By Anne-Marie Kovacs, Chief Wife
That last time we complained about the excessive and impenetrable packaging on most product was four years ago, right about this time of year (the story here). All these years later and I’m afraid nothing much has improved on the packaging front. Most toys are still enclosed in fortresses of cardboard, plastic and ties.
But, at least I have found a tool to handle the job of – easily – cracking open seemingly bulletproof packages. It’s called the Open It! and you will wonder how you ever lived without it. This nifty little tool was designed by women who were on [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
We just revisited all our gift guides from last year but I could not resist adding another one this year for the {furry} dependents that will never leave home. This is for you or anyone you know that adores their pets:

 
Dog Couches - Tired of the pooch getting on your couch, well why not get them their own. Choose from a large variety of sizes, styles, colors and fabric to fit with any decor. Go to Enchanted Pets to view their online catalog.

 
Dog Bows and Ties - Nothing says “I am a pampered pet” more than going over the top [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
One of our favorite passions is discovering unique, fun, clever or simply cool products that we get excited about, bring a smile to our faces or give us that “aha!” moment. But is this not what The Succulent Wife is all about? We love creating curated lists, including our (ahem) infamous gift guides. We work on them all year long as we window shop, scour art fairs and trade shows of all kinds. Our goal is to do all the leg work so that you can enjoy the holidays, because, quite frankly, this is what we love [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
Growing up, Christmas was a very important holiday in our home and, to this day, it is still one of my favorite times of the year. With my father being a minister, my family’s traditions centered around the church. The scripture reading of Luke 2 (1- 20) was read before our Christmas Eve dinner and before heading off to church.
Although, now my own family still goes to church Christmas Eve, we read other books as part of our Christmas tradition. Every Christmas Eve we, of course, read “Twas the Night Before Christmas“. It is my [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
I love this time of year when I can sit down with my family and watch all the old holiday movies together. The Christmas Story is one of the ones we never miss; along with How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Many of the classic movies bring back fond memories of my own childhood and I am thrilled that I can continue the tradition with my own children. This is exactly why Tyler Schwartz started a small company in Ontario, Canada called RetroFestive. Initially he only had one product – the infamous leg lamp from The [...]

The Christmas gift list… Yep, there’s an app for that. Several really. So, why not make it one less piece of paper that gets lost at the bottom of your bag.
Christmas shopping can be a daunting task. The more generous you are, the larger the family, the more friends and co-workers you have… the list of gifts to buy can be endless. The organized shopper has always kept lists. And rewrote them when the frayed edges of the folded and re-folded paper started to tear. For those of us with a techie bend, those day can be over. Here are [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
My family and I have just relocated back to Eastern Canada from California for a two year stint. I must admit that I so loved this past fall season up here that I am really looking forward to a very white Christmas. When I last lived here (over 18 years ago!) I loved the look of Christmas lights reflecting off the snow on the outside trees around my home. I loved to attract birds and decorating a holiday tree with seed ornaments. And I am planning to do that again this year.
Mr. Bird has an [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
I am well past the stage in my life to do any type of formal hosting. I much prefer to invite friends and family over to share some great wine/martini/champagne with a variety of tapas. This does not mean I don’t like to make it fun for my guests. Here is a list of fun party ‘successories’ – products that will make any gathering a success – that your guest will enjoy as much as you do:

 
Drink Flair - There are lots of options for glass labeling on the market, but these static stickers are inexpensive, [...]

Meet NOVICA. This is a company that gives artists and artisans around the world a global platform to express their true artistic talents and to spur their creativity.
1. We love your website, NOVICA. It’s full of beautiful and lovely gifts for giving and for yourself. What is the idea behind Novica and how did the company start?
NOVICA’s birth came from a desire to cut out the long strings of middlemen and bring handcrafted items directly from the artists to the customers. We’re really committed to helping artisans get recognition for their work while earning a fair income for their skills… [...]

By Audrey van Petegem, Senior Editor
Every holiday season the girls and I, with their grandmother, make a gingerbread house. When I started this family tradition, our now 20-year-old son was very young. Grandma and I would make the house from scratch and then he would have the honors of decorating it. Because the enjoyment for the kids was really in the decorating of the house, by the time we had our second child I had started purchasing the gingerbread house kits.
I am now thrilled to see there is an even easier way to continue the tradition with less time, mess [...]