
If you're attending a birthday, housewarming, or any other party that calls for gift-giving, but you're not close with the host, your best bet is to keep it simple. Pick up a great gift that anyone would love (bottle of wine, flowers, Scrabble!), and enclose a chic, cute gift card or tag. Augment it by sharing a brief sentiment and signing your name.

I've blogged
lots and
lots about birds, and even wrote a post
entirely full of bird puns. So, it's no secret that I love dem birds! Some of you have expressed that you're not big fans of
the bird trend, but I am, so I've decided to cover my ears and show you the
Wisteria Perched Bird Candleholders ($16 for two).

Next time you need to say merci beaucoup, let the birds do the legwork. These
Screenprinted Bird Thank You Cards ($3.50) from Etsy seller Sarahparrott825 come in an exquisite robin's egg blue and are blank inside so you can personalize your message. Each card is accompanied by a brown 100% recycled envelope and packed in a celo bag.
CocoAngel recently posted in the CasaSugar group with a decorating quandary, and I thought that you might be able to help her out. She writes, "I'm just finishing up redecorating my daughter's room and having trouble finding accessories, specifically a bird cage. She changed her bed spread to
this birds and bird cages design (see left), so a black-wire bird cage would be a fantastic item to add to the room.

Just after I finished my
kitchen bird roundup a little birdie told me that the latest issue of
Life&Style had a similar winged-creature feature.
I love some of their picks, especially the DwellStudio textiles. To see my riff on this feature, check out the widget below.