So I have been struggling to find a good iPad case that was thin, looked professional, but was still stylish.  I really liked my husband’s DoDo Case, and I love their story, but I didn’t want it in black. I know that seems odd, since I really like black, but it just wasn’t the look I was going for.

If I didn’t already acquire an iPad wireless keyboard then I would definitely get this Zagg case, a combined case, dock, keyboard, which I really like.  I am not very good at typing on the iPad, so when I do a lot of work, I really need it.

I searched all over Etsy and didn’t see anything I liked.  I wanted more than a sleeve, didn’t want it to be bulky and wanted something book style.  Finally I came across M-Edge Accessories Go Jacket, which fit my needs perfectly. I got the brown letter, which is professional and nonchalant enough to use for work, makes it look a lot like a book when sitting on the coffee table, but gave it good protection while being very thin.  It will also now stand either horizontally or vertically.   They had a lot of thin, leather cases, some with pockets, some without, some that are also stands, etc. etc.  And they had some cool colors, but done in a modern, tasteful way, with no tacky logos on the outside.  But now I am rethinking the silver crackle leather color, too.  If they did the gold crackle it would be all over, I LOVE the gold crackle.

So if you don’t know by now I am a little obsessed with all things Penguin.  It started as my sorority mascot, but then as I watched the little guys on TV and in films I loved their quirky personalities.  Then I saw them in person in Australia and the love deepened all that much more, especially after I got to touch a poor little guy after being rescued on the beach, with wounds from an encounter with a shark (don’t worry he made it).

But this Penguin by Soda Stream USA is not being posted for my obsession, but for that of a friend.  My friend Warren loves sparkling water.  And this little guy turns regular water into sparkling water pronto!  He can also make sodas.

The great thing is he does all this without batteries or electricity.  So my friend Warren could even take it on his sailboat.  You can add flavors or juices and you can control the level of fizz.  So on a hot day you could add a twist of lemon or lime without any cutting.

And the reusable glass bottles save you from buying plastic bottle after plastic bottle.  I tend to drink more water if there is a splash of flavor or some fizz, don’t you?

Available at many places like William Sonoma, Amazon.com and etc.  And no, Warren, this isn’t your wedding gift from me, but you should register for it.

I would say a little birdie told me this, but then I would really seem to talk to birds a lot, so let’s just say I heard by word of mouth that a lot of you really adored the snacks sets.  Really what isn’t to love about them?  They are adorable.  But then I heard another truth, many of you are cabinet challenged.

Trust me I may not seem like I understand this, what with my love of anything for entertaining, but until mid-June when I have my counter-top extended slightly so new cabinets can be installed in the unused space where they put an area for a bar (we don’t use a bar we eat at a table like civilized people), I do have only moderate cabinet space.

I don’t want to give up chic for function, it really isn’t my thing but a girl can only have so much china that will fit in her small apartment.  So I have brought you a compromise.  I found this when I was strolling through a wonderful little kitchen shop in Sonoma called Sign of the Bear.  It is a lot like a William Sonoma or Sur La Table, but in cute country general store format.  Anyway if you are in Sonoma it is a must stop little place.  Conveniently enough they ship too, so I have a nice little box of goodies that they shipped home to me being held hostage in the package room downstairs.  Anyway without further ado:

The Wine Glass Plate Clip.

So these really aren’t as cute, but with my China pattern that is white and silver they wouldn’t look THAT bad, nor would they on plain white plates or black plates.  They are small enough to throw in a drawer with your wine tags, bottle stopper and cork screw (which I know you have a drawer for).  And really their functionality is so great, I think the fact that they aren’t as cute as the snack set may be able to be overlooked until you get more cabinets.  See girls, there are always solutions.  Always.

Now they can’t be used with flimsy plastic plates, which in all honesty you shouldn’t use unless you have a very large group size and in that case you shouldn’t have enough of these to go around so it should all work out.  You can get these in multiple places, The Container Store has a pack of six stainless steel ones for $14.99 which seems to be a pretty good deal.

These from WineOpeners.com are a bit cheaper, but are not as nice in quality.  I mention them because you can buy in bulk and get them printed with a logo or picture.  I know many of you in the DC/Arlington area throw big corporate functions so I thought I would mention them as a reference.  How nice would it be to receive this at a big function?  I promise I would take mine and hubbies home to use.  You could also get them printed with a cool picture to make them a nice present.  Even better might be a wedding favor if you are having a reception that doesn’t have a sit down dinner.  (Sorry I love weddings, I could spend my whole life planning weddings if only it paid as well as my current profession)

So I  know earlier this week I posted a tea cup, so I may seem a little tea obsessed.  I should clear the record that I am only minimally tea obsessed.  I am actually going to a tea this weekend, and it had me thinking about tea, that may be the reason for all the  tea thoughts.  If your only experience with tea is Lipton or the normal Bigelow, you have not experienced tea.  I like using loose leaves that you can get bags to use it in or get a tea-maker.

