Handmade gifts of '08

Many of my favorite gifts I gave this year were handmade. Some of the best:

Ilee Letterpress and Silkscreen Calendar
I just adore this calendar, and gave one to many of my favorite gals this year in hopes that it might make them sigh over its prettiness every day, too. This calendar is flat-out gorgeous, and each month it features such beautiful artwork that I imagine the regret over flipping to the next month will only barely be outweighed by excitement over a new monthly design. This calendar is perfect for the work desk where your corporate-ordered furniture is lacking in the inspiration department, or where you wish you were producing something more creative for eight hours a day. (Autobiographical much?) Or maybe you're already full of inspiration, and this calendar would look perfect sitting near a window in your perfectly outfitted home office where you're brilliantly combining work and play in the most creative of ways. In that case, I am jealous of you, but you still need this calendar anyway.







Night Owl Paper Goods Wooden Desktop Calendar
It was a calendar kind of year. This calendar was for my mom, and I ordered it for her about ten seconds after coming across it, because it was so undeniably something she had to have, it was pointless delaying the purchase. Printed on birch with a built-in stand, each month of this calendar is so whimsical, warm, and folksy all at once, that it reeks of home no matter where you place it. For someone who works too much and deserves lots of prettiness to look at during the day (that's you, Mom!), it's hard to beat this Night Owl Paper Goods delight. Beware of intrusive coworkers wanting to ooh and aah over your unique handmade wooden calendar!







Sterling Silver "Shirt Stiffeners"
Reading Chris Parry's etsy description made three things immediately clear: I have a crush on him, I'm a sucker for British humor and charm, and my f-word had to have some. Personalized by me with an appropriately cheeky saying, these collar stays (excuse me, "shirt stiffeners") are as fun as they are practical. Plus, it's fun to give guys gifts in small jewelry boxes; they never quite know what to expect. Bonus: Does this pair of perfect sterling silver collar stays mean that we'll no longer have dozens of plastic collar stays littering the laundry room?









Luxe Acorn and Indian Apostrophe Earrings
These earrings are so gorgeous, and again, so my mom, that I had to jump on both pairs. Earrings make perfect stocking stuffers, as we all know.










To come... One of my favorite etsy finds is from a brilliant artist with a fantastic pop culture sensibility. We haven't mailed the gift in question out yet (ahem, pesky couple living in Europe for hockey season...), so I don't want to spoil the surprise for our reader from Linz. But trust me, it's a goodie.

What were your favorite handmade finds of the holiday season?