a gigantic triangle. And that’s it. The book Curly Girl helped me quite a bit in how I approach my hair. I don’t follow all of its guidelines, but it’s definitely a great place to start if you’re frustrated with your curls (or your child’s curls). In fact, if you like it, you could totally give a copy to your hairdresser. What about you Fellow Curly Girls? Do you have any favorite haircare products or haircare tips? Images of curly haired peeps from Bumble & Bumble.

Thank you for all the sweet comments about my belly shots. You totally made my day. No, my week! Which reminds me, is anyone else having one of those particularly crazy-packed weeks? I swear, I am barely keeping up. On the list today is more gift shopping — Ben Blair’s birthday is on Sunday. Yay! Any fun plans for you this weekend?

To keep you company till Monday, here are a few things I’ve been meaning to share with you:

-I find these age maps fascinating.

-In celebration of the warmer weather I want to buy these new rainbow stamps.

-Best announcement of a new baby I’ve ever seen. Love it!

-Tips on visiting Paris from NotMartha.

-A new, smart idea for hanging photos/artwork (pictured above with the lovely orange sofa). I want to copy this.

-The table base built of pipes is so good-looking (2nd photo). I want to copy this too.

-Don’t you think Ben Blair and I should spend a weekend here? (via Apartment Therapy)

-I think this is the favorite image I saw this week.

-Ummm. The cleverest cupcake kits ever.

-Just in case you haven’t seen it yet, OK GO’s newest video. It is amazing.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qybUFnY7Y8w]

Thank you so much for reading. I woke up this morning thinking of you and grateful that you stop by my blog. I’m smiling now just thinking about it. Have a great weekend!!

P.S. — Don’t forget to enter my Tracey Clark Giveaway — it’s open till Monday.

How was your weekend, Friends? The weather here in Denver was gorgeous with a capital G and we enjoyed every bit of it. Saturday morning was Oscar’s birthday party. Oscar’s requirements for the party: knights, cupcakes and a pinata. Done and done. We couldn’t find a good-looking, knight-related pinata, so we used papier mache boxes from the craft store to build a castle pinata. We filled the containers with goodies, wired everything together and used packing tape to secure. When the guests arrived, they went to work immediately covering the pinata with strips of silver tissue paper, gold stars and gold wire garland. Balloons, cupcakes, party favors (a knight dress-up set with shield, breast plate, helmet and sword) and paper goods were all in gold and silver. In the middle of the party, the Black Knight (big brother Ralph dressed in a black cape) arrived on the scene and stole the castle pinata. Luckily, we had a group of brave knights on hand. They were able to follow the clues and save the castle. At the end of the party, they used their knight swords to break the pinata. Oscar thought this party was heaven on earth.

Hello Friends! I am signing off early today. We are hosting a birthday party for Oscar tomorrow morning and aside from a list of notes and ideas, I have zero preparations in order. I will be spending today’s hours running errands and making favors and keeping house. To keep you company in my absence, here are a few things I’ve been meaning to share with you:

-A lone house on a huge cliff. This seems unreal. Via Unruly Things.

-These printed jars from Burgon & Ball will make you smile.

-Have you been following the Blog It Forward posts organized by Victoria? I’m addicted.

-Dying over this home tour on Decor8. I’m usually drawn to intense color. But this is muted and heavenly as well.

-The design blogs are all a buzz with the new Liberty of London for Target line. Can’t wait to see it in person.

-Japanese design love.

-Classy axes? Why not.

-Some Design Mom mentions around the web —
a) Chrysula interviews me about Work/Life Balance
b) Anna dissects my partnership with Mayflower last spring (it’s like a how-to on working with blog sponsors)
c) Cool Mom Picks likes my maternity wardrobe. Thanks, ladies!
d) During Alt Summit, Studio 5 interviewed Grace of Design*Sponge, Heather of Dooce and little old me about blogging. I keep forgetting to share the link — here it is.

-The very best shots of the Winter Olympics.

–A bride in orange shoes.

-Let’s all run away and join a gypsy caravan.

–What a fun sofa! Would this work in your home?

Have a wonderful weekend. Don’t miss the gorgeous Jo Totes Giveaway (two winners!). And wish me luck with the birthday party. I need all the luck I can get with this one. : )

lovely image via Chelsea.