We have an older version of this Teavana tea-maker.  Quite frankly, I don’t know if this one looks better or not, it only makes 4 cups.  Ours says it makes 8, but really in a mug makes 4, but a tea-maker is nice and handy.  You can add sugar or honey to the carafe and then put over ice to make iced tea.

I think a tea-maker of some type that you can put loose leaf into is essential for good tea, even if it isn’t this super duper fancy expensive one, that has a timer like a coffee pot.

I think one of the reasons I am minimally tea obsessed is that tea is a gesture of love:  iced tea in a nice pitcher for family, hot tea when you aren’t feeling well, and if you are English the tradition of tea in the afternoon with friends.

So if you don’t have the moola for that one think about this one, the bonus is it is beautiful and much cheaper so this is my pick, if I broke my tea-maker tomorrow.  You don’t even have to have a pretty teapot or carafe, because it is pretty.  Imagine it with the flowering bloom teas (the ones that when put in steeping water unfold into a pretty flower).

Next up is the tea itself.  I like the looseleaf variety Wegman’s has, I think it gets good turnover, Teavana of course is really good and then there is also Teaism, as well as, a host of small places and online stores.  I highly recommend the Peach White Tea at Wegmans for the best iced tea when added with a little honey when it’s warm to dissolve the honey . Jasmine pearls are also another favorite for hot tea.

So remember coffee is coffee, but tea is versatile, flavorful and something all enjoy, or even pretend to enjoy with stuffed friends at a table,  from the time we are little girls till now when we are still little girls at heart.  Enjoy.

P.S. If you want to really give a special little someone in your life a good experience the high tea at the Four Season’s in Georgetown or the Mayflower is really nice, a truly Madeline-esqe experience.  I want to take my two little cousins when they come and visit over the summer.

So you don’t know, but I am getting married in May.  That means wedding craziness has set in months ago and I am now wedding exhausted.  I decided to start Wedding Wednesday where I will give you my thousands and thousands of readers (what I don’t have thousands of readers?) advice, links and anything else I can offer you that will make it a little easier to plan your wedding pretty much by yourself, as you need it, trust me you do.

So today I can offer you: Paperwork

First off is the now-mandatory “Save the Date” magnet.  While readers trust me I scoured many sites for the best save the date magnet Pioneer Color has by far the best.  We used this one, but fortunately were not the couple featured here:

Save the Date Magnet

The good thing is that you can customize them completely, and insert your own photos, and they are definitely on the cheaper side of wedding magnets.  The only downfall is that the envelopes they give you are pretty cheap, but hey, they go through your printer so you could print them.

Next up: Invitations

You could spend hundreds to thousands of dollars on invitations, or you can print them yourself.  My advice, print them yourself.  Now I happen to have a fiance who does online graphic design for a living, so our wedding website is impeccable, and our invitation had all sorts of good graphics.  But I believe in this day and age, with a printer and some creativity you can make you own amazing invitations.  Here are some kits I found to be really awesome.

We used this one from LCI paper, they came quickly, were fairly cheap for a very nice quality, and absolutely customizable.

Ours of course were prettier.  We bought matching card stock which we cut to size and printed and put in the pocket to include extra information for our wedding including directions, schedule and accommodations.  I have even see people use this patterned paper to make a guest book on Etsy, so order an extra pack of bigger paper and make your own guest book too.  I think the metallic envelopes are especially good looking.

If you want to go green may I suggest Invite Site, pretty handmade paper invitations, that are earth friendly.  If you get Seedlings you can plant them after and they will grow!  There are many matching save the date cards if you don’t do the mandatory magnet, or want to send them additionally.  You can then print graphics on the inside printable card if you get one of the planner ones.  I really think the paper quality though makes them extra special.

Honorable mentions go to:

Paper Style who has some beautiful things you can order unprinted and print  yourself.  So get your graphic printing skills ready or order something ornate like the Georgette Scroll in blue so you just have to type.

Also a note, when you order, order lots of extras for those you will screw up, those the printer will screw up and extras for people you will forget on your list.  I also cannot stress how important  it is to make google lists (you can merge them from excel and back and forth onto excel) that you can share with family.  We shared our invite list so the Momma, MIL to be, FIL to be could all add addresses and RSVPs to the list, I did this with the shower invites too.

