Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone: The Illustrated Edition

Have you heard about this charming new edition of Harry Potter?  My mom and sister gave it to me for Chrstimas, and it is so fantastic.  Jim Kay's illustrations are lovely.  I'm enjoying reading the book again.

Shop Londons

Our Christmas ended up being thrown off a bit by our trip to Florida, so many of our gifts arrived into the new year.  One of my orders was from Shop Londons - a great resource for perfumes, soaps, etc., from London.  I needed new perfume, and I love Penhaligon's.  Their scents are complex but subtle.  Malabah has become my signature scent, but I also ordered a sample library to try out some of their new scents.  And I got this great detangling comb handmade by Kent.

Chateau and Parc Rug

I saw an ad for this rug in a Florida magazine, and it was so fascinating to me.  The photo was of an art installation at the Baker Museum (bottom).  The rug comes from the Versailles Collection by the Thomas Riley Studio.  I love the idea of it - so clever.

The Flower Recipe Book

I had heard about this book before but wasn't sure if I wanted it.  I saw it in a bookstore when we were in Florida and then purchased it on Amazon for half the price...  It's a great book!  It has a page about a specific flower and then follows that up with two or three different floral arrangements using that flower.  It's very nicely done.

Gap Bird Skirt

Did you know that you can now shop Gap Factory online?  That's great for me since I don't live by the outlets any more...  I just got this lovely bird skirt for $13!  (And then called my sister and told her to order one!)

Florida Honeybells

Have you ever had a Florida Honeybell?  (Also known as a Minneola Tangelo...)  They are so delicious!  Since we were in Florida before they were ripe this year, we had some sent to us.  (They are only in season for a short period in January.)  You can order them from Al's Family Farms here.

Azar Nafisi

When we were in Phoenix for a humanities conference in November, we heard Azar Nafisi speak.  It was interesting and inspiring.  She has written a number of books, but probably the best known is Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books.  It chronicles her years teaching in Iran during the Islamic Revolution.  She writes about the books that she and her students discussed and the relationship of these books to their personal lives.  (One that she mentions is Daisy Miller by Henry James, and I read that, too.  An interesting little read...)

M.C. Escher - Phosphorescent Sea

When we were in Florida we revisited the Dali Museum, where they were having an exhibit of works by M.C. Escher.  So many of the works were so familiar, but this lithograph was new to me.  I really loved seeing it - especially while we were near the sea!

Mini Gothic Letter Pendant Necklace

Have you noticed the necklace that Savannah Guthrie has been wearing lately?  It's a letter v for her baby, Vale.  As far as I can tell, it's a gothic letter pendant necklace from Jennifer Fisher.  It's subtle and classy.  (And expensive!)

Eddie Bauer Horizon Pull-on Pants

I have to tell you about the best travel pants ever.  I got these pull-on pants from Eddie Bauer, and I think I need to get another pair (when they go on sale again)!  This picture isn't the greatest.  I have the black ones, and they are nice.  There is elastic in the bottom, but you can't tell.  It's handy for when you are walking on the beach and need to push up your pants - the elastic makes them stay!  I wore mine when we were flying back from Florida, and it turned into my first time being awake for a full 24 hours.  And the pants were still comfy and looking nice!