Love These Glasses!

In the December issue of Martha Stewart Living there are two removable pamphlets - advertisements for some of Martha's Christmas wares at Michael's and Macy's. (For archivists of all-things Martha, little clip-out brochures and catalogues like these are treasures.) Among my favourites is this set of glasses from the Martha Stewart Collection at Macy's. The four-piece recipe glass set (Bloody Mary, Mojito, Tom Collins and Pink Gin Fizz) retails for $16.99. An accompanying serving tray for hors d'oeuvres goes for $24.00. I love the colours, narrow shapes and vintage designs.

Holiday Product Round-Up

While Old Saint Nick has well over two months to prepare for his circumnavigation of the globe via reindeer and sleigh, Martha Stewart's elves haven't wasted a moment in helping us to set the stage for his arrival. I've received several emails from readers lately asking where they can find the Martha Stewart Everyday brand of holiday items this year. The simple answer is that you will not find them. The Everyday brand has been effectively discontinued now that MSLO and K-Mart have parted ways. But, oh, there is still plenty to celebrate!

New this year is the Martha Stewart Living holiday line available exclusively at Home Depot. From ornaments to lights to wreaths to garlands to trees, all of your holiday decorating must-haves are there this year, right alongside the new line of paints, the new lighting fixtures, the cleaning products, the kitchens, the garden supplies and seeds and the carpets and rugs.

We cannot, however, leave out the irreplaceable Macy's, where Martha has yet another holiday product line - this one a little more refined and elegant. There are fun, bouncy new colours in the holiday collection at Macy's this year (lime green, fucshia, baby blue and lavender) as well as more classic tones, like deep reds and greens, sparkling whites and silvers, rustic golds and burgundies.

Have a look at some examples from both collections below, starting with the Home Depot. All are new introductiosn this year. Click here to see the entire Home Depot collection. Click here to see the Macy's line.

A seven-foot long garland with a mix of red, green and gold pinecones and balls.Martha has an endless amount of new LED holiday lights in various colours at the Home Depot this year.A 60-pack of pinecone ornaments.Perfect for hanging your stocking with care.This 7.5-foot tall artificial Christmas tree comes with 800 lights and a frosty look on the branches. I really enjoy the colours in this wreath.This wreath is more traditional but no less elegant.

Cupcake ornaments? I'm sold! These little bird ornaments are a flashback to some of the antique ornaments my grandmother had on her tree when I was growing. I love the colours.
I think these are my favourite: frosted pinecone ornaments in all manner of bright, festive colours.

Another nod to the vintage are this very small, swirly-striped ornaments.
Classic and bold.

Light and snowy.
The golden touch. Merriment in spades!

Each of the colours shown comes in a set of eight. Perfect for a hostess gift or for entertaining: a set of three festive tea towels.

The kids will love these tea towels with snowman designs.
This tabletop tree, which comes with its own ornamnets, would make an adorable statement on a bedside table, dresser or mantel. A more classic version of the tabletop tree, this one comes with white lights.
A mini-loaf baking ban with holiday motifs.

For the love of Leaves

One of the components I love most about Martha Stewart products is the repeat use of one elemental design or motif, carried across various products in various departments. Take the leaf, for example. An iconic symbol of either summer or fall, its shapes can vary, but the style is always very simple and classic. This makes the use of leafy patterns on towels, sheets, plates and serveware an effective design motif that can work in any room - simply and beautifully. Below are some examples of Martha's leaf-patterned wares from the Martha Stewart Collection at Macy's.

These trousseau leaf towels are all about affordable luxe. I love the fine embroidery of the leaves, which come in silver, a gentle green, a light teal and a subtle pink. Definitely must-haves!

Carry the leaf theme forward in the bathroom with this maidenhair leaf tissue-box cover made of glazed ceramic.

I am generally not a fan of patterned bedspreads, comforters and quilts, but this Folklore Quilt from the Martha Stewart Collection is simple and classic enough to catch my eye. It also looks beautiful when paired with the Turkey Hill Nickel Bed from the Martha Stewart Signature furniture collection.
Combine the quilt above with these Stenciled Leaves sheets from the Martha Stewart Collection for a subtle, nature-inspired room.These leaf-shaped aluminum serving dishes are all about the unity of form and function. I love the vibrancy of these blue maidenhair leaves on this set of Martha Stewart dishes. The effect is clean but whimsical.

