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baba souk gift guide ( + a discount )
baba souk is one of those online shops where if you go to find a gift for one lady in your life, you’ll definitely end up finding something for every lady in your life. their shop is full of gorgeous patterns and one of a kind objects — and it’s seriously hard to not want to get something yourself. i’ve rounded up some of my favorite items from their shop – and i’m sharing a discount code with you guys that will last today through december 10th! use code ALMOSTMAKESPERFECT for 15% off! now go and get your holiday shopping done already, sheesh.
01. for the friend or coworker : anti evil eye bracelet
02. for the entertainer : graphic cheese plates
03. for the crafter : twig pencils
04. for the jewelry lover : raw quatz earrings
05. for the decorator : striped moroccan pillow
06. for the green thumb : cacti planter
07. for you : thank you cards for post – holiday gratitude -
holiday gift guide / for the cooks
i don’t know about you – but i have quite a few cooking enthusiasts in my family. so i’m always on the lookout for special kitchen items and cooking tools for them. here are 15 of my favorite picks — OH and everything is under $100!
01. you’re guaranteed that they don’t have anything like this unique fern cutting + serving board ($16)
02. the most gorgeous julienne peeler they’ll ever own. and they’ll probably keep it for life. ($52)
03. for real though, who doesn’t want recipes that only require one sheet pan? ($12)
04. gorgeous mango wood serving plates to make their delicious food look pretty ($22 – $30)
05. a modern pot holder that is prettier than any pot holder i’ve ever owned ($17)
06. for when you can’t afford a le creuset (i know i can’t) this is a beautiful alternative dutch oven ($63)
07. a beautiful mortar and pestle is a perfect safe bet for every cook. ($15)
08. a french rolling pin, not only inexpensive and functional, but also looks dope. ($13)
09. modern and affordable food canisters with wood lids, we use them for our coffee ($13)
10. a gorge wood and marble serving board, because everyone wants more marble in their kitchen ($68)
11. snoop in their drawers and replace all utensils that are as old as you. they’ll think you’re the best. ($10)
12. fancy olive oil is the other perfect safe bet for every cook. ($36)
13. and so is fancy salt. especially truffle salt because people love novelty. ($19)
14. everyone wants prettier mixing bowls (maybe?) but no one buys for themselves (i’d think?) ($88)
15. we got a mandoline and that shit is LIFE CHANGING. ($15) -
diy makeshift xmas tree wall hanging
every year i want a tree, but i dread how big its going to feel in our tiny living room — some people in small space just don’t go for it because of that – so here’s an idea for a modern alternative that can still feel like your focal point and smell like a tree too!
and the best part, it takes less than an hour and you can hang and take down in a couple of minutes with no damage to your wall.
materials
- a super long wooden dowel
- fresh greenery (evergreen for the au naturales, but i used rosemary)
- hot glue gun
- scissors or shears
- painters tape
- a saw
01. cut your dowel down into as many pieces as you want. i chose my longest size, and then cut the rest a little shorter than the previous.
02. shear your greens (we bought a rosemary tree for $7 and i ended up using all of it) start gluing the greenery to your wood. cover the stems with additional pieces, and fill in any gaps with little pieces.
03. let dry, and then attached long rolled pieces of painters tape to the backs. hang and push into the wall as hard as you can to secure.
you can obviously go way bigger if you have more greens and more wood — and make it TREE SIZED OMG! i didn’t though.
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holiday gift guide / gifts under $25
in case you’re playing secret santa this year, you’re looking for stocking stuffers, or you’re trying to stay frugal this holiday — here are some pretty great gifts that don’t cost a fortune.
01. i only live with one boy, but i know he likes facial masks just like i do. so this is more gender neutral than you think based on one boy ($18)
02. some cute recipe cards are the perfect gift for any cook because not only is it inexpensive and thoughtful, but they’ll use them too ($12)
03. but if they don’t cook, they just drink — get them a cocktail recipe book because everyone loves a cocktail recipe book ($14.95)
04. metallic playing cards work for a boy who plays cards or a girl who likes to display pretty items on her coffee table. win win ($18)
05. and when you literally have no idea what they like, just get them a pretty leather key ring ($8)
06. i’ve included pf candles before, but that’s because they’re incredible. every scent is perfect ($16)
07. and because scents are easy and useful gifts, here is my favorite incense ($10)
08. a beautiful ring dish is a lot easier to pick out for someone than actual jewelry ($25)
09. for the craftier recipient, give them a diy kit to make their own candles ($22)
10. you can never have too many tea towels. seriously ($22)
11. rad earbuds seem like the perfect gift because i would never think to buy for myself. plus i can’t use earbuds because my ears are too small ($22)
12. a pretty journal or sketchbook is another gift that works for almost anyone ($24)
13. i rarely buy myself zipper pouches, even though i want 10 at any given time. it’s over $25 with monogramming, so i’m sorry. but maybe you don’t want it monogrammed! right?! ($24) -
mini chicken + waffles
now that you’re hopefully in eat everything mode for the holidays — i wanted to share an appetizer recipe that is SO easy and quick, and perfect for any holiday party you might be throwing or attending, especially because you don’t need any fresh ingredients.
