Nothing says holiday season like a house that smells like evergreen. Likewise, the rich scent of sugar cookies wafting through your apartment is enough to send you searching for the cookie jar. You can achieve the “scents of the season,” in your house by trying out the following five holiday theme scented products.

Candles- Yankee Candle is featuring Candy Corn and Pumpkin Patch Swirl candles in its Halloween themed collection. Pair either with a bat votive holder for a spooky scent. Plus you can keep the holiday going well after the weekend festivities.

Room Sprays-The Candleberry Co.’s Harvest Sugar Cookie Room Spray provides the faux scent of baked goods for your home. The scent also comes in a tart and three different sizes of jar candle.

Cinnamon Brooms- It’s not the fall season unless you have a cinnamon broom in your home. While the broom itself can make a design statement (a la “Midwest Living”), it is suited to make your home smell like the remnants of the town Harvest Festival.

Perfume- Bath and Body Works has a Midnight Pomegranate scent that will have you thinking of opening presents under the tree. The fruity fragrance is also highlighted with anise, patchouli, blackberry and cassis.

The Real Thing- To really get your house smelling like fall or the winter Christmas season, bake a batch of cookies. Your place will smell good, your stomach will be happy and you’ll be on your way to a wonderful holiday season! Christmas-Cookies.com has recipes for hundreds of themed cookies.

by Kelly McLendon

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If you flip through Martha Stewart Living and wonder why your house or apartment can’t look like it just jumped off the pages of the magazine, you’re not alone. How many times do you think a girl has wished her bedroom looked like it came out of a Pottery Barn catalog? Countless. And how many times has she hoped for an IKEA kitchen? Probably more than you’ll ever know.

But before you get upset about not having the design of your dreams going on in your space, you should get in touch with something called ‘do-it-yourself,’ also called DIY decorating. Sure, you may not have the budget to hire someone to paint your room a bold color, or buy a brand new coffee table, but you might be able to do it yourself for half the price, or even less.

The following three tips are designed to help you with DIY projects:

1. Decorating with paint

For the times when it’s up to you to paint your rooms and you can’t hire someone to do the job for you, you can always rely on the time-trusted tips of interior design magazines. To get

your do-it-yourself decorating to look professional, follow the following tips to stay ahead of the curve.

If you bright and cheery describe the way you visualize your rooms, try these tips.

“Rich red, sunny yellow and exciting orange are vibrant and eye catching colors. Warm peach and subtle terracotta can warm up any room and welcome your guests. Learn how to use these colors to your advantage so they don’t over stimulate the eye and make bright and cheerful accents to your home décor,”  doityourself.com said.

Ever wondered how to decorate in tangerine, or create dark sensual drama with bold reds? Doityourself.com has a large selection of tips and tricks to get you going in the right direction.

Before considering paint colors, it is also important to think about what the room will be used for.

Living room and dining room area plans are some of the more common ones featured in Martha Stewart Living.

“When designing your living and dining room areas, it’s important to determine how much you intend to use each room. Considering how much use your dining room and living room receive will help you determine the style, mood and tone. This section will give you ideas to help you decorate and design a living and dining room best suited for you and your lifestyle,” doityourself.com recommends.

But if choosing a color has you stuck, take some of these suggestions from Better Homes and Gardens Editors. The hot colors for summer include Sherwin Williams paint in Steamed Milk, Plum Dandy and Constant Coral.The Web site of magazine House Beautiful even includes a slideshow of colored rooms to see how themes may look in different areas of your house.

2. Accessorizing

You can paint a room the most fabulous color, but if you don’t have DIY accessorizing in mind, your idea might be lost before it’s finished.

Accessories are the little details and they are just as important in a do it yourself project. Take for example, this DIY earring holder from Chickspeak. Coordinating the small projects with the big ones will ensure that you have an overall consistent look.

3. Building it yourself

Don’t be afraid to ask your friends and family to give you a hand. Some of the best projects are those that are done with a group effort in mind. And sometimes it’s just best to have another set of eyes reading those complicated instructions.