Holiday Craft Preview

With Martha's Halloween and fall craft items already hitting the shelves at Michael's and other craft retailers around North America, it's easy to get those anxious palpitations of excitement thinking about the holiday craft items to follow. Well, thanks to CraftCritique.com, we can get a bit of a sneak-peek at the line. The online craft zine was invited to a recent fair hosted by EK Success (the brand that manufactures Martha's craft lines) and there was little dispute over which booth was most popular! Below are photos of some of the new holiday craft line. There are plenty of new punches (including some very large, heavy-duty ones!) more beautiful boxes for cookie and baking gifts, Christmas stationery and a new scoring board, which comes with a bone folder. To see more of the line, click here.

The scoring board also comes with an envelope-making template, which is very handy.

Martha's Pet Products

For someone who does not have a pet, I'm ridiculously excited about the new Martha Stewart Pets line at Pet Smart. I grew up with pets (cats, dogs, fish, lizards...) so I understand very well the desire to pamper and love them every minute they are with us. Martha's products seem to be designed to do just that. They are set at a slightly higher price point and have the pet's health and happiness in mind. Below are some of the highlights from the line. To see the whole collection, click here. (You all know I'm a sucker for packaging, and these designs do not disappoint!)

These are indoor, quilted waste pads, perfect for small dogs in apartments. They can be trained to go on the mat to do their business on those occasions when taking them outdoors is not an option.

Continuing on the "waste" theme, these boxes of eight waste-bag rolls in bright shades make clean-up easy on those long walks with Fido down sunny streets and pretty parks.

Are these dog-food scoops not so adorable? They have the measurement on the handle.

The ultimate in pooch grooming, this carry-all bag has it all: brushes, shampoos, clippers, everything you need to keep your companion tidy, healthy and happy. Love the colour scheme!

I really like the functionality of this feeding station with removable stainless-steel bowls for easy cleaning. The bowls also have lids to keep things tidy. It's all dishwasher safe, too!

Martha's customer will, of course, occasionally bake her own doggie treats. These dog-bone cookie cutters make the creation stylish and fully appropriate.

Crocheted squeaky toys? Of course! It's Martha.

Martha's New Garden Tools

Among the new offerings at Home Depot in Canada is a line of gardening tools, including trowels, loppers, clippers, cutters, saws and pruners. Again, these tools are currently only available at Home Depot stores in Canada but may be available in the U.S. next year.

The appliances are made of fully hardened steel with a rust-resistant coating and one-piece die cast aluminum handles for strength and easy handling. The palette for all of the tools consists of a cool gray with teal trim.
The tools range in price from $7.99 to $15.99.

Seed Package Design

Below are some examples of the new Martha Stewart Living herb and vegetable seed packages now available at Home Depot. They are available in store only, not online. Certified organic, there is a very wide selection to choose from, including carrots, various types of peppers, broccoli, several tomato types, lettuce, pumpkins and squash. Herbs include the standards. They are free of insecticides and were developed naturally in environmentally-friendly conditions. As far as I know, the garden line (including these seeds and a special line of Martha Stewart gardening tools) are currently only available in the Canadian stores. (Note the bilingual signage, common to all products sold in Canada.) U.S. stores may receive these items next year if all goes well up here!

Martha Stewart Living at Home Depot

With the launch of the new Martha Stewart Living products at Home Depot just around the corner, I thought I'd preview a few of the new products that will be available to us (Canada and the U.S.) next month. Along with the new Martha Stewart Living paint and the new Martha Stewart Clean products, shoppers will also be able to purchase indoor and outdoor rugs, various organizational storage units and hardware and patio furniture under the Martha Stewart Living brand. Below are a few things I've got my eye on... A useful bench ($68) placed at a busy entryway is the perfect place to store the things you take with you as you leave your home every day. The cubbies could be used for just about anything. Pefect for storing shoes and boots, they could also be designated as recycling centers: glass, paper and plastic. (The clean, minimalist designs of some of the storage units makes them very versatile.) Pretty and practical fabric storage boxes (10.5" by 11") come in all shades and have label windows for easy identification: $6.45 per unit. This Belle Isle sofa (my favourite of the 16 new patio collections) would look gorgeous on a patio, deck or balcony. Personally, I may use it as a banquette in my kitchen: $499.The Floating Dahlia rug in brown is my favourite of the new rug collection: $157 - $547 depending on size. Sign up for the Home Depot newsletter to be informed about any and all new Martha Stewart Living products as they become available. The newsletter allows you to shop Martha's Toolbox, learn about kids workshops, read press releases related to Martha Stewart Living and has a link to Martha's blog.