Holiday Gift Ideas from MacKenzie-Childs

MacKenzie-Childs has some amazing hand-painted ceramics, tableware, kitchen & bath items and decor for the home, perfect for last-minute holiday gifts. My favorite from MacKenzie -Childs is the small enamel colander, $40-$48. Other gift ideas include canisters, cake trays and teapots available in several different patterns - Courtly Check, Parchment Check, Flower Market and Odd Fellows.

Visit the MacKenzie-Child's store at 14 West 57th Street or shop at Neiman Marcus, Saks Fifth Avenue and Horchow.

Pet palace, dish and bed

Check out the tree filled with MacKenzie-Childs products!

- Kim Weling

Jane by Design Style Challenge #3: My Purse Pick

The Jane by Design challenges are moving quickly! For Challenge #3, I had to choose a purse in my closet that best represents me and explain why this purse conveys the very essence of who I am. I decided to go with this coral hobo bag. I actually don't even know the name of the designer - I got this bag at a sample sale for $15!

I rarely ever pay full retail price - I eye what I like and get it at 60-80% off at sample sales. Why pay full price when you don't have to? Lucky for me, when it comes to clothes, they are usually in my size at sample sales. So this bag really represents my shopping style and ethic. I also don't feel the need for everything in my closet to have a designer label. I think it's good to mix it up.

So I've gotten a ton of compliments on this bag and I love telling people how little I paid for it, and inspiring them to go on their own shopping excursion! This bag has plenty of compartments - those front zipper ones are perfect to quickly throw my phone, business cards and metro card in. I also love the versatility and functionality of this bag, being able to wear it cross-body or on the shoulder. It's also the perfect size for me.

As a blogger I am constantly running around all over NYC, always have my camera in tow, a water to stay hydrated and usually a change of shoes (some people can run around 3" or 4" heels all day but I'm not one of those people) so I need to make sure I have a bag big enough to carry everything.

In relation to my wardrobe, I tend to wear lots of black, grey and darker colors in general, so this bag provides the pop of color my outfit needs sometimes!

Which one of your purses best represents you? Share your purse pick at https://www.facebook.com/JaneByDesign and mention that Fashionably Petite sent you!

Also, take a look at this Jane by Design clip here, which provided some additional inspiration for this challenge.

*Game Trunk provided by ABC Family

- Kim Weling

Holiday Gift Sets from Smashbox Cosmetics

Smashbox Cosmetics has the perfect gift sets to get you glammed up and photo-ready for the holidays! You always get a great value with gift sets / kits and can try out some new shades you wouldn't normally buy. It's also a good way to try out some new products!

The Snappy Holidays collection is available at smashbox.com, Sephora, Ulta and Nordstrom. Includes:

- Life is your Set Holiday Pencil Kit, $22 ($62 value): five creamy, blendable eye liners in vivid shades in Black, Gold, Emerald, Espresso and Sapphire.

- Snap Your Fab Holiday Lip Gloss Set, $30 ($96 value): two full size and four travel size glosses in Pout, Radiant, Luster, It Girl, Infamous and Pink Sugar.

- Click You're it Holiday Palette, $49 (over $250 value): 15 eye shadows, 5 cream liners, a mini photo finish lid primer and fan-favorite Get-the-Look cards.

- Behind the Lens Holiday Prime & Set Kit, $39 ($50 value): Photo Finish Foundation Primer and travel size Photo Set Finishing Powder SPF 15.

The Be Discovered Holiday Palette is exclusively available at smashbox.com, Ulta and Ulta.com. This mega palette retails for $60 (over $300 value) and includes 45 eye shadows, 9 cream eye liners, 3 blush shades, 1 bronzer, 2 soft lights, 6 lip glosses and 4 mini brushes. The palette makes it easy for you to change up your beauty style, with three trend-setting looks -Indie Glam, Pop Icon and Mod Chic.

The Holiday Flash Collection will have you party-ready in three simple steps! This collection is available at smashbox.com, Ulta and Nordstrom. Includes:

- Long Wearing Liquid Liner, $22, two metallic shades: Chrome and 14K

- Eyelights Eye Shadow Quad, $39: four metallic shadows - pearl, gold, silver and pewter, that can be worn wet or dry.

- Double Ended Lip Enhancing Gloss, $22: two sparkle-rich glossy shades - Star and Siren

- Kim Weling

Sonia Kashuk Holiday 2011 and Luxe Collections

Diamond in the Brush Kabuki Brush, $12.99

Sonia Kashuk Holiday 2011 collection features glamorous brush sets and lip & eye palette for some festive looks. Also available is the Luxe collection ($14.99-$64.99), including a quilted faux leather brush roll, 6-piece purse brush set, clutch with chain, travel mirror and compact mirror.

The Agent Provocateur Train Case, $34.99 from the Nylon Collection with Oversized Silver Studs is perfect for organizing your beauty essentials. It features an inner zipper pocket and a removable foam modular tray that is customizable, allowing you to section off spaces for bottles, tubes, compacts and brushes.

Here are my top favorites from Sonia Kashuk this season:

- Diamond in the Brush Kabuki Brush, $12.99

- Prepping for the Party Lip & Eye Palette, $19.99

- Femme Fatale Travel Mirror, $24.99 - I would totally use this case as a round clutch

- Agent Provocateur Train Case, $34.99

- Haute Couture 10-Piece Brush Roll, $64.99

These functional and gorgeous travel and beauty accessories are incredibly affordable and make great gifts for yourself or the beauty-obsessed friends and relatives on your shopping list.