Also, examine your resources and know they exist. Design Sponge Online is an excellent blog with ideas on how to make everything from a coffee table to an inspiration board. The blog even shows you how to make a shell chandelier, if you’re feeling really ambitious about a DIY project.

As if the Internet didn’t include enough resources on how to successfully pull off a DIY project, learn to start flipping through interior design magazines as well so you can get a good idea of what you want to do.  Some of the best are: House Beautiful, Dwell and of course, Martha

Stewart Living. Some specifically DIY publications include ReadyMade.com and Makezine.com.

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It seems that with the warm weather (and in some cases, extra free time) of summer comes a heightened knack for creativity. Summer is a great time to embrace your creative spark. How about allowing your imaginative and original juices to flow right onto the kitchen table with some bright summer table accessories?

If you’re looking for a little inspiration, why not look to Madeline Weinrib? The New York textile designer, who was recently featured in the Style section of the New York Times, has a few great ideas for brightening up a summer table. Weinrib suggests using table cloths and place settings with unique designs, such as those with vibrant patterns or home-made details.

According to Weinrib (as stated in the New York Times), “summery linens are generally not very expensive, and a fun way to add a little beauty to your life.” Who doesn’t want that?

Weinrib found some of her favorite items at William Wayne & Company in Greenwich Village in New York and from designer, Leah A. Howe (her items can be purchased online at etsy.com).

Adding some beauty to your life and your summer table can also be fun with D.I.Y projects. Micheal’s, the well known craft store, “where creativity happens”, has a plethora of fun craft projects for creating great table accessories. If you log on to michaels.com, you will find craft ideas that are all categorized by difficulty, such as the Beach Time Drink Charms or the BBQ Place Holders. These crafts and more add originality and fun to any table.

Another great idea is using bandanas as table-runners. Get bandanas in bright, vibrant, summer colors, like yellow, blue, pink, etc. and stitch them together. Almost immediately, you have a festive, summery table runner.

For a little bit more sophistication, and no less creativity or charm, Country Living suggests flowers, flowers, and more flowers. From posies to hydrangeas and every gorgeous petal in between, arranging flowers in unconventional settings- cans decorated in beaded bracelets and used as vases, or flowers placed in Chinese lanterns- makes for gorgeous and original center pieces that your family, friends, and other guests are sure to never forget.

Some other great table accessory ideas include oilcloth cut-out coasters, leaf-covered candleholders, sand candles, and so much more. Keep in mind that summer is the time to add as much color and embellishment as you want. It’s almost impossible to go wrong with any of these or other ideas.

Summer may be coming to an end, but you still have time to adorn your table with all of the trimmings of the season, and with so many ideas- traditional and unconventional; original or from the mind of an ingenious designer- you’ll have so much to look forward to for next summer.

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Gather around the pool this week with friends, blend up a few drinks, and make a day of fun in the sun together. From a Southeast Asian coffee treat to a summer fruit punch that will give you 30 percent of your daily Vitamin C requirement, here are 7 great summertime drinks to try.

1. Casa Marina

1oz. each peach Schnapps, melon liqueur, and coconut rum

2 oz. white rum

4 oz. orange juice

3 oz. cranberry juice

Lime zest as garnish

1. In a cocktail shaker full of ice, combine all ingredients. Shake vigorously. Strain into 2 tall glasses and serve with a twist.

Courtesy: Classic Liquors

2. Vietnamese Iced Coffee

4 cups water

½  cup dark roast ground coffee beans

½ cup sweetened condensed milk

16 ice cubes

1. Brew coffee using your preferred method. Spoon 2 tablespoons of sweetened condensed milk into 4 coffee cups. Pour 1 cup of the fresh, hot coffee into each cup, and stir to dissolve the milk.
2. Serve the cups of coffee and give each guest a tall glass with 3 ice cubes and a long spoon. Pour hot coffee over the ice cubes and stir briskly.

Courtesy: Allrecipes

3. Lemon Lime Float

2 liters lemon-lime flavored carbonated beverage

½ galloon raspberry sherbet

1. Place 10- 8 oz. glasses in the freezer overnight.
2. Place 2 scoops of sherbet into each glass. Fill glasses with lemon-lime soda.

