gift ideas: #2-12

2-3. 963 coffee and cocoa.
I have the dark roast & cinnamon creme brulee coffees - very tasty. Even better is that each and every 963 coffee blend, and the cocoa, are fair wage and organic. As 963 states, "Fair Wage allows our farmers to afford necessities like food, education for their kids, and health care."

There is more - everything is 40% off until the end of December! Just type in "HIPPO" when prompted to receive the discount. And, if you buy the B:W African Morning blend or the B:W Cocoa Jambo, $4.00 from each item will go directly to Blood:Water Mission to help build water wells in Africa. What's not to love?

4. Drum lessons.
I know a grrreat instructor, and you out-of-towners can purchase lessons online. Very convenient, eh?

5. Heath Ceramics bud vases.
I discovered Heath Ceramics this year. I know I'm way behind the Heath following out there, but I've been admiring their beautiful design and craft on many a blog and flickr page. This morning I ran into the bud vases for only $20.00 each via Canoe (where I could do serious financial damage). Yes, I want a Heath bud vase (in brown or linen), but in all honesty, I would love to give one as a gift, too.
* - [update! It looks like Canoe is sold out of the bud vases, but you can find them on Heath Ceramics' web site right here, although they are made to order. The book, The Complexity of Simplicity, looks amazing, too. And the mugs! It's fun to play with all of those colors.]

6. Blackstock's Collections: The Drawings of an Artistic Savant.
Johnny gave me this book for my birthday, and I continue to say, "Thank you." The art is exquisite. From Gregory Blackstock's bio.:

"Seattle artist Gregory Blackstock catalogues a wide range of subjects on varying sizes of paper. Using ink, pencil, marker, and crayola, freight trains to insects are laid out in neat rows and columns, each item annotated in near obsessive detail. Gregory's work is compelling and stands alone, but his story is equally as compelling, and adds another dimension to the work he has been creating since 1986.

Gregory is an autistic savant, and has overcome many of the limitations of autism, retiring in 2001 after "25 1/3" years of work as a pot washer at the Washington Athletic Club (WAC). Gregory exhibits many of the remarkable traits of the autistic savant; he speaks many languages, is an incredible mimic, and is able to recall events with uncanny precision. In 1986, he began to create his drawings for the WAC monthly newsletter, which each month would feature one of Gregory's new drawings.

It is without doubt in our minds that Gregory Blackstock would be an artist under any circumstance - his autism did not make him become an artist, nor is he an artist because of it. Still, autistics exhibit an inherent inability to show intimacy and intimate communication with those that are close to them and others. Through his art and his music, Gregory has effectively been able to combat this disability and to meet the challenge, with fantastic results."

7. GOOD magazine.
I've decided that my two favorite magazines are GOOD and dwell. Johnny can attest to my glee whenever one of these publications is in our mailbox. A subscription to either magazine would make a fabulous gift, but the bonus with GOOD is that all 20 of your dollars go to the charity of your choice, from GOOD's list.

[photo by Jennifer Causey]

8. The Simply Breakfast book by Jennifer Causey.
Need I say more? Give this to your photography/simplicity/breakfast lover. And don't forget about the simply photo winter wonders shop!

9. IMAGE journal.
IMAGE is hands down my favorite literary journal. Yes, I subscribe, and yes I'm certain you would make a loved one's year if you gifted them with a subscription. Each issue is chock full of gorgeous essays, short stories, poetry, interviews, and visual art.

10. Go crazy at Ten Thousand Villages.
They practice fair trade, and all of their wares are so beautiful. Upon viewing each item, you can see which organization will directly benefit from your purchase.

[photo by mav]

11. A port2port Card Society membership.
Two one-of-a-kind letterpress cards every month. Again, need I say more?? You may order until December 21st, and choose from 1, 3, 6, or 12 month gift subscriptions. Don't forget about port2port's holiday shop, either!

12. Sponsor a child via Compassion.
There are way too many orphaned and neglected children living in poverty worldwide. One organization that helps this urgent crisis is Compassion. Click here to see the benefits you will reap with sponsorship, and more importantly, the benefits your child will receive this Christmas and onward.

Our Compassion child, Denise, lives in Rwanda. We love reading her letters and seeing her grow in each photograph. She has the sweetest, most grateful spirit, and she prays for us. We sent a few sheets of bird stickers with our last letter. When we received Denise's reply letter, I was excited to see some of those bird stickers placed near her handwriting. It turns out that she loves birds, too! Johnny and I hope to meet her face to face one day soon.