That make great stocking stuffers.

Odd that I would have favorites out there, considering that I am doing the whole handmade Christmas thing. The truth is though, that the handmade part is the part with all my family, which totals fourteen before adding Myself, Hubby and the kids.   For our home Christmas we are buying a few little things for each other.  Just a little something that we wouldn’t normally buy for ourselves.  So here are my ten favorites, hopefully you may be inspired for that person you were stuck buying for.

1. Cake Beauty   specifically the “You Deserve This” pack.  A wonderful hand cream that smells like dessert and leaves your hands feeling soft and their triplemint foot creme that keeps your feet beach fresh all year round.  Cake beauty is a Canadian company and their products are available online as well as in stores (such as Chapters and Bed Bath and Beyond) in both Canada and the US.

2. Journals.  I can never have enough journals.  Funny though I don’t actually Journal anymore, but I use them for notes.  I have one for knitting, one for all the library books I get, one for working out, one for food and my list could go on and one.  I have never met a Journal I didn’t use.  I really love these ones by Ecojot.  The covers are fabulous and I love the big spirals to flip over the pages.

3. Starbucks Cards or a Reload.  I know I should be keeping with Canadian, even for my treats, but truth be told, when I do go for a treat, I go to Starbucks.  I want the whole experience.  I want the multiple selections, I want my hair to smell like coffee, I want the jazz music in the background, I just want to go to Starbucks.  I love receiving a Card in my stocking, it makes treats after Christmas easier. I do enjoy a reload of my card too, my Sister and I do this for each other every now and then.  Even J asked for a Starbucks card in his stocking this year! (train them young I say)

4. OPI Nail Polish.  A girl can never have too much nail polish.  I think I have received one in my stocking for several years now, I love them all.  Now, if only I can find the time to polish my toes every now and then.  My favorite colour is Bubble Bath, but I also enjoy Back to the Beach Peach, among others.

5.  Laura Secord Chocolate Covered Marachino Cherries.  Truthfully, any good chocolate will do, but I mean good chocolate.  Not the boxes you buy at the grocery store, but the ones you have to go to the Chocolate Shop for.  I love Laura Secord and only get it once or twice a year these days, but I wouldn’t say no to some nice truffles from any other Chocolatiere that was would there.

6. Scarves.  And here, I don’t even think I have a website to offer, but I love getting scarves.  This comes from living in Canada with Fall and Winter that seem to last forever.  If you can change it up with a different scarf every day, it makes Winter a little more interesting.  I have funky ones, chunky ones, handmade ones, pashmina type ones.  A scarf a day keeps the winter blues away. {American Apparel has a good list right here}

7.  Chick Flicks.  Every year I give Hubby a list of Chick Flicks that I love and as the year goes on, I receive them when he sees them on sale somewhere.  I love getting a few good Chick Flicks in my Stocking, gives you something to laugh, relax and enjoy a cozy Winter evening.  Some of my Faves are: Sweet Home Alabama, 27 Dresses, How to Lose a Guy in 10 days, Pride and Prejudice… just to name a few.

8. Dessert.  My Sister Received this as a gift one year, and I have always wished to receive the same thing.  She received all the toppings you would need to make sundaes.  All you had to do was buy the ice cream.  In the basket was a jar of chocolate sauce, a jar of caramel sauce, coloured sprinkles, M&M’s, marshmallows, and waffle cones.  You could make this a big basket or a little basket, either way it is just so yummy to recieve.  It is one of my favorites though because I got to share in hers :).
9. Magazines.  I don’t buy as many magazines as I used to, so I always love to receive a good magazine or two in my Stocking. In fact for my Birthday, Hubby picked up three of my favorites for me (Real Simple, Canadian Living, Photo Life) and I enjoyed them so much, just because they were a treat for me.

10. Photos in a frame.  Nothing is more thoughtful than receiving a photo already in a frame of my neices and nephews.  After a while you may not need frames anymore, but when the though is there and the photos arrive all ready to go, I just love it.  You can tailor the photos depending on the receiver.

And there is ten of my Favorite things to receive for Christmas.  I mean, I could add that I would love to receive a 1 million dollar cheque, but I am being realistic here. I was also trying to keep this to stocking stuffer type things.  If I were to have an unlimited budget there would definitely be some fancy camera equipment and software on this list. For now, I keep track of those on my Amazon wish list, just in case Santa asks.

Since my laundry room is clean and the shelves organized, thanks to another visit from my Mom, I have nothing better to do on this Saturday than to surf the net and look at all the wonderful things I would love to have, if I had a large amount of cash at my disposal. I should say that Hubby is finishing some of the painting that has been waiting for him to finish since the fall. So, I am more than happy to sit here and surf.

Wish List (you should sing “If I had a $1000000” by the wonderful Barenaked Ladies while you read it, makes it more fun)

**Note, most of the following will be shoes, now you know where I would spend my money if I had lots of it.

1. Anything Kate Spade. I would love a Kate Spade Diaper bag, but would settle for a wallet, handbag or even a pair of shoes.

2. A (yes, I will not be greedy and stick with one pair) pair of Christian Louboutin shoes. Holt Renfrew is now carrying them, and they start at abou $1500 cdn for a pair. I just love the telltale red sole and the sleek beauty of his shoes. I would feel like a million dollars if I was wearing a pair of these.

3. To go along with the foot fetish, I would love a pair of Jimmy Choo boots. And since the season for boots appears to be over, so I will put a link to sandals, any one pair would do me just fine.

4. Since I will be wearing some fancy footwear and carrying a beauty of a bag, lets put down one of my wishes of all time. To own a Chanel Suit. Since the days when I wore a suit at Cineplex, I drempt of owning a Chanel. When I used to walk around Montréal with my Grandmother, I would make her stop at the Chanel boutique so I could look at the latest and greatest. I did have a Chanel-like suit (still have it actually, but really I was a size 7 when I wore it, so I won’t be wearing it again for a while) and it was my favourite. I did feel like a million bucks when I wore it.

5. So, now that I am dressed to the nines, no sense in driving my Nissan, which by the way, I totally love even though it is now almost ten years old, yikes! I should be driving around in a little more style, like perhaps a BMW SAV. Since I first got my licence, I dreamed of owning a BMW convertible. I did get part of my wish for eight years when I had a Geo Metro convertible, but sensible they are not when you have kids, so I would kick it up a notch and go for the SAV, then agian. If I have a million dollars I could afford one of each.

6. A pair of Seven jeans. I love these jeans, but just cannot justify spending almost $200 on jeans. Not to mention that my butt isn’t quite that skinny anymore, so maybe I should put that down as an incentive for after this baby is born. Get skinny, get Seven!

7. I would fill my closet with sweaters from the Ralph Lauren Cashmere collection. I don’t think there is one sweater that I wouldn’t love to own in that collection.

8. Not that anyone would see, but I would so love to fill my drawers at La Perla.

9. For casual days, I would definately want to be wearing some lululemon. My girlfriend swears that one of their tracksuits takes ten pounds off you, just by putting it on. If you can call them tracksuits they are definaetly stylish and comfortable looking, but again I can’t seem to justify spending the money on them. It could definately be a picker upper for after baby arrives.

10. And last of all, really is it the last? Just the last for today, trust me… I would put a pair of Coach sunglasses on my face. I tried a pair on similar to these last summer. But the $250 price tag (and this was at the outlet) almost sent Hubby running for cover. I settled for a pair of Ray-Ban’s, that I love as well, but the Coach just had a little something extra.

So, there you have it. I spent my millions today… what would you buy for yourself if you had a million and were treating you, just you?