Categories
Character Gift Guides

Gift Guide for Your Boyfriend

Crewneck Sweater, $60, lightweight yet warm, pure wool for you to cuddle into. Matters of the Heart Print, $20, and that’s all that really matters. Garmin Runner’s Watch, $370, tracks distance, pace and heart rate, then wirelessly sends the data.
American Flag T-Shirt, $37, featuring different drinking glasses in place of the 50 stars. Canvas Notebook, $24, Made from fade resistant marine canvas to include pen/pencil slot. J. Crew argyle sweater, $80,perfect for a date night.
Banana Republic Non-Iron Button-Down, $80, tall guys can take a bigger vertical stripe. Kindle Wireless Reading Device, $260, as thin as magazines, lighter than a paperback, perfect for when he travels. Mustachios Print, $20, let him admire these, instead of ever grow one of his own.
Flannel Boxers, $19, classic boxer shorts, now in a cotton flannel that’s so incredibly comfortable. Heartland Limited Edition Print, $100, love this if he travels a lot. V-Neck Sweater, $60, bold stripes provide an instant upgrade to his look.
Categories
Character Gift Guides

Gift Guide for Your Boyfriend’s Brother

Spending the holidays with your sweetheart? Don’t forget to package something up for his younger brother who just got a new job and is still engaged in the finer pursuits of leisure.

If it’s your first Christmas with the family, grab a lower-priced stocking stuffer. If it’s your second or third, go for something with a little more weight or split a gift with your boyfriend.

Outlaws, $30, adventures of pirates, scoundrels, and other rebels. Cremo Cream, $8, the astonishingly superior shave cream. Bonobos Polo, $68, not too tight, not too baggy.
Sonic Fabric Tie, $90, recycled and plays music… really. Banana Republic T-Shirt, $33, cotton ‘text’ graphic long-sleeve tee. The Search for God and Guinness, $17, drunkenness is next to godliness.
Hard Graft Wallet, $120, slim with room for his phone and credit cards. John Allan’s Sport Shampoo, $14, ideal for an active lifestyle.
Categories
Character Gift Guides

Gift Guide for Your Mother

Your mom has always been your best friend. From asking you, “Do you want to be right, or do you want to be happy?” when you get in a fight with the boyfriend, to reminding you that, “Everything will get done, it always does,” you’re not sure where you would be without all her advice. Of course, she says she doesn’t want anything for Christmas, but that’s one thing you’re not listening to.

Custom Pet Doodle, $50, because the dogs deserve family portraits too! Baggu Bags, $8, collapsible, reusable, shopping bags. Teabag Mug & Teaspoon Plate, $72, organic porcelain with beautiful whimsy.
Alice.com Gift Card, $50, take household shopping off her to-do list. Oatmeal Fig Tea Towel, $24, a bold fig leaf is hand printed with roll folded hems. The Help, $12, start a mother-daughter book club with this optimistic, uplifting novel.
Love is...
Butterflies & Insects Calendar, $22, because butterflies remind her of her own mother. Framed Memory, pick a favorite photo or memento and add a large mat. Brandi Carlile: Give Up the Ghost, $11, music you can enjoy together.
Categories
Character Gift Guides

Gift Guide for Your Sister

Your older sister lives in England, has a British husband and loves France. In many ways, she’s the opposite of you, a little kooky, and you’ve always wanted to be just like her. Air-mail your love with these treasures.

Blaue Blume Tea Pot, $128, make drinking tea a glamorous and seductive affair, with gold shoes. Savon du Marseille Soap, $23, indulging her francophile tendencies. Vintage Camera Photo Album, $10, a place to stash her adventures.
The Elegance of the Hedgehog
Leather Backpack, $557, just in case one of you should become rich, this goes on the list. Antique Ferrotype Necklace, $80, for her love of history. The Elegance of the Hedgehog, $9, translated from French on the bourgeoisie.
Vintage Brass Unicorn, $20, a charming reminder of her childhood collection. Copper Tortoise Grater, $37, because she first taught you how to cook and likes river animals.
Categories
Character Gift Guides

Gift Guide for Your Boyfriend’s Father

A passionate changemaker and businessman, your boyfriend’s father has a lot of heart behind his intimidating exterior. And he’s a lover of cigars, which really says it all.

I don’t know much about cigars, so I just visit the local cigar bar and ask for recommendations. They also told me Fuller’s Pullers was the best online resource for cigars, so I’ve gone ahead and included a random mid-level selection from that site in case you don’t have a cigar bar in your city.

Gentleman’s Travel Shoe Bag, $14, his loafers now have a better place to travel than in a plastic bag from the supermarket. The Audacity to Win, $16, chronicles the campaign that in many ways functioned as a $1 billion start-up with laser-like focus and discipline. Padilla Cazadores, $25, the pre-light aroma has light floral and savory notes that sets the expectation for a great smoke.


Open: An Autobiography, $14, one of the most gifted men ever to step onto a tennis court shares a beautiful, haunting autobiography. Business Card Case, $60, an engraved brass reminder that reads, “In It To Win It.”  
Categories
Links

How happy are the congressional districts?

The happiest districts are among the most affluent in the nation. Six of the top 10 are affluent and physically magnificent California communities. The least happy districts are mainly places of extreme disadvantage, inner-city neighborhoods in Detroit, Cleveland, South Philly, the Bronx, or Appalachia.

