Ring it In

I'm still on a little holiday to get refreshed for the New Year ahead but I had to wish anyone who stumbles upon the Bonbon Project a Happy One.
I hope 2008 has wonderful things in store for all of you.

I love a break where I can get some reading done and right now, I'm finally finishing The Omnivore's Dilemma which I started in October- and am finally finding enough time to concentrate. Excited for his new In Defense of Food to come out this month. If your new year's resolution is to get healthy, gain knowledge and/or work on reducing your footprint, read him.

I came across the Eat Local Challenge and the 100-Mile Diet blogs/sites while searching the links on Michael Pollan's site. We try to do it in our own way but I know we can do so much better. I'm declaring January Buy and Eat Local Month for us.

Also found the 100-mile suit project. Such a wonderful idea. It reminds me of our visit to Ladakh in way Northern India. We got up there in mid-summer overland through the Punjab and Lahaul and Spiti--one of the few months the high mountain passes are passable and then still barely. We traveled from Leh, the biggest town in Ladakh and ended up at the house of a local temple painter in the tiny village of Likir in the summer of 1997. It was a beautiful place, set in a mustard field against a backdrop of high high mountains. There was an old Buddhist nun who lived in our guest house as well, who we'd often see spinning and dyeing and blocking wool for her robes or to sell as bolts in the local market in Leh. In fact we saw many people in different villages sitting outside making their clothes from raw materials, churning butter, harvesting crops and living a life much closer to the earth than we had ever seen before or since. I think this old interview with Helena Norberg-Hodge says it better than I can.

What an incredibly cool idea to try it here in the U.S., where it's more importamnt than ever to remind our people where their clothes (and food!) come from. Some pics from the 100-Mile Suit Project

Michael Pollan offers many great links and it's worth looking at all of them but here is a small list of my favorites:
The Chez Panisse Foundation
American Farmland Trust
The Cornucopia Institute
Local Harvest
Slow Food USA
The Edible Schoolyard

Joyeux Noel Deux

Bonbon Oiseau, the website, will be closed so we can regroup before the new year! We'll be back and better than ever on January 2nd, 2008. If you need anything, just write and we'll get back to you as soon as we get back!
In the meantime, Happy Holidays from all of us and Icky, the cat.

MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

A few pics from our Little Christmas Dinner.

Brooklyn Bride

Thanks to Vané from Brooklyn Bride for the nice write-up.

Little Boxes

The elves were hard at work this past month!

AND THE WINNER IS....

Our Nest Raffle was a big success! Thanks to all who participated, we raised $200 and three lucky winners won some cool stuff:
1st Prize (this necklace): Sera Coblentz , Weehawken, NJ
2nd Prize: $ 100 gift certificate for Bonbon Oiseau: Lindsay Mure-O'Neill, NYC, NY
3rd Prize: Exclusive Nest Key Fob Set: Dawn Cardi, Carroll Gardens, Brooklyn, NY
If you're a winner, we'll be sending out your prizes this afternoon! Thanks so much again and for more information about Nest go here.

Last Weekend's Events

Tamika shows the goods at Divine

Our favorite seller of the most amazing antique finds

Some new Bonbons at Divine

Sniffing the wonderful handmade organic bath salts from
Therapy at Gift on Grand

Incredible Wooden rings by Paige Martin's Klumpa Design line
at Gift on Grand

Some new KeyFob necklaces
(coming Spring '08--that's why you need to come to these things! PREVIEWS!)
at Gift on Grand

Here are a few pics from Gift on Grand and the Divine Studio Sale. Despite the weather, we had a great turn-out and there was a great vibe at each sale.

Some new pins

That I need to post on my site! These are pics are pretty rough because people are asking for them!

Buy Handmade of Course!