So what are your plans this weekend? Ben Blair and I have a hot date tonight — he hasn’t told me where yet, but I’m already looking forward to it. Saturday morning we’ll have our Valentine Breakfast for the kids — because church starts too early on Sunday. : )

Please do have a wonderful weekend and the loveliest of Valentine Days. Here are a few things I’ve been wanting to share:

Red and White Rooms.

Don’t you want this office in a closet? From Apartment Therapy.

A sneak peek at the gorgeous Defining A Movement Exhibit that’s part of the Mom 2.0 Summit. I have a couple of photographs in the exhibit. Which is totally nerve-wracking to me — because you know I’m not a trained photographer.

The Weird Book Room at Abe Books.

Maybe the coolest installation art I’ve seen in awhile.

Go see! Spring/Summer has arrived at Harvey Faircloth.

A 12×12 cube home. With a dishwasher!

Sweetest sentiment the week.

Ruffle-y-est DIY cardigan of the week.

Happy or sad? Fashion week is moving from the tents at Bryant Park to Lincoln Center. (I spent some happy hours in those tents. Glad I have those memories.)

I hope your weekend is full of LOVE images. And more LOVE images. See you on Monday!

image via Design Crush, via Owlgardens

It’s 9:00pm. We have officially finished up our valentines-for-classmates preparations. Things I’m thinking: 1) I have a lot of children. 2) Those children have a lot of classmates. It turns out Colorado has bigger class sizes than New York. It took me until Valentines Day to notice. We used a clever idea I found on Kirtsy — via 24-7-365. I think they turned out great. We couldn’t get Betty to stop looking at her fist. And Oscar refused to wear anything red. But we rolled with it. To those who are up late making stuff: I salute you with my exacto knife.

We’re in the car, on our way to Copper Mountain for a ski weekend. The drive through the Rockies to the ski resorts is gorgeous. (The entire state of Colorado is gorgeous.) And this will be 3-year-old Betty’s first time on skis — I hope she loves it.

What are you doing this weekend? Anything fun? Here are some links to help you celebrate till Monday:

-The NY Public Library has a flickr page? Oh. I could get lost here. via Swissmiss.

–Supermarket Sarah has the coolest shop ever. Right in her house. Would you ever do this?

-NotMartha shares some photos of what has caught her eye lately. I LOVE this glimpse into her thoughts.

-Liz spotted some really amazing jewelry. Worth several visits to admire.

-What? A Daily Ampersand Project? Happiness. Via Greedy Girl.

-Blushing. Eliza Magazine featured me in their Best Bloggers article.

-Lunch with Seth Godin to benefit Haiti — thanks to Startup Princess. Only a week away.

-Look at the pretty little heart made of metal on these diecut Valentine cards.

-While I prepare this post, my older kids are watching Project Runway. I’m really enjoying this season. What do you think. Are you glad they’re back in New York?

–Oooooh. The talented Nate Berkus is offering free Twitter Backgrounds. New designs each month.

-Online photo classes from the amazing Nicole Hill starting right away.

-My sister Jordan has been sharing photos of her newly redesigned living room.

Friends, wish us luck on the ski slopes and have a terrific weekend. Don’t forget to enter my lovely giveaway from Baby Bear Shop. There are luscious lip balm kissing kits(!) to get you ready for Valentine’s Day. Three winners will be announced on Monday.

kisses,
Gabrielle

Today I was reminded how wimpy I am compared to my pioneer ancestors — and most of the population of Planet Earth. When we woke this morning, the temperature in our house was 53 degrees. (The heat had stopped working in the night — it was speedily fixed this morning and we’re now a toasty 70 degrees again.) I realize 53 degrees is nowhere near freezing, but you would think it was the trial of the century the way I shivered in my sheets. Could I be more ridiculous? Here are a few things I’ve been wanting to share with you: -I’ve never been a consistent journal keeper, but I might be able to keep up with this. And it’s pretty. -What it looks like to fly into Salt Lake City. -Can I give some sort of prize to her for Happiest Idea? –Book jackets (with coordinating bookmarks) make me happy. Especially Sherlock’s pipe. -This photo series of “rusty neutrals” feels like January looks. -Whoorl found the greatest invention of the decade. You will want this too. -The prettiest winter festival I have ever seen. I might need to put this on my life list (if I had a life list). -I still have houses on the brain. This one is the favorite I saw this week. -The proper way to celebrate a 90th(!) birthday. -School kids from PS22 sing the Alicia Keyes/Jay-Z New York Anthem. So wonderful. (Thanks, Etta!) -This series of “hiding” photos made me look. Twice. -Who knew a commercial about wearing your seatbelt could be so beautiful? Have a terrific weekend. I hope your weekend feels like the cozy image above. 

