Let's get this party started.

With a little gratitude. Shall we?

New top ten:

1. miniature casseroles. Yesterday Kitter brought me 2 miniature casseroles and a some of her ridiculously spicy and delicious vegan chili. My favorite thing about winter is definitely casseroles.

2. and chili.

3. and fur coats. Fake or real. I ain't picky.

4. I also like corn, and today I was feeling experimental. I invented a new recipe inspired by Tina (No. Not Mommie Dearest Tina. This time I am referring to Tina the Alamo tour guide from Pee Wee's Big Adventure.) It has Jiffy Cornbread, cheese grits and frozen corn. It is kinda like polenta, but also like cornbread. Mmmm, great with chili!

5. Caldrea Basil Blue Sage Linen Spray. Enough with the Febreeze already. "Linen Spray" sounds way fancier, especially when you say it with a lisp. I like how it doesn't smell like the air freshener aisle at Walmart. I spray it on my bed linens between washings, and on my hand knitted wool scarves before popping them in the dryer and leaving the house. Oh, who am I kidding? The truth is: I really just turn on Fleetwood Mac real loud and then twirl around with my Caldrea Linen Spray. I got it at Urban Cottage.

6. Walmart. After watching the documentary Food, Inc, I have a new respect for Walmart. Plus, it makes me feel like I'm really in touch with my inner American when I shop at Walmart. Jessiker and I like to go on "shopping sprees" there. We get groceries. and pink Tic Tacs.

7. Clinique Even Better Foundation. This is gooood stuff, y'all.

8. matching towels. My family gave me a Walmart gift card for Christmas. I decided it was time to have handtowels, washcloths, and bath towels that are all the same color. And not a boring color, either. No siree. I'm done with white, ivory, and beige. Deep turquoise looks much better with my eye and skin color.

9. Kitter's serious whistle face. Here she is whistlin Dixie in today's visual aid. Just kidding. She was really whistling GNR Patience.

10. Mom is coming to Atlanta tomorrow, and that means Kitter and I will be on our best behavior all weekend. Look out.

Happy new year everyone!

'Tis the Season for a new Top Ten

1. As all retailers tend to do, we listen to holiday music at the store. Silent Night came on. Elvis was singing about "Christ the Savior is born" and I changed the song. I thought it was the right thing to do. My coworker disagreed. Who cares?

Next: A mom was busy shopping and was not paying attention to the kid. The kid came up to me at the register, and I noticed that the top of the kid's head was even with the counter top. She put her little hands on the counter and stood on her tippy toes while making intense eye contact with me. I got the impression she was about to tell me something really important, and I needed to listen. The kid says to me, "Guess what?" I gave her my undivided attention and acted super serious. I said, "What is it?" She said, "The real Christmas color is white." I nodded and said, "Really?" The kid says, "Yeah. Because red is for Santa. And green is for Christmas trees." She paused. "But not everybody celebrates Christmas. So white is the real Christmas color, because white is for snow."

3. Rainbow candy canes

4. mail with handwriting on it

5. A beautiful woman came to the store and was shopping with her beautiful friend. While they were standing in line at the register, I heard one woman quoting her kid to the other woman: "I know Santa Claus is real because you and Daddy never lie to me. Besides, Santa really is magic. Last year he brought me stuff that I didn't even know I wanted."

6. My friend Carolyn loves the Christmas Jug Band.

7. I love Starbucks Egg Nog Lattes.

8. Kitter's boss loves Jingle Cats.

9. Mom loves O Holy Night. This amazing video right here was posted to Facebook by one of her best friends, and wow. It'll make you fall on your knees.

10. Maybe if we're very good next year, the Coca Cola executives will get rid of those damn vintage Santa illustrations and put pictures of Polar Bears on the holiday cans.

My new favorite adjective

I have a deep respect for people who are good at chit chat and small talk, especially if they can do it in broad daylight at an event where little or no alcohol is being served.