Great write-up in the NY Times Magazine Sunday about the campaign for conscientiousness of buying "handmade" (take the pledge here) and our expanding nation of crafters and artisans, young and old. With new outlets to take their wares and ideas thanks to sources such as Etsy and local crafter groups, we'll never, and I mean NEVER have to shop at Walmart again. I liked the tie-in with buying organic and local. 'Tis a topic dear to my heart.

Speaking of handmade, thanks to everyone who braved the weather and the cold and came out this weekend to shop at GIFT ON GRAND and THE DIVINE STUDIO HOLIDAY CRAFT SALE.
It was an overwhelming success despite the frigid wet weather here in NYC.

NEST

We are proud to be working with Nest, an excellent organization which offers micro-loans to craftswomen in developing countries who need seed money to fund their new businesses.

This season, I've designed a very special Nest & Locket Key Fob Set specially for Nest and we are happy to be donating 25% of the proceeds from this sale directly to Nest.

JOIN the NEST Raffle, drawing on the 18th!
$5 Raffle tickets, all proceeds go to NEST, will be available at each of the holiday sales we'll be at through the 16th (see below).
The prizes:
1st prize: The beautiful Aurore Astrale (Northern Lights) Necklace with gorgeous sapphire chips and a nice hunk of amethyst (retail: $268)
2nd prize: $100 gift certificate for www.bonbonoiseau.com (with free shipping!)
3rd prize: Our lovely Nest & Locket Key Fob designed specially for Nest.
Drawing is 12 noon on the 18th and all three winners will be notified by 5pm that day. Prizes will be mailed on the 19th, just in time for Christmas! (We'll have more information and announce the winners right here, on Your Destiny is Stone Golden.)

HOLIDAY SALE REDUX

Just click on the invite to enlarge!

SHOP HANDMADE THIS HOLIDAY SEASON!!!
Above are all the invitations to all the holidays sales you'll find Bonbon Oiseau (and our incredible raffle) and a sea of other incredible designers and artisans. You'll find different designers at each of these and of course, something for everyone on your list.
Forget the mall! Stop by and see us!

Happy Hannukkah, Chanuka, Chanoookuh

However you want to spell it, hope it's happy.
I found these while looking at Oh Joy tonight. Anything pine cones, anything acorns--(sigh).
Made of porcelain by Coe & Waito.

And Now...A Note from your Cupcake Holder Sponsor (or National Cupcake Holder Day):

Am having a little Bonbon Holiday Shindig at the Studio today so of course have been having big Martha Stewarty spangly decorative thoughts.
And while I'm not doing any baking, (my friend Ana who is soon to open her own tea & bake shop is creating some incredible sounding treats) I'm just really drawn to cupcake holders, particularly these cupcake holders. They might be too beautiful for getting at the deliciousness inside, but what else can we do with these things?

I also like these. So pretty...I actually did see these in an issue of MS Living at some point and immediately went on the "googles" to find them. These are the kinds of random spurts of estrogen-driven weirdness that make my husband's head hurt.

Where to find All things Bright & Bonbon

These are the holiday events I'll be participating in this month, so if you're in the NY area please try to come visit one of them. There are some incredible designers at each of these events so it's really worth checking out.
Thursday, December 13th
Holiday Sale @ In Good Company– Promoting Women Designers & Businesses
16 W. 23rd Street (4th Floor)
New York, NY 10010
6pm-9pm
For more information: (646) 810-9195

Saturday, December 15th
GIFT ON GRAND (on Kent)
@ Secret Project Robot
210 Kent @ Metropolitan
11am-7pm
Williamsburg, Brooklyn

Sunday, December 16th
DIVINE STUDIO HOLIDAY SALE
11am-6pm
21 E. 4th Street
New York City

I've had such an overwhelming response to the NY Times article that I can't make pins fast enough. I'll have some brand new ones at all of these sales if I work 24 hours a day for the next 2 weeks.

Paper Shoes

Found this site when I couldn't sleep. Shoes and dresses made of paper by Danish artist designer Violise Lunn.
I love the delicate temporal aspect of the handmade paper and their exagerrated appearance.