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The planets have aligned. November 15th is the day to make shopping decisions. Why? Because if you wait until the 16th, the decisions may be made for you.

1. At around 11 am est, Maria will be updating her shop with holiday cards and her 2008 calendar. As someone who missed buying the 2007 when it was offered, and ended up begging for one of the extras, I urge you, be ready at 11. Visit her blog at 11 for the link to the shop. There will be holiday cards, too. It’s all good.
2. Martha at Uniform-Studio is also updating her shop for the season sometime today. I love her point of view. If you want to learn more about Martha, and preview some of the items she’ll be selling, read Shari’s interview (at her blog, The Glass Doorknob) here. (of course, I love this color combo of Martha’s)
3. Speaking of Shari, the zine that she and Gracia and Louise have produced, Three in the Kitchen, should also be for sale some time today. I have a feeling this one’s gonna go quickly.
4. Rebecca at Moontree Letterpress should have some limited edition items in her shop before the week is out. Her style is so simple and elegant (and beautiful). Definitely worth a visit. And while you’re there, read her blog posts about her recent trip to Japan.

photo from Crane.comAlready have your holiday cards, clothing, zines and calendars? Then you’ll want to zip ahead to thank-you notes. These adorable snowmen, from the Kate Spade collection at Crane, are my (current) favorite. You’ll want the matching coasters, too, pictured above. (At last check, Crane.com was offering free shipping. Bonus!)My reward after the shop updates is to hit Barnes & Noble in search of Cookie magazine’s December issue. The city guide is for New York, and Christy Turlington is the cover model. What magazine addict can pass that up? Have a great Thursday! Happy shopping!

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My mind has been running in overdrive since we got back from Boston. Churning through magazines, paying bills, all with the “Christmas is coming: what are you buying people” loop running through my brain at the same time. This is the time of year where coming up with things to blog about is easy. Writing in a way that makes sense to anyone but me is the challenge.Remember how I promised you photographer news today? Well, I think you’ll love Sara Remington. Her photos are elegant and simple, and the colors are gorgeous. My favorite? I think bookII’s opening photo. (Love that bed! Love those cookies!) Check out the rest of Sara’s portfolio at sararemington.net. She’s also working on a book for Big Sur Bakery. Sounds like the perfect combo: great photos, and baked goods. I’ll have to remember that.Tuesday also means it’s iTunes “new releases” day. I was scrolling through, looking for the new Duran Duran album. I had heard so much about it, how Timbaland and Justin Timberlake were collaborating, that I just had to check it out. I ended up buying the song “The Valley”. It’s pretty good – definitely will come in handy on the treadmill. While scrolling through the rest of the new, I saw that Keane had an EP out as well. I am loving their cover of “Under Pressure”. And that’s high praise, because a cheesy cover just would not do. I have to go back later and give a fair listen to the new Killers album. Did I tell you my mind is scattered and racing?

And finally (for today) if you haven’t already, you really ought to read Emily’s (from Orange Beautiful/The Scoop) guest-blog posts at Design*Sponge. Her topic is perfect: choosing a life that you love. I find it inspiring to hear how others have carved a path. Hopefully, you will, too.

See you tomorrow with more random stuff-that’s-running-through-my-head. And thanks to tt for the photographer scoop! Don’t forget (like I did): Project Runway starts tonight at 10et/9ct …..

Well, once again, my worries about flying were for naught. We had a fabulous quick weekend getaway to Boston. Left Chicago at 7am Saturday – arrived on time, checked in to the hotel (early) and started on our day of shopping. Oh, did my son love that. (We were out from 10:30 til 7pm or so ….) I owe the Petit Bateau store on Newbury big: they set him up with a stack of colored paper that was perfect for origami. He spent the afternoon creating various projects at each shop. My favorite? The Chinese war helmet. He could finish that in 30 seconds. (Extra credit to Elisabeth for demonstrating letterpress on Sunday, and teaching him how to fold a dollar bill into a peacock!)Of course, I found a new shop in Boston that I absolutely adored: Looc, on Union Park Street. After browsing through their collection of charming clothing, I ended up buying the most comfortable, yet chic, charcoal grey knit dress by Christina Lehr. It will be perfect to run around the suburbs, and yet stylish enough to throw in the suitcase for my next trip to Boston. Need to find some footless black tights to accessorize/keep me warm ….. and some new black flats. I think I killed my weekend flats with all of the walking.Post script: By the way, before you report me for being the worst mother of all time, taking her son shopping for the weekend, it wasn’t all stores. We did spend some quiet time walking through the library:

On Sunday, at 9am, we joined 25 other Red Sox fans for a tour of Fenway. Good thing we went for the first tour of the day: one of the dads on our tour said that Saturday’s tours were all sold out.

Back tomorrow with some photographers for you to check out.(My Boston photos were all taken with the iPhone.)

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I was so sad to pick up the last issue of House & Garden yesterday. But the mailman smiled and delivered New York Weddings (love!) and Elle (great re-design) so I have lots to keep me busy. And I’ll savor H& G. Tuesday, I shall return with my findings, as I’m taking Monday off.Until then, here are the Five:

1. cover shot
2. vintage ornaments
3. whirligigs
4. Scatter My Winter Dreams….
5. A Cornish Blue Breakfast
6. coals to Newcastle

Couldn’t stick to just Five this week ….. so enjoy the Six.Hope your long, Veterans Day no-mail-Monday-weekend is delightful. See you soon.

Today, Starbucks officially launches its holiday lineup, complete with the re-launch of itsredagain.com. (Update: check out the Starbucks website today for Create your own Starbucks cards. I like “the Original” …. great for gifting, if you know your recipient’s favorite drink.)

So far, I’ve had two samples of the eggnog latte (at my local Target/Starbucks). I’m loving the “new” recipe. More eggnog (from what I understand, it’s twice as much eggnog this year)! I’m also loving the Tazo Joy tea. Given that a little over a year ago, I didn’t drink tea at all, I’m slowly expanding my taste, and this is a nice blend.With holiday drinks come holiday magazines, and then finally, the holidays. It’s hard for me to read magazines and blogs and their myriad “gift guides” and not have my head turned by some things I’d like for myself while I’m looking. Perhaps my “want” list covers something you’d like as well:

1. bee raw honey :: saw this at Design*Sponge, and the packaging is so lovely that I’d like to have a jar of orange blossom honey to augment my tea fixation.
2. moleskine city guide :: I think that I could make the ultimate Boston guide using this notebook, my notes and accumulated business cards.
3. Blissful Brownies :: the german chocolate are out-0f-this-world good. Frankly, they all are. I’m going to a holiday boutique next week just to be guaranteed a couple, or three!
4. Lanvin flats :: $$$$$ (for shame!) but some obsessions cannot be explained. Black, please.
5. Simply Breakfast book :: Jen Causey takes the pictures I wish I could. And eats the breakfasts I ought to …..
6. Stilista personal style guide :: as someone who wears the same thing (or a variation of the same thing) every single day, I would love for someone to chart out what I “could” wear. (I accept that the chart just might be cute flats, jeans, and tee and a cardigan!) Option B: Laura Bennett/Isaac Mizrahi/Narciso Rodriguez could make me a dress.

Anything I’m missing, other than Maira Kalman’s new book? (It’s on my amazon.com list) Add it with a comment.Catalogs! How could I forget catalogs? I was busy as a bee marking up the latest from Pottery Barn. It started with the linen pinboard advent calendar, progressed to the grosgrain mat frames, and went on (and on) from there ….

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