Today I am 25 weeks pregnant. Only 15 to go! (Although really, I’m not in any big hurry.) I’ve been trying to keep a record of some of my favorite outfits during this pregnancy. Here are five: Tuxedo Jacket at Macy’s Juniors Dept — not maternity. Tee by H&M.; Tie by Brooks Brothers (via Ben Blair’s closet). Pants by Nine Times Three (more on them later, they are my fave pants). Shoes by Guess. Sweater by Gap. (Not maternity.) Skinny jeans by Gap Maternity. Shoes by Jessica Simpson. Dress and coordinating jacket/robe from Target Maternity — saved from past pregnancies. Belt and tights — I can’t remember. Hmmm. Shoes by Guess. Dress by Gap Maternity. Just bought this a week ago — it was $13. Score! Belt by who knows? (The dress comes with a sash, but I liked this better.) Tights, probably from Walgreens. Boots by Nine West (they are at least a decade old). Pants, cowlneck, and wrap all from Gap Maternity. (Wow. I’ve had good luck there.) Shoes by Biviel. Total side note: I heart the way my bottom looks in these pants — I should get a picture of that. For posterity. : ) Mom, you can see lots more photos here. What about you Dear Readers? Seen any great maternity clothes lately? How do you like to dress when you’re expecting — are you all about comfort? Do you incorporate non-maternity pieces into your wardrobe?  

-A list of pretty blogs from Lisa Congdon. So many are new-to me. -Hey typography junkies. Take this quiz from Pentagram to find out what type you are. I’m Van Doesburg. -I think I want to rent this Swedish cottage. -Have you ever seen broccoli romanesco? It looks like something from the ocean. I wonder what it taste likes? -This is fun, a new award especially to celebrate the handmade. Find out about the Poppies here. -A round up of the lovliest baking cups. I ran out of cupcake liners last weekend. Time to pick out something colorful and bright to get us through till spring. –Painting the snow. Thinking ahead to Valentine’s Day, wouldn’t it be cute to leave a message for your honey in the snow? -Shortbread cookies are my very favorite cookies. Look how cute these button versions are? Let’s have a baby shower and serve these darling bites. You’re invited. -Oh my goodness. This perfume packaging made me light up. I wonder if it smells as wonderful as it looks. -Did you miss the annual No Pants Subway Ride? Happy photos. -Is it really possible that Altitude Design Summit is happening next week? I have a mani/pedi scheduled for Monday to prepare. It’s all in the details. (Last I heard, Alt Summit was almost sold out. Yikes! Grab your tickets while you can.) -This tweet gave me goosebumps yesterday. When something awful happens, it is always such a comfort to be able to take positive action in response. What are the best ideas you’ve seen regarding aid to Haiti? I hope you have a marvelous weekend. Thank you for reading and for your clever comments. Hearing from you makes me happy. image by Tim Walker

Am I allowed to say I’m enjoying my new-found curvy-ness? I can’t pretend I’m truly voluptuous, but when I compare my new B-cups to my usual can’t-fill-an-A-cup-and-boring-hips-self, I feel like I should qualify as a lingerie model. : )

It’s not that my body looks any different this pregnancy (compared to previous pregnancies), I think it’s mostly that this house has a giant mirror right outside the shower so I’m seeing myself nekkid more often. (My lovely new chest caught my eye the other morning and I called out: Ben Blair, come check me out — I’m totally hot!)



This stage of pregnancy is the best for me. The sickness is 95% over. My energy is great. I haven’t ballooned to an unreasonable size yet — so I can still sleep comfortably. Maternity clothes finally fit, so I don’t have to jimmy my pants to try to keep them up. It’s quite lovely.

Ben Blair took these photos yesterday morning while I was getting ready. He pulled out the camera when we realized the only glimpse of my baby belly that had been recorded is in the HP video. We’re going to attempt to get lots of shots from now on.

Are you curvy, Dear Readers? Even when you’re not pregnant? (I think I’m jealous.) Do you like the way you look when you are pregnant?