There are a couple of slight anomalies – wealthy Grosse Point, Michigan, is lumped together with poor inner-city Detroit neighborhoods (wonder why that would be?), and given the devastation of greater Detroit it’s not surprising that even the rich would be less happy then elsewhere. And hipster Williamsburg is lumped together with Bed-Stuy: But, then again, whoever said hipsters were happy…

Via The Creative Class.

Categories
Character Gift Guides

Gift Guide for Your Boyfriend’s Mother

Your boyfriend’s mother has welcomed you with open arms and you can’t wait to catch up with her over the holidays. She’s stylish, loves to entertain family and friends, and you’re so happy she raised such a wonderful son.

Pinwheel Notebook, $14, for jotting down favorite places, ideas and inspirations. Poppy Fields Make-Up Bag, $60, poppies have long captivated and enchanted. Pixie Candlelight Holders, $30, perfect for entertaining.
Kate Spade Thermos, $30, a snow day staple, cozy and fun. A Year in the Country Soaps, $70, each soap represents a different month at the Beekman farm, capturing every season. Oak Tea Towel, $13, linen screen printed with creamy oak leaf illustration
Categories
Links

Embrace white space

The same concept of using “white space” can be applied to our careers. As young professionals, it’s so easy to open our mouths as a way to overcompensate for our lack of experience or to fill the silence with rhetoric. Consider your favorite leaders: they choose their words carefully. Sometimes they nod and think rather than speak. Great public speakers have learned to master (and rely on) white space.

Via Ms. Career Girl.

Categories
Character Gift Guides

Gift Guide for Your Self-Employed Friend

With all the lay-offs this year, chances are one of your good friends is working on their own. Here are some gifts for your newly self-employed friend and their motivation.

Linkable Lined Notebook, $14, lined pages that open flat with front cover pocket linking system. Blu Dot Rack, $90, from flat to fabulous in no time. Oh Joy! File Collection, $17, perfect starter kit for a home office or a cubicle.
Bonox Clock, $18, wake up! Petite vintage-inspired alarm clock. 2010 Color a Month Planner, $25, keep track of plans and promises, with plenty of room for notes and musings. Marimekko Mousepad, $20, Finnish and modern.
Great Ideas Bottle Journal, $18, fabric hardbound journal with lined or blank paper. Elephant Paper Clips, $7, for good luck. Design Inspiration Poster, $20, start their collection.
   
Kraft Paper Notepad, $12, elevate grocery lists and honey-do notes.    
Categories
Character Gift Guides

The Modite 2009 Holiday Gift Guide

I was at brunch with Ryan this morning and I was asking him about the upcoming holidays and the gifts I had planned for different people. And I asked him if he knew what he was getting different people.

“No, it’s too early to be thinking about gifts,” he replied.

“Really? You think so? People start shopping the day after Thanksgiving though.”

“Yeah, way too early.”

“So when do you buy gifts? The day before Christmas?”

“Exactly. That’s the best time.”

Which, okay, really doesn’t surprise me because my mom used to tell me my father did the same thing. But just in case you want to give it a little more thought, I’ve put together a gift guide chock-full of great gifts, most under $100 , a ton under $50, and a few luxuries thrown in here and there.

I’ll do one or two posts a day throughout the week, starting tomorrow. Hope you guys love it!

PS – Make sure you don’t miss any gift guide posts, subscribe to Design & Style on Modite.

Categories
Character Design2 Wishlist

Leather Bin

This bin is made from a single cut and folded piece of leather, and it comes in difference sizes. Pictured above is the medium, although I think the small would be best in my place. It can hold cellphones, loose change and other small treasures.

Leather Bin from Gildem, $20.

Categories
Links

“Dating” Other Couples

photo via WeHeartIt.

As all my friends have coupled up, life is dramatically different. In short, my girlfriends and I got a little boring, we rarely have girls’ nights anymore and worse yet, they went and chose partners that aren’t all that compatible with my boyfriend and I. Sometimes it’s awkward to hang out with other couples and Ryan and I have only found a few couples that we genuinely enjoy going on a night on the town with.

The dynamics are complicated. The females need to get along and the males need to get along so that even though you’re going out as a couple, you get in your girl and guy time accordingly. Also, the other female needs to be able to talk to your boyfriend and vice versa without being too painstakingly boring. In short, everyone needs to get along and like eachother whatever way you cross it. At least for a drink’s worth amount of time. The WSJ reports:

Take the experience of Ben Van Houten and his wife, who’ve “dated” an array of couples since moving to Grand Rapids, Mich., three years ago: “They had one ‘date’ where the woman was self-absorbed, another, Mr. Van Houten recalls, where the man was ‘a complete dud with no sense of humor,’ and a third that was ruined by politics. When Mr. Van Houten got up his nerve and asked a neighbor and his wife out to dinner, the man replied, ‘I don’t like people.’”

And the date, Elizabeth says, is merely where the stress begins. “Because what if they don’t call? Should you contact them? And if you do, and you still don’t hear back, what does that say about your relationship with your partner? Are you irritating? Insufferable? Uninteresting as a team?” …

“Research shows that couples who are friends with other couples have happier, longer-lasting relationships with each other,” Elizabeth writes. “The reasons are simple. If you have friends who enjoy you as a couple, you may feel better about your union. These other couples can be a support network. And the process of making new friends together may inject energy into your relationship and give you something to bond over.”

Did They Like Us? via The Wall Street Journal.