Links & Loves

Photo by Hel LooksHel Looks posts on individuals with great looks such as the woman above:

I\’m celebrating my 70th anniversary with Elvis Presley. I had my birthday party at Naantali Spa. I was dressed up in a white cowboy hat and white cowboy boots with golden toes. I create my own style, I\’m not a mass woman. But I always wear something fashionable, too, like this pale blue scarf. People always ask me where do I get my clothes. This bag is a Finnair travel bag from the 70\’s.

Yvestown\’s post on I don\’t do Neighbours:

I really dislike the word \”Do\” in a sentence like \”Let\’s do lunch\” or \”I don\’t do kids\”. But I just couldn\’t find a better title to start this post as \”I don\’t do neighbors\”, I really, really don\’t. I thought I could but I\’m really crap at it.

Alicia\’s post on why she blogs:

But to me, there are lots of kinds of blogs, and I don\’t mean genres like \”craft\” or \”political\”; I mean: some are sporadic posters, some are personal, some share tutorials, some gather work from others, some show only one\’s own stuff, some are brilliant at sourcing products, some have ads, some invite conversation and debate, some just put it out there and leave it be, no comments necessary. There\’s room for them all. I hope we can allow ourselves the freedom to let our own, and each other\’s, be just whatever they are.

Boss Lady\’s post on The Craft:

One thing that amazes me, year after year, is that so many members of the public seem to attend craft fairs as bargain-hunters. I mean, sure, there are always newbies who underprice their goods, whether out of ignorance or in hope of generating good word-of-mouth. But your average local artisan cannot generally afford to compete, price-wise, with large chain stores or other sources of cheap pottery, jewelry, handbags, belts, or whatnot. They may have lower overheaad, with no storefront or salespeople to worry about, but local labour, no matter how low the overhead, costs more than importing from Asia. Some people just don\’t seem to get that, and I\’ve seen someone balk at a $50 pricetag on a necklace, saying, \”I just can\’t spend more than $30 on a necklace.\” I mean, if you\’re on a budget, far be it from me to criticize, but maybe you just can\’t afford to be buying jewelry at all in that case.

Orangette\’s post on Baking & Gift Ideas:

I\’ve never been a big fan of Christmas shopping. It always feels sort of forced and messy, and more about the wallet than anything else. I love the idea of Christmas presents – I am human, you know – but when it comes to procuring them, my feelings are mixed. The mall doesn\’t exactly help matters. The problem is this: I don\’t so much want to buy. I want to make – or, more precisely, bake. What makes me happy at the holidays – or any day – is the homemade and the handmade, things with history and character. So this year, I have made a decision: to give only gifts made by hand,* with no exceptions. [Okay, except a few books, maybe, because they\’re books, people, and that doesn\’t count.] I\’ve done a little baking and canning for past Christmases, but this is my first year to go whole-hog handmade. It may sound a little daunting, but to me, it sounds just like heaven. It sounds like lots and lots of cookies. I hope you\’re ready.