There’s another gift that Maude made this Christmas that I didn’t get a chance to share. It’s a nightlight that she made for Oscar. She used modpodge, small squares of patterned scrapbooking paper and a nightlight form. The technique was similar to the sketchbook she made for Ralph. But the nightlight turned out sort of quilt-like. Maude did a great job and Oscar LOVES his nightlight. How about you, Dear Readers? Did your kids make gifts for each other this year? Any projects they were particularly proud of? ——————— Want more ideas? Here are some links to other sibling gifts we’ve made: – Potato Print clothing – Embellished gloves – Jumpropes – Ribbon flowers (as belts, clips and hairpins) – Glitter Initials – Decoupaged Sketchbook – Tutu, decoupaged bucket for matchbox cars, after-school bags, tiedye tees – Flower headbands – Wool mittens from recycled sweaters, embellished dragon mittens, sculpey bracelets, bibs, snowglobes and romper stompers made from cans – Bubble bath, circle loom scarf – Ribbon barrettes, painted t-shirt – Bean bags, heating pad, hand chalk (for gymnastics), iPod cover

Olive made potato print clothes for her siblings this year. We bought supplies on Friday and Saturday (clothing items and fabric paint) and on Sunday afternoon we carved our potatoes and got to printing. We put pink and gold hearts on a little corduroy dress for Betty (these pics are before the gold hearts were added). They curve around the side of the dress. We put red and silver smiley faces on a navy tee for Oscar. We put brown and black skulls on the back of a grey t-shirt for Ralph. We knew Maude really wanted a hoodie, and we found a lovely cable-knit, pullover, hooded sweater in grey that we thought she would love. But. We knew we wouldn’t be able to print directly on it very well. So we printed on a washed piece of canvas instead (bird, stars and dots), then used big stitches to attach the canvas to the grey sweater. I think it’s my favorite. As long as we were printing, Olive wanted something for herself as well. So we put pink and purple hearts on a turquoise sweatshirt just for her. (For those who are curious, we bought all 5 items of clothing at Old Navy on Friday night and the total cost was about $30.) Want more ideas? Here are some links to other sibling gifts we’ve made: – Decoupaged nightlight – Embellished gloves – Jumpropes – Ribbon flowers (as belts, clips and hairpins) – Glitter Initials – Decoupaged Sketchbook – Tutu, decoupaged bucket for matchbox cars, after-school bags, tiedye tees – Flower headbands – Wool mittens from recycled sweaters, embellished dragon mittens, sculpey bracelets, bibs, snowglobes and romper stompers made from cans – Bubble bath, circle loom scarf – Ribbon barrettes, painted t-shirt – Bean bags, heating pad, hand chalk (for gymnastics), iPod cover

This was Betty’s first year making gifts and I really wasn’t sure what she should make. But we were in the checkout line at JoAnn’s on Saturday and saw these “one-size” gloves for $1 each. We bought 4 pairs and figured we would come up with something to do with them when we got home. This is what we did:





1) For Olive, we used a green pair and applied purple glitter with mod podge on the cuffs. I can’t imagine the glitter will stay permanently affixed, but Betty really wanted to do something with glitter and I figured why not. At least they’ll be cute coming out of the box.



2) For Maude, we used a grey pair and sewed on a small bow with a black button. 3-year-old Betty can’t sew — but she could pull the needle when I pushed it through the button. And she thought that was delightful.



3) For Ralph, we used a black pair. We cut circles out of felt and hot glued them to the cuff. Betty could trace the circles using a stencil and a marker.



4) For Oscar, we used a navy pair and letter stencils and fabric paint to write his name across the gloves.

Since we already had all the supplies (except the gloves) in the craft cupboard, this was definitely our least expensive sibling gift project at $4. Whenever the kids ask Betty what she made, she answers, “Ssssshhh. I can’t tell you it’s gloves. It’s a surprise.”