Courtesy: Allrecipes

4. Hibiscus Tea with Vodka & Citrus

4 cups water

2 cups dried, sweetened hibiscus flowers or Red Zinger tea bags

1/3 cup sugar

1 cup vodka

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon fresh lime juice

1 cup ice

1. In a saucepan, combine water, hibiscus flowers, and sugar over medium heat. Bring to a boil, stir occasionally until sugar is dissolved. Let cool 25 minutes, and then add lemon juice, lime juice, and vodka.
2. Place ice in a pitcher, strain the tea, and discard the flowers. Refrigerate and serve.

Courtesy: Delish

5. Carrot Cake Drink

1 teaspoon Goldschlager

2 oz. Bailey’s Irish Cream

2 oz. coffee liqueur

1. Fill highball glass with ice. Place a teaspoon of Goldschlager in glass. Fill rest of glass with Irish cream and coffee liqueur. Shake. Pour into shot glasses.

Courtesy: Alcoholic Drinks

6. Peanut Butter Banana Smoothie

1 medium ripe banana

2 tablespoons creamy peanut butter

¾ cup milk- whole, 1%, 2%, or soy

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 cup ice cubes

1. Place banana, peanut butter, milk, and vanilla in a blender. Process on high until the banana is mashed and ingredients are blended. Add ice cubes and process on high speed until ice is crushed and drink is smooth and creamy.

Courtesy: Bella Online

7. Summer Fruit Punch

2 cups diced stone fruit (peaches, apricots, plums, nectarines)

2 cups apricot juice

2 cups sparkling wine

1 cup seltzer

1. Combine diced fruit, apricot juice, sparkling wine, and seltzer. Divide among 4 ice-filled glasses. For the non-alcoholic version, substitute sparkling cider for the wine.

Courtesy: Eating Well

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When the steamy, hot days of summer have you wanting to run for the nearest pool or ice cream truck to chill out, there’s not much else you can do but wait for the heat to cool down. So instead of sitting around and complaining, follow these six eco-friendly ways to keep cool in the summertime.

Don’t use the oven. A 100-degree day is not the time to make an apple pie or bake some macaroni. By sticking with cold foods, you’ll keep your kitchen and the rest of your house much cooler. Using the oven consumes energy, and while cooking at a temperature of 350 degrees for an hour ends up costing you only about 16 cents, according to Best Buy, those numbers can add up over time. When thinking in terms of the environment, firing up the oven on a super hot day doesn’t do any good for the air quality, either. So stick with cold sandwiches, or get creative and make a cold soup on those hazy days of summer.

Become friends with ENERGY STAR. Investing in a ceiling fan from the company can save you $15 per year on your utility bills and is 50% more efficient than regular ceiling fans, according to ENERGY STAR. A “box fan” in your window can also keep the air moving through your place.

Go to public places that have air-conditioning. If you’re not utilizing AC at home, that doesn’t mean you can’t go seek out public places that have it on full blast. Sure, it’s like leeching off someone else’s air, but if you’re not using it at home, you’re decreasing the impact on the planet all the same. Going to a restaurant or store for a break from the muggy heat of a non-air conditioned dwelling place might bring you back to heat-related sanity, at least for a while.

Use city pools. Save water and money by going to city pools instead of buying your own. Most offer cheap daily rates, or require you to purchase a recreation membership that includes gym access as well. Taking advantage of the cheaper options in your city will help you stay cool when a dip in the pool is the only thing that sounds good.

Pack your glass with ice. Ever notice how when you eat ice cream or a Popsicle, your body temperature drops and you feel a little cooler by the time you’ve emptied the bowl? Well, ice water has the same effect. Drink a glass and your body may be better equipped to handle the heat. Putting ice cubes on the back of your neck can also cool you down.

Keep your windows closed during the day. If you keep the shades drawn and the windows closed during the day, opening them up at night will allow the slightly cooler night air to sweep through your home. Leaving them open while you’re sleeping will allow the air to circulate and cool down the rest of the house, so you wake up in the morning to a not-so-stuffy environment.

