Watch out boring, boxy aprons…there’s a new girl in town! Say hello to Smocks – and to flirty, smart designs for entertaining in style!

Smocks is a brand new company created by mother-daughter duo Christopher Ireland – a West coast techie & marketing/brand consultant – and Kelley Culp – a fashion editor & designer living in New York. After noticing a growing trend in the markets of cooking & entertaining, especially with more and more people entertaining at home these days, Kelley and Christopher decided to launch a line of stylish, affordable aprons that actually compliment your outfit rather than just cover it up. How’s that for a concept!

Smocks are manufactured in the USA and designed to be attractive on a wide range of bodies, but they even offer a little extra guidance in the fit department if you’re worried about a specific feature.  All fabrics are inspired by contemporary designers and pre-tested & machine washable, of course!

Each apron has a unique name and it’s own little dose of personality. For example, the description for “Jane” (pictured at top) reads, “You’re no wallflower. Demure, maybe, but then there’s that tattoo…”.

Smocks range from $34.95 – $44.95 and are sold exclusively at www.smocksdesign.com.  (Great Mother’s Day gift idea!)

Winner Update: Wow – you guys really love your See’s! This giveaway is now closed, but thanks so much to all 586 of you that entered! I wish we had gift certificates for all of you, but as always we’ve gotta narrow it down, and the randomly drawn winners for this giveaway are…. #418 – Dana, #161 – Anne, #186 – Lynn, and #31 – Elizabeth. Congrats, ladies! We’ll be in touch via email to coordinate your prize!

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Just in time for Mother’s Day, See’s Candies is offering up $25 gift certificates to FOUR lucky HWTM readers! Whether you’re shopping for Mother’s Day Gifts like this pretty Pink Keepsake Box (filled with assorted Milk, Dark, and White-coated chocolates; $17.95)  or your own favorite treat (by way of truffles, caramels, new Black Cherry Lollipops & more) – doesn’t the concept of “free” make it sound even sweeter?!

HOW TO ENTER:

• Post a comment here telling us YOUR favorite flavor(s) or type(s) of See’s Candies.
• Giveaway ends Tuesday, May 5th at midnight PST. Winners are chosen randomly and will be announced here on Wednesday, May 6th. Good luck!

Let the sun shine in… Here are a few fun ways to brighten up your desk – or someone else’s! Hint: maybe mom deserves a little “sunshine” for Mother’s Day?

1. Golden Cherry Blossom Notes - Box of 12 ($18);   2. Yellow Bird Correction Tape ($11); 3. Yellow Peony Personalized Paperweight ($35); 4. Thomas Paul Marigold Desk Tray - with 200 notes ($12); 5. Pom Pom noteBLOCK – with 700 self-adhesive notes ($16);  6. Golden Cherry Blossom Gift Wrap – 2 Sheets ($7).

{all items available at RedStamp.com}

Even the kitchen guru who already has everything won’t be able to resist these adorable measuring tools from Anthropologie: A Measuring Gaggle (a quartet of nesting geese) – $28 per bone china set and long-necked Giraffe Measuring Spoons – $19.95 per set of 5 stoneware spoons.

{top “gaggle” image from Chow.com}

The new line of Hostess with the Mostess® digital scrapbooking templates is now available at How Fast They Grow! And to help celebrate, HFTG is offering HWTM readers 20% off with discount code: “HWTM922“! {good through 10/22/08}

For those of you that didn’t see the sneak peek from a couple weeks ago, here’s a quick recap: There are 81 new HWTM templates that fall into 3 different categories categories: Mod Squad (blue, green & chocolate tones), Metro Sorbet (berry, pink & orange tones), and Mostess Days (holidays & celebrations).

For the template designs, I tried to keep the focus on modern colors & patterns so that they can be utilized for a variety of ages…from the very young to the young at heart! Here are a few sample pages…

About How Fast They Grow:
In the era of digital photography and Web 2.0, How Fast They Grow’s patent-pending Digi-Scrapbook® technology has become one of the most talked-about new web apps this year.  At How Fast They Grow, users can “drag and drop” their digital photos into the 12×12 templates and create magazine-quality scrapbook pages in about seven minutes. There is no software to download or purchase, and each page can hold up to six high-quality digital images. You can also customize titles, fonts, and journaling on each page!

Click here to check out the entire collection… hope you like them!

How is it possible that Mother’s Day is already this coming weekend?! The year is truly flying by! If you’re still on the lookout for cool gift ideas for Mom, check out our Mother’s Day Gift Guide for unique tableware, contemporary vases, personalized stationery, modern floral arrangements, and more!

These new "Late-for-Dinner" melamine plates from Anthropologie are perfect for retro-mod summer entertaining! Sold in sets of 4 for $24, each plate dons a different pop-art flora print…

And keep the retro-mod motif going with this coordinating "Patio-Perfect Tray"…

Made of sturdy melamine, this equal parts bold and lovely tray is perfect for serving drinks or treats at any outdoor fete… not to mention affordable at only $28 a pop!

Cristina also creates adorable & unique Monogrammed Stationery Sets (see image above) , which come in sets of 6, packaged in a super cute gift box!

This week, Cristina is offering up prizes for TWO lucky readers!
• The first place winner will receive a necklace of their choice (up to $42 value) AND a custom monogrammed stationery set!
• The second place winner will receive a necklace of their choice (up to $42 value) .

HOW TO ENTER:
• Visit the Cristina Ashley Designs Blog to check out more of her jewelry designs (new ones recently added!) and post a comment here telling us which jewelry design is your favorite.
• Enter by Friday, March 21st at midnight PST . Winner will be announced Monday, March 24th – don’t forget to check back and see if you won!
• Remember to use your login name if you have one (blogger, typepad, live journal, word press, AIM) or first name & last initial so we can identify you if you win. Good luck!