These limited edition items are exclusively available at target.com. Shop all of Sonia Kashuk products here.

Left: Prepping for the Party Lip & Eye Palette, $19.99

Right: All Eyes on the Party Lash Sets, $9.99

Scarlet Starlet 4-Piece Purse Brush Set, $14.99

All Out Glam 6-Piece Brush Set, $24.99

Femme Fatale Travel Mirror, $24.99

Tres Chic 6-Piece Purse Brush Set, $34.99

- Kim Weling

Holiday Shopping at the Molton Brown Bryant Park Pop Up

If you are still doing holiday shopping and live near NYC, getting your gifts is as easy as walking over to the Molton Brown Pop Up at The Holiday Shops at Bryant Park, open through January 8th at Booth K07, 41 West 40th Street.

Molton Brown has some amazing shower gels, lotions, candles and more for bath, body, hair care and home. The gift sets make the perfect present. My gift pick is spectrum, $48, which comes with six 100ml bath & shower gels that are great for holiday travel - energizing seamoss, relaxing yuan zhi, travel-reviving cempaka, re-charge black pepper, warming eucalyptus and invigorating suma ginseng.

Another favorite of mine is heavenly gingerlily collection. I find the Molton Brown scents to be sophisticated as well as unisex.

What is your favorite scent to indulge in? If you can't pop over to Bryant Park then check out moltonbrown.com.

kaleidoscope body wash gift set, $48

spectrum body wash gift set, $48

- Kim Weling

Beauty Bar Grand Opening at the Americana Manhasset

On December 1st, I attended the grand opening of the Beauty Bar flagship store at Americana Manhasset, in Manhasset, New York. I rarely go to Long Island but I can see how Beauty Bar fits in perfectly at this upscale outdoor shopping center, alongside coveted brands such as Dior, Gucci, Prada, Louis Vuitton and Salvatore Ferragamo.

The luxury boutique carries many of my favorite beauty, skincare, fragrance and hair care brands, including Caudalie, Jurlique, Tocca, L'Occitane, By Terry, Sisley-Paris, Bond No. 9 New York, Butter London and Kevyn Aucoin. Many of the brands that are carried are unisex, but Beauty Bar also carries Art of Shaving and Jack Black and for men.

It's not easy to find my favorite brands all in one spot, and many of these brands aren't sold at your local Sephora either. Beauty Bar is a completely different beauty shopping experience.

Beauty Bar's bi-level boutique features two incredible perks - a Treatment Room and Blow Dry Bar. The Treatment Room includes facials, luxe peels and waxing services. For the Blow Dry Bar, Beauty Bar has partnered with nuBest Salon for styling sessions and chic blowouts.

If you can't make it to the Beauty Bar boutique, you can shop your favorite brands atbeautybar.com.

During the launch party guests enjoyed champagne, hors d'oeuvres and complimentary min-facials, makeovers and blowouts. Thanks to Eber for my Jurlique mini-facial and Stacey for my smoky eye Smashbox makeover.

- Kim Weling

Jane by Design Style Challenge #2: Fashion Icon

For the Jane by Design Style Challenge #2, I had to design a plain, white t-shirt* inspired by my favorite fashion icon, using items around the house or office.

I chose Sarah Jessica Parker as my fashion icon. She brings my favorite character, Carrie Bradshaw to life with amazing fashion sense and style. At 5'3", she's petite like me, and loves to change up her style from classic to glamorous to funky. Must I even mention shoes? If it's anyone's shoe wardrobe I wish I had, it's hers. Sarah has been one of my favorite actresses since I was about 10 years old, when I first watched the movie, Girls Just Want To Have Fun. Her fragrance, Lovely, has also been one of my favorites for years.

In creating my t-shirt design, I included her tagline from her Bitten collection, "Fashion is not a luxury" and included her initials, SJP. I incorporated details that she wears, from feathers and sequins to rhinestones for that feminine and glamorous look. I'm not so great at drawing, so coming from the underwear industry I decided to construct a bandeau top to layer over the t-shirt. I have this favorite Jean Paul Gaultier outfit - a bandeau top under a printed mesh dress, so I had taken inspiration from that as well.

At first I was thinking of simplifying the t-shirt without the lettering on the bandeau or the tagline, as it would also look more wearable, but for the purpose of this challenge I wanted it to be apparent who my icon was.

Here are the household items I used for this challenge:

- leftover mesh lining taken from a Tracy Reese dress - used for bandeau

- black bra straps

- black bra band for under the bust

- rhinestones from a bracelet used at scoopneck

- sequins and hearts from an old jersey top (the jersey originally said 'Love' in sequins and I transformed the letters to SJP')

- seam binding ribbon to make bra strap tabs

- glue gun

- double sided tape

- black fabric marker* to write the tag line "Fashion is not a luxury"

- medium size binder clip to clip onto the back of the t-shirt, for a more fitted appearance

Help me get a step closer to winning the Jane by Design Style Challenge! Go to http://www.facebook.com/JaneByDesign, tell us who your fashion icon is and mention Fashionably Petite!

*Plain t-shirt, fabric markers and Game Trunk provided by ABC Family

- Kim Weling