All in all, there are many ideas for staying cool and staying true to the planet this summer when temperatures are blazing. What do you do to hide from the heat?

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Imagine eating, sleeping, working, and entertaining all in the same room. When you have a studio apartment, these are the conditions you are faced with, and as difficult as it may sound, it is possible to do all of the above in a space that feels both cramped and even a little suffocating.

Nonetheless, a requisite to living in a studio apartment is knowing how to decorate both efficiently and stylishly at the same time. Furnishing such a small space necessitates some degree of creativity, and you may run into problems and questions that owners of larger residences, like condominiums or townhouses, may never have to deal with.

On the other hand, a studio apartment is still your home. It is the comfortable, secure place you yearn to return to after long hours at work, and with just a few smart moves, you can transform your tiny studio space into a cozy haven for practically any event that comes to mind, from midnight snacking sessions with your girlfriends to movie nights to formal dinner parties with colleagues and relatives.

Ultimately, decorating a studio apartment means buying the right kind of furniture and having a plan, or at least a concrete blueprint in your head, that outlines where everything goes and what purpose each piece, even a decorative one, serves. Here are five tips on how to go about furnishing your studio apartment.

1. Make sure the furniture you buy is practical. That bulky antique armchair you have always adored may not be the best, or the most suitable, addition to your studio apartment. On the other hand, smaller, lightweight, though equally trendy chairs can save not only a ton of space but can also add a minimalist flair to your apartment. Depending on how large your studio apartment is, buy three to four chairs and then a few durable ottomans. These ottomans often have a decent amount of storage space inside them (for books, DVDs, blankets, light bulbs, candles), and they can be used as an extra chair or as a cushion for your tired feet after work.

2. Containers can do wonders for your apartment, and these days, they don’t have to be the unattractive plastic boxes you find in discount stores like Marshall’s or Bed, Bath & Beyond. Use old-style steamer trunks to store clothes, bed sheets, pillows, towels, and linens, or look for furniture that can be used in more than one way, like a sofa-sleeper in the place of a regular couch (in case guests need to sleep overnight), tables that contain extra shelves or drawers, and bookcases/armoires that can double as an entertainment center and a storage unit for your grandmother’s best china and silverware.

3. Designate the areas in your apartment that will be reserved to just eating, sleeping, working, or entertaining. This could be as simple as placing your work desk on the opposite corner of where your bed is, so you don’t feel the stress of pending reports and assignments at night. This could also mean taking more drastic action, like purchasing a room divider if you constantly feel tempted to switch on the TV while studying or working.

Knowing which section of the apartment is reserved for a specific set of activities (like preparing meals or reading) will make your space feel a lot bigger than it actually is, since you are maximizing the full utility of your room. For instance, if you want to have some privacy when guests come over, consider fencing off your sleeping area from sight. This way, you will be able to distinguish both to yourself and to others the role that each section of the apartment plays.

4. Give yourself some space to walk. You may think this goes without saying, but oftentimes it is easy to go overboard with decorations, furniture, and even storage containers. Clear out a space in your apartment for just walking. If there is one table or chair that keeps getting in your way, consider selling it or reshuffling your furniture to make moving around the room easier and less hazardous.

5. Take advantage of bare walls and even ceilings. They are your blank canvas, and while you should abide by whatever rules or guidelines your landlord lays down to prevent being fined later on, you should feel free to personalize the one part of your space that does not involve pushing around furniture.

Put up classic movie posters, framed art prints, blown-up photographs of your family and friends, or just a few bright-colored curtains to liven up your windows. Consider painting your walls a light versus dark color to expand the dimensions of your studio apartment and using mirrors to make the room brighter.