Want more ideas? Here are some links to other sibling gifts we’ve made:
– Jumpropes
– Ribbon flowers (as belts, clips and hairpins)
– Glitter Initials
– Decoupaged Sketchbook
– Tutu, decoupaged bucket for matchbox cars, after-school bags, tiedye tees
– Flower headbands
– Wool mittens from recycled sweaters, embellished dragon mittens, sculpey bracelets, bibs, snowglobes and romper stompers made from cans

One item on my girls’ Christmas list is 2 long jump ropes — long enough to try double-dutch, to jump in back doors and front doors (remember how awesome jump roping is?). So that’s what Ralph made. One for Maude and one for Olive. I had pretty much nothing to do with this. The project was handed off to Ben Blair with the following explanation: Ralph is thinking about making jump ropes for Maude and Olive. But I have no idea how to make the handles. Will you please work with Ralph and figure something out? They pow-wowed and came up with the idea of bike handles. Which worked perfectly. Nice work, Ralph! Nice work Ben Blair! ——– Want more ideas? Here are some links to other sibling gifts we’ve made: – Ribbon flowers (as belts, clips and hairpins) – Glitter Initials – Decoupaged Sketchbook – Tutu, decoupaged bucket for matchbox cars, after-school bags, tiedye tees – Flower headbands – Wool mittens from recycled sweaters, embellished dragon mittens, sculpey bracelets, bibs, snowglobes and romper stompers made from cans – Bubble bath, circle loom scarf – Ribbon barrettes, painted t-shirt – Bean bags, heating pad, hand chalk (for gymnastics), iPod cover

Once the sketchbook and initials were finished, Maude got to work on her gifts for Olive and Betty. Originally, she was thinking legwarmers. But when I showed her the ribbon flower idea I posted last week, she changed her mind. Maude made 3 flowers. One she attached to a ribbon to be worn as a belt. One she attached to a bobby pin to be worn in hair. One she attached to a large clip to be flexible — it can be worn on clothes or in hair or on a purse or backpack. Some of the photos are really dark and it’s hard to tell, but these all turned out gorgeous. We worked with 1-yard lengths of 2.5 inch and 1.25 inch ribbon. And the size of the flower changed dramatically depending on what kind of combination we used. By the way, the quality of the ribbon makes a big difference. The cheaper stuff we used for our first experimental flower (not shown) was not as pretty. Not even close. The silk ribbon we bought by the yard at Michaels was much better. More DIY sibling gift ideas here.

After the sketchbook, we worked on Oscar’s gifts. This was the first year Oscar was really able to make presents for everybody and he was really into it. As a preschooler, he is fairly obsessed with alphabet letters, so we thought this was the perfect idea: Glitter Initials — to be put on a bedroom shelf as decoration. A little bit kitsch-ier than I prefer for sibling gifts, but an ideal project for a 4-year-old.

First, Oscar and I made a trip to the craft store to pick out wooden cutouts of each sibling’s first initial. There were lots of different styles and sizes to choose from. Oscar had definite opinions.



Next we came home and Oscar interviewed each sibling about his/her favorite color. He drew a picture of the sibling and made a note about color preferences. Then it was time to glue and glitter.



Oscar painted on glue with foam brush, picked out the favorite color of glitter, and got to shaking. (Mom’s job was to return unused glitter to its bottle.) The whole project took about 15 minutes and Oscar couldn’t have been more pleased with himself.

Once they were dry we wrapped them up before the rest of the kids snuck into the work room.

More DIY sibling gift ideas here.

Hello All! I hope you had a wonderful weekend. Ours went too fast. But we started making the sibling gifts over the weekend — which was very exciting. Here’s the link to our 2009 sibling gift plan. The first thing we made? Maude decoupaged a sketchbook for Ralph. (Note: my apologies for the dark photos. We have to sneak in these projects whenever we can — and don’t always have ideal picture taking scenarios.) Maude started with a pretty typical sketchbook we found at Borders, then she marked off a 1.25 inch border on the cover. Next, she cut images out of magazines and catalogs and collected other images from around the house. These were all trimmed down to 1.5 inch squares. Maude was able to work in an iTouch image, a letter R and other references she knew Ralph would like. She used Mod Podge and a foam brush to attach the images within the penciled border. Afterwards, she painted on 3 more layers of Mod Podge on top of the images — letting them dry between each layer. It turned out really cool — she’s excited to give it to Ralph. Before she wrapped it up, she inscribed the inside back cover. Want more ideas? Here are links to what we’ve made in past years: – Tutu, decoupaged bucket for matchbox cars, after-school bags, tiedye tees – Flower headbands – Wool mittens from recycled sweaters, embellished dragon mittens, sculpey bracelets, bibs, snowglobes and romper stompers made from cans – Bubble bath, circle loom scarf – Ribbon barrettes, painted t-shirt – Bean bags, heating pad, hand chalk (for gymnastics), iPod cover