This is a skill that I've been trying to master for decades. My friend Jessiker lets me practice on her quite a bit. She's knows I'm color blind and she's very patient with me when I stare at a wall and ask, "Jess, is there really any such thing as an actual neutral color, or are they all either warm or cool tones?"

Jess knows all the interior design lingo, and cozy is her favorite adjective. Heather's favorite adjective is vintage, and Ms. Gail's is classic.

Mine is authentic.

One of my mom's favorites is appropriate. For example, at her house, it is not appropriate to wear white linen pants and listen to Christmas music at the same time.

If you are on a long road trip (or a first date) and there's nothing much to talk about, you can always discuss your favorite adjective, and things around town that match the description.

Another fun thing to do is pick out a back up favorite. Mine is machine washable.

Today's visual aid features a photo of an authentic Van Gogh painting, taken with my genuine iPhone while I was in Paris (2008).

2009 Holiday Gift Guide

Here's a list of stuff we like right now; that would probably make good gifts.

1. The Jonathan Adler Barbie. The other day I was trolling eBay for some Jonathan Adler pillow shams, and I discovered that my man has designed a new Malibu Barbie.

2. Dry Shampoo. A recent article in Glamour magazine quotes a stylist from a fancy salon in New York City who states that women should wash their hair no more than twice a week. Jessiker and I found a nice selection of dry shampoo at Ulta.

3. Lindt Lindor Truffles. I actually have one in my mouth right now as I type this. I try to keep them around the house as much as I can. They taste like really expensive chocolate, but they don't cost a whole lot of money.

4. Poppytalk. an artist market on the web, curated in Canada. Kitter loves it.

5. Chandrika Soap. Kitter turned me on to this soap back in high school. It can usually be found at your local health food store, and is about $2 per bar. It smells fantastic, and even comes in a red white and green box. Perfect!

6. Rainbows Happen. A kids coloring book written and illustrated by yours truly. Now available on amazon.com. Eligible for free shipping.

7. Starbucks Via. (aka: instant coffee) I know how to select good coffee beans, and I know how to properly brew a cup of coffee. Yet, coffee never tastes good to me when I make it for myself. Now that I have been able to overcome this challenge with Starbucks Via, my life has improved dramatically.

8.Burt's Bees Lip Shimmers This is the only brand of lip color that Kitter will wear. I finally bought one for myself because I wanted to see what's so great about it. The price is great ($5). Also, some dudes find waxy artificial looking lip colors to be repulsive, but all the single ladies won't need to worry about that with Burt's Bees minty fresh all natural tinted lip shimmers.

9. Rosy Cheeks Big Sister dolls. I gave this as a gift at an adoption shower recently, and it was a huge hit. The doll is all cloth; yet she wears cute outfits. This seems to be a tremendous breakthrough in doll technology. When I was a kid, my dolls were either soft and cuddly with ugly outfits, or they were hard and plastic with cute outfits.

10. Pink Saturday is Talulah B's annual holiday shopping spectacular in Cabbagetown. The event is this Saturday, Dec 12th, from 11am-4pm. Come on out and see the wares from Fiona Lottamore, Sweet Talkin Lola, The Sudstress, The Akola Bead Project, Talulah B Designs, and Concrete Lace.

Success Lives Here.

First of all, a big thank you to our fabulous supporters. Thanks to you, I have acquired my very own brand new MacBook, and I love it love it love it.

We have sold out of our first run of screenprinted holiday cards with the Pool, Sage, Cement, and Leaf color scheme.

We still have 5 or 6 packages from the original run, so if you want them please let us know ASAP.

Meanwhile, I printed more yesterday, with a whole new color palette of cardstock (including Glamorous Gold).

Okay, so remember when I said that when we sold out of our first run of holiday cards we would print more, but not with white ink?

Well, we changed the plan. Kitter and I unanimously agreed that with our white envelopes and colored cardstock, the white ink really does look best.

Our letterpress gift tags were a huge hit, and we have completely sold out of them on our Etsy site. We are now in the process of developing some gift tags to match the holiday cards.