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If ever there was a season for lolling about in bed and sleeping in till noon on the weekends, it would the winter. Everything slows down in the wintertime. Animals hibernate. Cars take longer to start up. Icy sidewalks and snowy highways make commuting to work an even bigger hassle than normal. No sooner do school buses make their rounds in the afternoon than the sun begins to fade below the horizon. For many people, the wintertime signifies a long hiatus, where the events of a single day can slip by without notice into a dreamlike haze. Though there are many recreational activities we associate only with the winter season (i.e. ice skating, skiing, snowboarding), gardening is usually not one of them.

Even the most experienced gardeners may feel intimidated by the prospect of freezing temperatures and extreme weather conditions. However, there is one aspect of your garden which can be developed over the winter season, and that is your compost pile. Composting improves the soil quality of your garden by combining decaying organic matter with microorganisms that decompose your yard and food waste. Even though most of these organisms tend to freeze up in the wintertime, there are ways to maintain your compost pile and create a strong foundation for your garden that will be ready by the spring.

Making the decision to continue your compost pile over the winter entails being aware of what options you have and what steps you can take to ensure the best possible results. Here are some strategies to consider, as you begin to prepare your compost pile for the winter:

1. Worm Compost Bins. Because worms tend to slow down during the winter, it is crucial that you regulate the amount of food waste you toss into the compost bin. Leaving the worms outside in cold weather may also prove disastrous, if it ever rains or snows. The best way to handle a worm compost bin in the wintertime is to move the worms to a garden shed, preferably one that will also shelter them from the wind and cold outside.

2. Cold Composting. This form of composting requires the least amount of effort, as it involves little more than gathering all organic materials into one area. Cold composting, also called a cold pile, attracts only certain kinds of bacteria and may take anywhere between 6 months to 2 years to create actual compost for one’s soil. While the process can be tiresomely slow, a cold pile needs only occasional turning and infrequent monitoring to begin generating compost. In the wintertime, feel free to add whatever materials you can collect for your cold pile to the compost bin. Mix garden waste and kitchen leftovers with cardboard and paper. Make sure that there is enough air in your cold pile, and place your compost bin in an area where it is likely to receive more sunlight.

3. Hot Composting. An intricate process, hot composting involves an intensive preparation of materials. Waste is first sorted out by type, and then combined layer by layer into the heap. The amount of each material that goes into the pile determines the efficiency of the bacteria. Depending on whether or not the compost is built the right way, the pile will heat up and create a large amount of compost within a short period of time. In the winter, insulate your compost bin to keep the temperature warm and turn the pile every time the temperature begins to drop.

4. Storing Food Scraps. Instead of building your compost pile during the winter, consider collecting leftover kitchen waste in sealed containers that you can keep outside. Place these containers in a cool and unheated area, like in a garden shed or garage. Once the winter season ends, use the food scraps to build a larger compost pile with different waste materials mixed in.

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The home is considered by many to be a sanctuary from the world’s problems. During work, one dreams of sitting down to a steaming cup of herb-brewed tea, taking a therapeutic bath, and then catching up on some much-needed sleep. We often believe that our homes can shelter us from the ongoing turmoil of an increasingly complex world. Watching the news, we distance ourselves from the information that is being processed in our heads, thinking that nothing as disastrous as a tsunami or an earthquake will ever touch our lives, even if it happens in another country only a few hundred miles away. On a similar note, most people believe that their homes are protected from pollution. They often jump to the conclusion that just because there is a roof over our heads that the air in our homes must be healthier and cleaner than the air outside. This myth, however, has been proven false by none other than the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

The EPA has reported that pollutant levels within a home can range anywhere from 2 to 100 times higher than pollutant levels outdoors. Indoor pollution can originate from the use of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) most commonly found in domestic cleaning and decorating products. Fortunately for the environment, there are some easy eco-friendly ways to clean your home at no extra cost to yourself.

Open the Windows!

This is likely the easiest way to detoxify your home. In the spring and summertime when flowers are in full blossom, open the windows to fill your home with a natural perfume. If this fragrance is too strong for your tastes, set up a vase in your living room, bathroom, or bedroom. Buying a bouquet of flowers on your way home from work is preferable to spraying air fresheners and other fragrances in your kitchen. These unnatural products are replete with VOCs and other toxic chemicals that, in addition to polluting the air, may cause health problems, like headaches, breathing difficulties, and skin reactions.

