Organization and Etiquette

Happy Monday Friends!  I hope you had a lovely weekend, full of family, friends and happy memories.  I certainly had a busy one.  I had dinner with a grade school friend on Friday, joined my brother for a Ghost Tour of Greenwich Village on Saturday and had Easter brunch with friends on Sunday.  Such a wonderful time with wonderful people.

My dear friend was so gracious to host us as it was her first big dinner party since she married her sweetheart.  And with it came a few lessons in hostess etiquette.  She joked about proper place settings and which serving utensils should she use for the lasagna rather than salad but really, modern day etiquette is not as apparent in the ways it used to be.

(Emily Post)

Emily Post's "Etiquette" is the quintessential book for any hostess-to-be looking to learn the ropes.  With organization comes invitations to let others into your organized lifestyle.  When you have an organized space, you'll want to share it with others.  Even if this guide may be a tad traditional for your taste, there are still beneficial hosting perks to pair with your clean and organized space.  Inviting others into your living space, whether it be at home or the office, tells them that you're not only proud of who you are and what you do but how you get around to doing it.  And an organizing lifestyle makes that nothing but easier to do.

Tell me, Appleshiners, how do you feel about hosting in your organized space?

Homemade Valentine's Gifts

Ah, Friday...a whole weekend lies ahead.  Whatever your plans are, don't forget about Valentine's Day coming up.  Personally, I love celebrating all 'Hallmark' Holidays; they're a great reason to have fun for a day.  I try not to go overboard and keep my spending limits to a fair minimum.  So, in the interest of having fun while being creatively thrifty, here are few homemade gifts to give to your sweetie this Valentine's Day:

I love the classic Coupon Book.  I remember making these for my parents when I was a kid.

Last year, I took a handful of conversation hearts, arranged them in sentences and glued them to construction paper for a silly valentine's card.  Cute idea, right?  I think my boyfriend still has it ;)

I'm thinking about making him these for his gift this year.  I'd use nautical maps because he's a big boater.

What man wouldn't want a toy of some kind?  I know it's not homemade but it's under $12 and he could put it together himself.  Or maybe he'd prefer a car or boat.

Even if gifts aren't your thing, you could make this gorgeous flower arrangement.  And the base is filled with Red Hots, to spice things up!


Tell me, Appleshiners, what are your favorite homemade gifts?