Getting ready for our annual Cookie Exchange next week. Checking out some fun recipes I might try. Right now I am addicted to the Trader Joes white chocolate peppermint pretzels (thank god they only sell them at Christmas). I plan on making a version of those with...
Personalized Gifts for everyone on your list. Some of my favorite gifts are personalized. Since we are designers here at S+K, we’ve been giving personalized gifts for years! But now it is pretty easy for anyone to personalize something special. Almost anything...
Looking for some fun homemade gifts for the holidays this year? I am hoping to head over to the Renegade Craft Fair in San Francisco next weekend. I’ve never been but it looks awesome! It is December 15-16 at the San Francisco Concourse Exhibition Center. There...
Need some stocking stuffer ideas or gifts for your kids friends? I like to try and keep these types of gifts under $10. Turns out it is pretty easy to do. Here are a bunch of ideas in the $10 price range. There are lots of online options, you just have to add in a few...
Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving. -W. T. Purkiser Have a wonderful Thanksgiving with family and friends. For those crazy enough to brave Black Friday shopping, Good...
I love reading and getting lost in a book. I recently stumbled upon some art made from storybooks or words and decided to do some more research into this art form and found the most magical art all using books as a starting point. The first print is by Litographs,...
This weekend California finally got the cold weather that everyone else was experiencing. Last week we had highs in the upper 80’s but this weekend it was more like 50-60 degrees. Which is cold for us California wimps. After spending most of Saturday and Sunday...
We are always busy with new product designs at Simon+Kabuki. We get asked to design a lot of partyware, and since we always love to throw a good bash, designing the paper plates and cups is a lot of fun. Whenever we throw our own parties we start with designing the...
Did you Rock the Vote yesterday? Whether you are a democrat or a republican I hope you got out there and voted. It’s the only way to make our voices heard. I loved this portion of Obama’s speech, “America, I believe we can build on the progress...
You can find so many amazing things searching the internet. Here are a few of my recent favorite finds from stores or sites I love. I am in the vintage zone right now. I love all of the taupe and cream colors, so pretty. clock, necklace, pillows, boots scarf,...
I’ve recently read a bunch of books that I really liked. I read a ton and a few of them were duds (John Grisham, The Associate, where was the ending!) but for the most part I really liked what I read the last couple of months. And they were an eclectic group, I...
Our new personalized journal books are available on Frecklebox.com. They make great holiday gifts. The books are hard cover with a cute little ribbon bookmark. They are sized to fit in the metal lunchboxes, perfect for a gift set. We also have lots of other fun...
It’s that time of the year again! Time to wrangle your kids into half-way decent outfits so you can drag them to the park and take your holiday pictures for Christmas cards. My kids hate this day and grumble the whole time. Last year I let them wear mustaches in...
We’ve recently finished designing a bunch of fun new journal books for Frecklebox.com. They should go live in the next week or so. One thing we love around here is any type of notebook or journal. We are the queens of list making. I think we may have passed on...
We are working on a new collection at Simon+Kabuki. It’s a fun one! We are illustrating retro images and adding fun pops of color and cute sayings. So far we have illustrated an old typewriter, a phone, a fan, a camera and a bike. We also thought adding in some...
Last week my kids had the week off. My son did several college tours and I took Friday off for some fun family time. Most of our weekends are taken up driving to soccer games all over town so it was nice to have a free Friday to explore our nearby parks and...
I know that winter and cooler weather will soon be upon us – but right now we are having an Indian summer. It usually starts really cooling off at the end of October, yesterday it was 100 degrees in San Jose and since my kids have the week off we hit the pool. I do...
It’s always fun when we get fabric samples at the office but it is even more fun when some of our crafty friends make things with our fabric. I think we’ve mentioned before that we are staple gun and iron-on sewing experts but we’ve never mastered...
I love the idea of an Elegant Black and White Wedding. Or black and white with a subtle accent color thrown in. You could wear some sparkly shoes under your wedding dress for a great little surprise. Black and white is perfect for anytime of the year but feels...
As soon as school starts it seems the rush of activities is never ending. They have field trips, dances, sports and lots of holidays packed into the beginning of the school year. One of my kids favorite holidays is Halloween. They usually start thinking up ideas for...
Last spring I went with my daughters to a fun fair/market at a farm in the Santa Cruz mountains. It was called the Goat Hill Fair. My girls loved looking at and buying the upcycled creations. Their favorite was jewelry made out of found and purchased objects. We...
Here at Simon+Kabuki we’ve just finalized our holiday designs. We usually finish up our holiday stationery designs for some clients in May, but others are due in July and August. Above is just a small sampling of the many cards we did this year. There were well over...
Ready to throw one last shindig for the summer? It’s still hot out and most kids have not started fall sports weekends yet. Plan an easy get together for your kids friends by picking a Friday after school. You can throw hamburgers and hot dogs on the BBQ, along...
This summer I got most of my kids back to school supplies early. Lots of glues sticks, colored pencils, folders, binders and paper. I usually take them with me so they can pick some fun stuff out or we go online and order some personalized items. We have lots of...