You could order shower invites, but really when Michael’s has them in the dollar bins, target will have them on clearance and other places have them for super cheap, unless they are a good deal and match completely and you order them with the magnets or invitations and don’t have to pay shipping, then it isn’t worth it.

My last advice, if you had a pyro problem as a kid, put wax seals on them.  You can order wax seals online, and I recommend the cylinder ones like these below from Letterseals.com where you get the wax that you can stick in a glue gun, or the ones with the pot that you heat over the candle drip version from Micheal’s.   They come in a large variety of colors.  People are really impressed by wax seals.

Trust me people will talk about them.  Do it.

As I look at my half-way demolished master bathroom and whistfully hope for the day it will be remodeled to a new beautiful bathroom, with uncracked marble tile that isn’t lose, glass shower doors that are oh so pretty and a toilet that doesn’t leak water under our tile making it loose to the point it cracks, I think about what I will also be able to do to improve my guest bathroom.

When not haphazardly occupied by my makeup, fiance’s electric razor and hair goop,it will be a nice tribute to one of my early visits to MIL to be’s house.

MIL to be is an amazing hostess.  She is one of those persons who when she goes places she picks things up for you just because she knows you will like them, she send cards for every holiday, remembers your favorite juice and picks it up from the store when you are coming down, in essence she is June Cleaver in our modern world.

On one of my first visits to their new house in Charlottesville I was delighted to find the shower stocked with Crabtree & Evelyn Lavender Shower Gel, Pureology shampoo and conditioner, Nuetrogena face wash and an exfoliating face scrub.  Most people put shampoos they didn’t like or extra toiletries from travels to nice hotels in their guest bathrooms, but this extra indulgence made me feel comfortable and welcomed, I was happy that I didn’t have to pack nice toiletries in the future knowing they were there.

This formulated into a decisive notion for me.  Great hostesses know what you want and have it there for you, so you don’t have to ask or want for anything.  I know I hate going to stay with someone and routing around their bathroom for an asprin, a personal care item or a hair dryer, and in the early morning everyone has their own time and you don’t like to disturb someone to ask for these items.  You guest bathroom should clearly have anything a guest should need in the shower, medicine cabinet, drawers or a nice basket on the toilet if you are really pressed for space.  I have come up with a bare minimum list and an all out list for those who really want to impress:

Absolute basics list:

Really nice shampoo, conditioner, body wash, face wash and lotion.  You won’t have to buy them often so get something nice, that way your guests know they don’t have to bring their own.  If you don’t want to go all out and get Pureology like MIL to be, get Biolage or Paul Mitchell, it is gender neutral and nice enough to keep everyone happy.   I think there are many neutral face washes out there, I like Nuetrogena or Burt’s Bees, as it is good for all skin types, avoid those with acne cleansers or harsh chemicals.  I have a girly scented body wash and guy body wash, but you could get something neutral, I love Crabtree and Evelyn and think Jojoba Oil collection would be well liked by all.

BONUS: Right now Crabtree and Evelyn is having a special on travel size items, so if you have a small guest bathroom, these would fit perfectly in a drawer or medicine cabinet.

And please keep a nice spray somewhere easily found like under the sink, guests hate to leave your bathroom stinky, so make it easy to find.

Minimum list:

Extra toilet paper, tissues, ibuprofen (not Tylenol in case it is a hangover to which Tylenol is not recommended), antacids,Immodium, toothbrush, toothpaste, floss, disposable razors, shaving cream (get a shaving lotion or cream as opposed to a gel, the benefit being they often don’t have odors so it could be used by a male or female, you can normally find it in most grocery stores or pharmacies, I really like the one at Trader Joe’s and they have them in a small travel size normally so it can easily fit in a medicine cabinet), personal care items,  hair dryer, of course your normal cotton balls and cotton swabs, band aids and lip balm (again something like Blistex that isn’t scented or tinted).

All out list add ons:

Exfoliating face wash, sugar or salt scrub, hair brush, bobby pins, elastic bands, eye and face cream, make-up remover towelette, nail clippers, nail file, nail polish remover, eau du toilette, mouthwash, sewing kit appropriately stolen from a nice hotel and rubbing alcohol or peroxide.

Now being super anal, I store all this in the medicine cabinet and under the sink, I use these organizers from Ikea because they are super cheap and you can label them, so guests don’t feel like they are prying, two fit under my guest cabinet, with room for toilet paper, tissues and hair dryer on top.

So think about this next time you are going to have guests, or are the grocery or pharmacy.  It really is a super easy trick to make people think you are a perfect hostess who really lives like this:

P.S. Can I stress how much fresh flowers make your home look like you really are one of those people.