A few simple touches of gold and red around our home have really made it feel like Christmas. From framing wrapping paper to making a mock fireplace, I'm quite happy with what I put together with the little that we have and can commit to. I really thought that we'd go without a tree this year since very few natural ones are imported (and are crazy expensive) so I was happy to find a little felt one from MUJI. It may not be big enough to put presents underneath, or give off the lovely smell of pine, but I love it. And best of all, we can flatten it and take it with us wherever we go without taking up much space. Maybe one day we'll have dedicated garage space for holiday decor but for now, we've gotta stick to a large shoe box ;)

How do you decorate for the holidays? Do you deck the halls or just have a few favorite pieces?

I love a good basic bag that will stand the test of time. This one from MUJI comes kinda close to the coveted quality of Filson so I was very excited to snatch it up and bring it home. The simplicity of the canvas and leather is great but since it's summertime, I thought that I'd have a little fun with an easy DIY. I chose Ikat weaving as my design inspiration and am so happy with the results! The colors, the lines, all very subtle but they give the piece a totally different personality. I think I might do this in the future with simple cotton totes as re-uasble gift bags...lots of possibilities.

If you're not familiar with MUJI (I wasn't until we moved to London) they are an awesome Japanese company that keeps things focused on simple yet practical design. They have barely made their way to the US with stores in NYC but I hope that they expand if/before we move back. I can't imagine life without them now - they're like a small-scale, more earthy, back-to-basics Ikea. I couldn't find my exact bag in their web store but they have a ton of great styles to pick from. Happy stitching!

Wanna see more? Click on over to Poppytalk for the full DIY tutorial!