In other news, our handpainted holiday ornaments featuring Kitter's Limited Edition Handwriting are now available at Urban Cottage; and our holiday cards are available at Park Grounds, our neighborhood's beloved doggie park/coffee shop.

Again: Thanks so much to everyone who ordered cards and coloring books from us.

You awesome.

Variety is the spice of life.

The 2009 holiday cards are now ready to ship.

"Limited Edition" is one of Kitter's favorite expressions, and she loves to knock on doors and impersonate The Traveling Salesman from Pee Wee's Playhouse: "We're going door to door to give you this incredible offer!"

Click here to see the offer, but you need to act now. When this run is sold out, we will print more, but not with white ink.

(Trivia: Screenprinting and engraving are the only two methods that allow for white ink to print on colored paper. Engraving is simply not affordable for most people, and screenprinting is what we have here.) Either way, cards with white ink will always stand out.

Click here to order your set of four cards for $11.50, and know that you are doing a very good deed. 100% of the proceeds from Concrete Lace card sales support a fund to replace my beloved computer, which passed away on October 3.

I appreciate every sale and every referral if you know anyone who might appreciate a set of limited edition hand printed holiday cards.

Top Ten

10. Premium Saltines. And they are even better with an ice cold can of Coke Cola.

9. Purple. Mom hates purple. So do I. However, I have received several nudges from The Universe telling me I need to drop by bad attitude about purple. Today I completed a collage with the most fantastic purple color scheme. It would be perfect for a little girl's room.

8. Instant Coffee. If anything is instant, I want it because the implication is: magical. When I was a kid, I wanted to be an adult. Thus, I was obsessed with the International Flavors of instant coffee that come in the square tin with the powdered creamer already added. I had totally forgotten that this stuff existed until my yoga teacher said she drinks it. Kitter and I got a tin of Cafe Francais (they were out of Cafe Vienna), and I tell you what. It's not bad.

7. Big Sister Dolls. Shopping for babies is a total snooze fest. Luckily, our friends in Savannah are adopting a 4 year old little angel from Ethiopia. So we get to buy cool stuff. Such as a cloth doll with fancy little outfits. It is the cutest thing I've ever seen.

6. Coco Chanel Eau de Parfum This is my favorite time of the year to wear Coco Chanel. It smells rich, dark, loud, and fancy. It is much too heavy to wear during the summer, but too warm to wear during the dead of winter. NOW is the time. I ran out, so Jessiker is letting me borrow her bottle. Isn't that sweet?

5. Ceylon Tea. The other day at work we had a sample of some Ceylon tea, and good lord a glory, it was mighty fine. I think it might have been the finest tea I've ever tasted. It was much more mellow than the Assam tea that I've been drinking lately. (Trivia: Ceylon comes from Sri Lanka, Assam is from India)

4. The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho. When Kitter and Paul went shrimping, she left this book at my house. I didn't think I would like it, but I sure as hell did. This book is a huge bestseller, and is pretty much an international classic.

3. Shrimpers. When Jessiker and I went to Baton Rouge a few weeks ago, we passed a giant billboard in Biloxi that says, "Going to Louisiana to eat imported shrimp? We doubt it! DEMAND LOUISIANA SHRIMP!"

2. Sinead O'Connor. for obvious reasons. Black Boys on Mopeds being one of them.

1. Electric Staple Guns. One of my pieces sold over the weekend (yay!), so I had a legitimate reason to go shopping for art supplies this afternoon. I'm not 100% convinced that stretching my own canvas is more cost effective, but I need very specific sizes, and the pre-stretched deals just aren't available in every size. My art professor in college was adamant about paintings being worth more if the artist stretches their own canvas (something about vibes). Today I busted out my electric staple gun and the jar of Gesso, and went to town. Now I have that extra feeling of accomplishment that I just don't get when I use the pre-stretched canvases.

This feeling that I have is worth the extra money.