Results from a survey conducted in 1999 by New Scientist Magazine concluded that toxic cleaning products common to homes, like air fresheners and air sprays, can increase one’s chances of having a headache by 25 percent and of experiencing depression by 19 percent. Infants are also more vulnerable to the effects of toxic cleaning products, since the same survey discovered that 30 percent of infants experience more ear infections, while 22 percent have a higher rate of diarrhea.

Read the Labels!

Don’t be swayed by flashy slogans or enticing commercials that feature immaculate homes polished from top to bottom. Read the labels of all cleaning products before you purchase them, even if the label claims the product is all-natural or environmentally friendly. Look for ingredients like grain alcohol in the place of solvents like toxic butyl cellosolve. Keep an eye out for plant-based disinfectants, such as rosemary or sage, instead of traditional solvents like triclosan.

Yet another practical solution is to mix your own cleaning products. This is easier than it sounds, and may cost even less than some of the pricey cleaners sold in the supermarket. Using ingredients like soap, sodium carbonate (washing soda), vinegar, sodium bicarbonate (baking soda), and lemon juice, you can whip up a cleaning product that is effective, natural, and eco-friendly to boot.

Substitute Nonrenewable Products!

Petroleum, a nonrenewable resource, can be found in a variety of laundry and dish detergents. Instead of buying detergents that boast a new fragrance every month, purchase cleaners that have plant-based ingredients, such as coconut oil or palm kernel.

Other products to avoid include antibacterial soap, disinfectants, and glass cleaning products. Experts have long concluded that antibacterial soap actually aids in the spread of stronger and more resistant bacteria. Bleach, yet another popular cleaning ingredient found in scouring powders, may be both toxic and carcinogenic to other living organisms once it is poured down the drain.

Substitute these nonrenewable and harmful products with simple cleaning solutions. Instead of rubbing antibacterial beads all over your hands, use plain soap and warm water. Take the time to wash your hands thoroughly instead of relying on antibacterial solutions to keep your body healthy. Disinfect kitchen appliances that have touched raw meat and eggs by scouring them in hot water and soap.

Baking soda and white vinegar are accessible cleaning products that can be used on kitchen counters, toilets, and floors. Ecover and Earth Friendly sell non-bleach products you can either buy or order online. Both companies’ products are entirely plant-based and renewable, unlike conventional detergents and cleaning products that are lamentably still being mass-marketed to the public.

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There are a number of ways to celebrate New Year’s Eve. Some prefer to snuggle up in bed with a loved one and watch the New Year’s Eve Ball drop on television. Those who are slightly more ambitious will be standing in person in Times Square, shivering from both the excitement and the cold, while waiting for the Ball to drop. Still others will be slipping on their heels and best accessories for a night on the town with their girlfriends, where they will dance the midnight hour away with a drink in one hand and a plate of hors d’oeuvres in the other.

Whatever one’s plans for New Year’s Eve are, most would agree that the holiday season is exhausting. After waking up for days at the crack of dawn just to make the Early Bird Sale at stores like Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s, shoppers will be begging for a rest from all the coupon clipping and gift exchanging that is requisite to celebrating the holidays. This is what makes the New Year’s Eve party the perfect conclusion to the holiday season, since it involves little to no hassle for hosts and brings together friends and family from all over to share fond memories of 2009.

Though the New Year’s Eve party should be relaxed and casual, it should also be well planned with plenty of decorations, drinks, and food. The following is a practical guide on throwing the best New Year’s Eve bash in the neighborhood.

Invitations

Send out invitations to your New Year’s Eve party early, before your friends and relatives have a chance to make plans they cannot back out of. Because New Year’s Eve parties are generally not large-scale events, try to accommodate everyone’s schedule by asking what starting time would be the most convenient. Electronic invites are fine since this is a casual event, but guests should still RSVP to let you know whether they will be attending or not.

