Hostess with the Mostess®

Jessica from “I Do Declare!” has some great new designer CD’s in her Etsy shop that would be perfect for your favorite party mixes! Make some for yourself or burn mixes as creative party or shower giveaways…or make a slideshow of fun pictures with your friends and send copies to them on these cute CDs as thoughtful “thinking of you” gifts. The designs were inspired by the ladies of Sex and the City and are – quite appropriately – named Carrie, Charlotte, Samantha, and Miranda! ($8/set of 4 at Etsy)

modern valentine wishes from Crate&Barrel…heart plate ($7.95 ea), dip mug ($6.95 ea), heart stirrers for 2 ($2.95/set), valentine dish towels ($9.95/2), and double-heart spatula ($6.95)

Sonny and I had the best time last night at a cooking class by Sam the Cooking Guy – a self-proclaimed “regular guy” from San Diego who also happens to have a popular TV show, a book deal, and more exciting ventures coming up including a new show on The Discovery Channel and a promotion with Newcastle Brown Ale. Despite all this success, I have to say Sam really does come off as a “regular guy” who genuinely loves what he does and just wants to share it with anyone who’s interested.

Sam’s classes take place in “The Red Kitchen” – which is the same place his show is shot and great for attendees because it immediately feels familiar if you’ve seen the show. The atmosphere was warm and casual and Sam was just as down-to-earth and charismatic as he is on the show. Last night’s class was called “I’ve Got the Munchies” and we learned how to make 3-Cheese Garlic Pizza, Hot/Sweet Wings, Meatball Sands (mini meatball sandwiches), Fried Rice, Tortilla Soup, and something called “Shrimpy“, which was basically lots of butter and shrimp and oh-so-good! Come hungry, because you’ll be treated to a little plate or bowl of everything on the menu…not to mention a few tasty cocktails in-between. Besides how good everything tasted, the next-best-part about the recipes was how easy they were. Most of them incorporate frozen or pre-cooked ingredients to make life easier on you – and you’d never know the difference when it came to the end result. Sam has a ton of recipes listed online – click here to check them out for yourself!

If you happen to live in the San Diego area and would like to attend a class yourself, click here to view the upcoming schedule. They sell out fast – but keep checking back because he’s always adding new ones. And if you’re interested in seeing the Sam the Cooking Guy show, here is a list of markets where it can be found. If the show isn’t available in your area, you can still view a lot of recipes with videos on his website. Have fun!

Neon pink and orange gourmet cheese knives,”shattered” vases, odd-shaped tea pots…you will find a truly eclectic mix of modern, unique and fabulous home accessories at clio home!

{shown above} Rehabilitated Dinnerware, Tilt Bowls, and Cheese Knife Sets

{shown above} Sculptural China Dented, Vase of Phases, and Mirza Teapot

Kat from Modern-twist recently introduced me to new her line of contemporary entertaining products. When I visited her website I was immediately impressed with the fantastic modern-minimalist design! One of my favorite products – sets of wine markers called "Vinotagz" – is shown here. Each set of 6 basic or designed Vinotagz comes packaged in a fantastic storage case that cleverly fits on the neck of a wine bottle. (perfect gift idea!) You can even write on the tags with a ballpoint pen and the ink will erase with a damp cloth – or use them as super-cute napkin rings!

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Hi Everyone -
Well, as you may have noticed, even after what seemed like literally 56 straight hours at the computer over the past few days, the website did not launch this weekend as I had previously hoped – but in the big picture it’s actually for the best (promise!)…because what we’re working on right now is going to make it so much better!

After much stressing out this weekend, I finally stopped and took a deep breath, put things in perspective, and hashed out a new game plan with Sonny. We decided that we’ve invested so much time and energy into this project so far, that when it launches we should be excited about it and 100% sure we’re ready to go live – and it’s just not quite there yet. So instead of forcing the issue with a half-hearted launch, we decided that taking a few more weeks to get the site to “that” point is not really going to make the world stop turning So that’s exactly what we’re going to do…and we could really use your help! Look out for a big jump in hwtm.com-related posts over the next few weeks – including mini-polls, requests for feedback on theme and article ideas, opportunities for your own tips, stories or products to be featured on the site, and – last but not least…….giveaways!! (gotta love those!)

In the meantime, please come and check out the new preview that’s up on hwtm.com. You can see screenshots of a few select pages/sections of the site, which should give you a better idea of what it’s all about. If you have any questions or feedback regarding what you’ve seen so far, please let me know! You can post them here or email me at info@hwtm.com.

Thanks so much,
Jenn