we had a very similar hors d’oeuvre served at our wedding and people went CRAZY for it. so i wanted to make my own much simpler version. this is also my second attempt since the wedding, and i learned from some mistakes so this is my best version for you guys.
mini chicken and waffles
frozen chicken
mini toaster waffles
maple syrup
sea salt
herbs de provence
toothpicks
01. cook the chicken according the packages directions. we used orange chicken without the sauce, because one of the lessons i learned from my first attempt was the frozen popcorn chicken i bought was shit. it wasn’t browned all the way around and it didn’t have a nice crunchy batter like the orange chicken does. so i recommend orange chicken!
02. toast the waffles once the chicken has just a couple minutes left.
03. assemble. that means put the chicken on top of the waffle, and stick a toothpick through. you knew that.
04. liberally sprinkle salt, and MUCH more liberally sprinkle the herbs de provence. because this was my second lesson : the first batch was a little bland. i am a huge advocate of herbs de provence. i put it on almost everything. and i swear it made such a difference with these.
05. drizzle the syrup on top and you’re ready to serve! told you that was easy.
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last minute thanksgiving inspo + happy thanksgiving
it’s another year, and another time i’ll apologize to all of you that don’t celebrate thanksgiving having to deal with all the blogs posting about thanksgiving. but at least there’s a lot of pretty tables for you to get inspired to host some autumnal dinner parties!
i’m signing off for the week, but wanted to share some inspiration to help you set your table or pretty up your guests leftovers.
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printable thanksgiving menus
as i said last week — i’m in charge of thanksgiving this year. so of course i’m trying to design some MENUS. i decided that in case you’re in need of menus, i could share! because i mean, that’s what thanksgiving is all about.
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holiday gift guide / for the kids
01. every kid needs a constant reminder to not be gross. might help to hang one of these in their bathroom.
02. and because every kid needs a cute yarn tassel. ok, well maybe they don’t need…
03. for the little one that’s saving all their money for college, encourage them with a cute piggy bank.
04. the cutest little moccasins ever. my future kids will be wearing these for sure.
05. a really beautiful alternative to jenga. if you’re feeling active, you could also DIY it.
06. the cutest leggings that i wish came in grown up sizes.
07. adorable socks that will make you and said kid smile.
08. toys don’t always have to be ugly! the pretty ones are just way more $$ and kids might hate them.
09. for the artistic little guy or girl — inspire them to keep it up with an andy warhol coloring book.
10. because i mean, what kid would not look cool in this panther sweatshirt?
11. i always love that gifts that you can do an activity together, and most adults i know want to build robots.
12. for the musical kid, get them a ukelele which is at least 1000x less annoying than some alternative instruments. -
printable thankful bingo
did anyone else just realize thanksgiving is next week?! maybe it’s just me. i’m super bad at calendars. if you’re looking to spice up your thanksgiving this year, i’m sharing this free printable for a very snarky and fun bingo game to play.
all you have to do is download from the link below, print to the size you’d like (works best on cardstock), and in the print settings > add crop marks for the easiest trimming. then hand one out to everyone (or just limit it to the young people if the oldies don’t have a sense of humor)!
my mom had surgery last week, so gideon and i are in charge of hosting thanksgiving this year. something i’ve never done despite being very close to 30. so we’re feeling very intimidated about cooking for 15 people, but excited that i get to be in charge of table design! so i got a chance to practice for this post, and i’m going to practice AGAIN for ANOTHER THANKSGIVING printable as well! OOOOO!
TABLE SOURCES
PLATES : WEST ELM / FLATWARE : WEST ELM / RAW LINEN NAPKINS : WEDDING DIY
WOVEN PLACEMATS : IKEA / GEO CANDLES : WIT & DELIGHT FOR TARGET -
brit + co x almost makes perfect
exciting news! if you were a fan of my DIY stamped scarf or DIY stamped napkins, i’ve teamed up with brit+co (!!) to create holiday craft kits for you to make your own! brit+co chose some of their favorite craft projects from different bloggers, and they decided to create not one, but two separate kits for you to recreate that project!
buy the kit for a loved one, buy the kit for yourself, or if you realllllly want to be a sweetie, buy the kit and make it for them! three perfectly legit options. i made my mom a stamped scarf for mother’s day and i won major brownie points.
you can also read a little interview about me on the brit+co website here!
so do you wanna get one for yourself? here you go.
STAMPED NAPKIN DIY KIT ($25)
STAMPED SCARF DIY KIT ($25)