Decorations

Decorations are essential to any successful New Year’s Eve party. Sprinkle confetti on tables and chairs. Head over to your local Party City and buy snowflake cutouts and banners that guests can sign upon entering your home. String Christmas lights across the windows and light a few candles to put your guests in the right mood.

Make sure that the room you are holding the party in has enough space for guests to move around and socialize. Move aside any small tables, footstools, or chairs that can trip up your guests, especially when things begin to get a bit hazy.

Drinks

No New Year’s Eve party is complete without generous amounts of champagne and alcohol. Set up a mini-bar in one corner of the room where guests can help themselves to a variety of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages. A bottle of Martinelli’s sparkling cider is a great option for those who are afraid of getting even a little bit tipsy. Otherwise, buy several bottles of Andre Spumante champagne, set out the appropriate stemware, and remember to toast to the New Year when midnight strikes.

Food

When dealing with food, the easiest solution that comes to mind is the potluck. Have every one of your guests bring at least one appetizer or dish. Finger foods like quesadillas, stuffed mushrooms, mozzarella sticks, and mini sandwiches are great appetizers that are sure to disappear after only one or two rounds. Another option – which is even simpler if not slightly costly – is to buy prepared trays from your local supermarket and set them out on a dining table where guests can serve themselves. Chicken Caesar wraps, cocktail shrimp, and even bite-size pizza squares are great alternatives that can be purchased with one trip to the grocery store.

Designate at least one area of the room to food. Set out some festive tableware, and make sure that the napkins never run out. If there is no room in your home for a buffet-size dining table, consider acting as a server to your guests. This is an effective way of working the room while making sure all your guests are well-fed.

Party Favors

Noisemakers, kazoos, balloons, and party hats are age-old props that never fail to please. Consider putting together individual goodie bags for your guests, so that everyone can leave happy. Chocolate coins, blowouts, deely bobbers, glow sticks, and leftover confetti are only a few party favor ideas that you can pile into one inexpensive but celebratory gift bag.

Games

Have everyone write down their New Year’s resolutions on a piece of paper, collect these in a bowl, and read them out loud later. If you have the space, set up a table or two for a few good-natured games of poker and blackjack. Other game ideas include Charades, Pass the Pigs, Scrabble, Monopoly, Partini, and Apples to Apples.

Remember to take plenty of photos of your New Year’s Eve party, compile them in an album on a free website like Snapfish or Photobucket, and send them out to your guests.

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Here we are with the holidays, and tons of ideas. Should we do the regular almond crescent cookies that take three hours, and what about that old recipe from Grandma? Is this the year we pick up the Bon Appétit and attempt the roasted goose?

Choices usually depend upon a multitude of factors, such as the time allotted to any task, budget, expectations of family and friends, and availability of ingredients. The important thing about ingredients is that they can be tailored to any holiday feasting tradition, whether Christian, Jewish, Muslim, or various national cuisines. When one is sticking to traditional fare that they know everyone will like, it can be easier because then some of these questions are already answered. You know how long it will take to roll out the almond cookie dough; you can opt for pre-ground flour this year after last year’s disaster of shelling, chopping, and then food-processing the almonds all by yourself. You also know exactly where to purchase the pork or duck and how much it will cost to feed 20 people. Don’t forget to ask relatives or friends for techniques or shopping contingency plans to ease the burden of cost as well as the general frustration of preparing meals during the holidays.

The more interesting conundrums occur when you are trying to change your eating habits to more locally produced food, and/or incorporating more variety or restrictions to your feast table. Many grocery stores offer labels indicating whether the produce, meat, or fish is locally produced or from the other end of the country. The best thing to decide when buying your ingredients is what your standards are for quality of product, whether you know or personally support a particular vendor or brand, and if it is really necessary to have a large spread of exotic fruits in December. For instance, let’s say you have become a moral vegetarian, eschewing any animal products, and also developed an intense love for pumpkins. Instead of a blah pumpkin pie copied from last month’s menu, you could create a wonderful smooth-textured pumpkin soup using fresh sage, soy dairy (heavy cream or a cultured sour cream), and a hint of cumin. Remember, winter vegetables are high in fiber and nutrients, and can be low in fats when prepared with consideration. They can and should be an easy choice for those that are watching their figure and their wallets.