Ask-Design-Mom-Questions:
I have a strong yearning for another child and am looking for an infallible way to decide whether to take the plunge (just joking, I know it’s a leap of faith, but am looking for advice from people who might know about these things). What factors would do you take into consideration upon deciding whether to have another child? Thanks for taking the time to answer. — Sarah

Hi Gabrielle. I would like to have a big family as well. I’m married almost 2 years and we are looking to start our family in a year or so. A few questions: How far apart are your children in age? Did you plan to have so many children? Did you plan to have them x amount of years apart? Thanks. — Venessa

Design Mom Answer: These are such worthy questions. Thank you for sending them, Sarah and Venessa. The answer to how many kids you should have and how they should be spaced is, of course, super personal. And everyone reading has a different opinion and answer.

I’ll share what my basic plan was. And hopefully readers will let you know how they’ve come to their family-size decisions as well. I need to make very clear: this was our plan. I’m not advocating it to anyone else. Period.

When I married at 21, I talked with Ben Blair about a basic plan. We both came from big families and wanted lots of kids. I wanted to be done bearing children by 35 — the age many risks increase. (Edit: apparently 35-as-riskier is a bit of a myth — but I didn’t know that at 21.) So I thought: let’s have our 1st at 23 (when we’re done with school) and then have one every other year at 25, 27, 29, 31. And if we want more, we can have #6 at 33 and #7 at 35. Done and done.

How it really happened: we had our first at 23, our 2nd at 24, our 3rd at 27, our 4th at 30 and 5th at 31. Number 6 is due when I’m 35.

Basically, as soon as we made the plan we discovered we had no control over the plan. Very few of us are lucky enough to conceive or adopt exactly when and where we want to. And very few of us have such an ordered life and are wise enough that the plans we make at 21 still make sense at 31.

Bottom line: feel free to make a plan, but get really comfortable with the idea that the plan might not work. Some people (including me) find praying helps them feel settled about the decisions they make for their family. Others depend on counsel from friends and loved ones. Ultimately, I hope you’ll feel confident that you can know what’s best for your family.

Dear Readers, how about you? How many kids do you want to have? Are you done? How do you decide when to add more children to your families?

Ask-Design-Mom-Question: I was inspired by your site to have my children make gifts for one another this year. I was trying to find your previous posts about the gifts you have made in the past, but I was only able to find one. I would love it if you could gather all of these ideas in one place. Thanks in advance. — Kristin Design Mom Answer: Thanks for the question, Kristin. I’ve actually been getting lots of similar requests — readers wanting to know what we’ve made in the past, and what we’re making this year. I’ll start with a short explanation — four years ago, based on the artsy-craftsy tendencies of my kids, we decided that the siblings would make each other gifts for Christmas. It’s become a fun tradition. One the whole family looks forward to. You can read my original post about it here. What our plans are for this year: Note: these plans are subject to change depending on my whims. Or if a better idea falls in my lap. Ralph is making — -Jump Ropes for Maude and Olive The girls want to learn double-dutch, so we’ll be happy to have two long jump-ropes to add to the family sports equipment. –Blurb Photo Books for Oscar and Betty Maude is making — -A Night Light Cover for Oscar and Betty’s room -A Sketch Book with a Decoupaged Cover for Ralph -Legwarmers for Olive (inspired by the comments on this post) Olive is making — Olive will be using potato stamps (a la Martha Stewart) and fabric ink to customize… -Boxers for Ralph -A hoodie for Maude -A t-shirt for Oscar -A t-shirt dress for Betty Oscar and Betty are making — Not sure yet, but I’m thinking about these darling cakes in a jar — both Oscar and Betty love helping in the kitchen, so this might be a perfect fit. They could give an individual jar to each sibling. Links to what we’ve made in past years: – Tutu, decoupaged bucket for matchbox cars, after-school bags, tiedye tees – Flower headbands – Wool mittens from recycled sweaters, embellished dragon mittens, sculpey bracelets, bibs, snowglobes and romper stompers made from cans  I hope you find these links and ideas helpful. What about you Dear Readers? Do your kids make gifts for their siblings? What are they making this year?