Fruits in the winter are abundant, despite what the cold ground may tell you. Sugar concentrations in pears and parsnips make for a strange yet blissful marriage in a pureed mash or bake. Apples and pears make great baking ingredients as well as added to pureed soups, tarte tatin, and even vinaigrette salads. Pomegranates lend their color and sharpness to simple salads as well as fun Jell-O molds or ice floats for the party punch. Citrus! The sun may be low on the horizon, but these beautiful varieties lock in Vitamin C and bursting flavor as if it were summertime. Navel and Cara-Cara oranges, Satsumas, Tangerines, Clementines, Mandarins, and of course the versatile limes and lemons are all great choices. They can be pickled, roasted, grated for zest in baking, juiced, and eaten out of one’s hand. Take stock in the best deals around, and hand the smaller varieties out at your holiday get-togethers. Broccoli, carrots, and cabbage are also in-season and highly versatile nutritious additions to your menu.

Why not try a whole roasted fish? Baking or poaching fish (instead of frying) is the best way to preserve the healthy omega-3 fatty acids, which makes a great holiday meal presentation. Cold-water fish are the healthiest and most sustainably available this time of year. Arctic char, a lesser known yet excellent “cousin” to salmon is similar in texture and color. The old favorites: salmon, tuna, and even sardines are also great choices. When purchasing fish, one thing to remember is that the wild varieties have less exposure to pollutants than farmed, but tend to be more expensive. Write your budget out ahead of time and decide whether it is more important to buy a fish that can feed a certain amount, or to maintain the most amount of nutrients. If you live inland, the freshest fish may be shipped frozen, so do your research. Most fish are happy being baked with lemon, a few herbs, and salt and pepper, but you can certainly include potatoes, capers and even a tomato relish with hot peppers for something really special.

Spices are a revolutionary way to incorporate new flavors to the same produce. Cinnamon, vanilla, and cocoa powder (opt for the high-quality unsweetened kinds, like Valharona 64% cacao available at Whole Foods by the ounce) are not just for desserts. Many grocery stores stock up on “holiday” spices and offer discounts along with your sugar and baking needs. Cinnamon can be used in stick as well as powder form, and should both be purchased so that you can swizzle your stick in some warming hot toddy as well as sprinkle into the snickerdoodle cookie batter. Investing in an array of different vinegars can also boost healthy sauces and glazes as well as tempt your tongue in almost indescribable ways. Balsamic, champagne, and pomegranate vinegars are great additions to the pantry, because they have a fruity pungency that can equally accompany fruit dishes, meats, and vegetables. A little goes a long way, so you won’t have to worry about needing a gallon-sized bottle like white vinegar. Well-stocked grocery stores such as Fairway will have an affordable variety of oils and vinegars in many sizes.

For meat, the best advice would be to find a good butcher and know ahead of time what cut of meat you want. A good butcher can and should give suggestions if you are not sure exactly how much you want or even what would be a good holiday recipe for a specific cut of meat. Butchers are great because they can rival the cost of pre-cut meat significantly while maintaining optimal freshness and good conversation. Getting to know your ingredients is a vital part of any cooking excursion. The more comfortable you feel picking out pomegranates or testing the density of a pumpkin, the better off you will be when it comes time to turn these treasures into a healthy and delicious meal.

For excellent recipes using the ingredients mentioned above, please visit these sites:

www.saveur.com for cinnamon recipes in desserts, drinks, or meals and exceptional meat dishes.

www.bonappetit.com for quick and easy holiday recipes down the menu.

www.deliciousliving.com for health-conscious ideas that still please a wide range of tastes.

Fine Cooking December/January has great large party recipes, such as tamales and Christmas birds (duck, goose and Cornish hens) as well as detailed techniques for the preparation. Visit www.finecooking.com for more details.

Lastly, www.foodandwine.com describes not only the best wines for every holiday occasion, but the December issue also offers delicious Indian and Armenian recipes for a more international take on holiday eating.

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