Festive Fizz or Sip and Soothe

Aside from our pizza-making endeavors, we like to explore beverages. The new powders, mixes, tonics, and spritzes make this a sipping season to celebrate.

The quality and quantity of tasty spirits coming into the market (including non-alcoholic) means it’s an excellent time to peer into your cabinet or open the bar to evaluate and expand your selection. There’s a drink for everyone with aperitifs to savor and soothe and spirits to energize or mellow your mood. For those who love to shine, edible glitter bombs are your ticket to a neon spritz. The upgrade in beverage packaging, combined with the myriad of choices, means you’ve got options to punch up a traditional tonic and mix a fabulous fizz. Libations are the new liquid accessory.

We’re excited to take a trial run of these spirits and sparkling powders in the coming weeks. If you’re also in the mood to mix it up, tag us and let us know what you think. We’ll do the same on our social media channels. If you have your favorites, we’d love to hear about those.

Two non-alcoholic:

Ghia - We’ve read about this beverage in multiple places and look forward to taste-testing, especially the ginger flavor. Ghia comes in a canned spritz to enjoy chilled or mixed with tonic or soda water. It’s also available as a bottled aperitif. The plant-based refresher is made with fruits and roots to keep you calm and connected.

Kin Euphoria - This high-vibe, low sugar beverage has a zen-like marketing appeal; from energy boosting to sleep-inducing, there are different choices for your mood or mindset. The High Rhode’s social magic is meant to be a mixer with juices or soda, an energy boost for the afternoon errands or the holiday socials. If reducing stress and quieting your mind is the goal, Dream Light may be the Kin choice for you, with its mushrooms and melatonin to mellow your mood. (Side note: For the fashion-forward among us, Bella Hadid is a Co-founder.) One last tip, Kin’s FAQ page is helpful if you’re not sure what to select.

A Festive Fizz:

Cotton candy has come a long way from the days of county fairs. With the launch of Art of Sucre, this sweet treat has spun its way into sparkling drinks with Glitter Bombs that transform a glass of bubbly into a party delight. You’ll find flavors that sound like a good time they promote, from Mimosa to Metallic and Rainbow. These colorful sweets dissolve into your glass to instantly create a party atmosphere.

Glitter and Shimmer:

What once began as a colorful topping for cakes and cookies has now expanded into a sparkling drink mix by Fancy Sprinkles. Like a sprinkle of fairy dust, edible glitter packets dissolve into your glass to create liquid bling. Pick from Opulust Edible Glitter, Pretty Young Thing, or any number of bright jewel tones to match your party theme.

One for Your Radar:

Salt Point Beverage is the gold winner of the 2022 International Spirits Competition. This Northern California crew makes canned cocktails touting all-natural ingredients, with varieties including Moscow Mule, a Gin Highball, and the cranberry lime, Cape Cod. The Greyhound’s grapefruit soda and vodka sound like a festive option too. Aside from the award-winning taste reviews, what caught our eye is the Salt Point can illustrations with an outdoor, rugged appeal. We think the explorer vibe will resonate with many of you. All good news. Now for the bad news, this option is not yet widely available. Those on the west coast will have to sip and share with us. (Their team did reply to my inquiry that they’re in expansion mode.)

Whether your spirit of choice sparkles and shines or is mellow and muted, you can make merry with the swirl of a spoon.

Sip and Share. As you surprise friends with these unique beverage finds, pair your favorite mixes, mocktails, or spirits with the artisan cups and textures found in our handcrafted gift boxes. As distinct as the spirits you serve, this combination will ensure an elevated drink experience.

The Elegance of Engraving

Updated February 8, 2023

How many gifts have you received over the years where someone has taken the time to engrave them? I bet you can recall each one, whether it's jewelry or an artisan piece because it reminds you of a significant occasion. The engraving isn't a quick stop en route to an event or a last-minute online order, so you know they planned. The choice to personalize sends a message of care and consideration.

The decision of what to say and where you want to engrave it has become much more creative as personalized gifts have surged. We've added script and block lettering on serving boards as host gifts and names, initials, and dates on many wedding gift boxes. New homes are an exciting reason to celebrate. Farm and estate names make a lovely addition to custom gift boxes. Our hand-crafted doorstops are a favorite for move-in day. Meaningful words or mantras have also increased in popularity as people have become more expressive.

For your next special event, avoid falling prey to the last-minute scramble, and take the opportunity to give something that can be treasured through generations. Craftsmanship and personalization enhance each gift, from beverage coasters to handcrafted cutting boards or specialty gift boxes. Anniversaries, weddings, deal closings, partner collaborations, and client gifts are noteworthy occasions to raise the bar. Engraving offers a beautiful enhancement as guests admire the custom details.

The next time a milestone event appears on your calendar, take a moment to consider engraving and the chance to send a thoughtful message to friends, family, clients, and colleagues.

Gadgets and Gifts for the Studio & Workshop

After years of giving traditions and holidays, it’s challenging to find small, festive gifts that are useful in the realm of work and play. We’ve put together a few of our favorite gadgets and gifts we use in the studio and workshop to give you some ideas (pics below):

A Sampling from the Studio

On-the-go Travel Sleeves – We carry these to-go-cup sleeves in our cars and keep them in our travel bags. These woolen sleeves are the best to stuff into small spots in the car, zip pouches, and inside your travel packs. They’re colorful, rugged, and practical when traveling over the river to Grandma’s house, or to the slopes and trails. They’re made in a historic mill, by fifth generation craftspeople, a real bonus in our opinion.

A Touch of Tape – When we send cards through traditional mail we use different styles of tape to add a touch of color to envelopes and wrapping. We do use brand stickers with our logo too, however, if we know a client or an artist well, we’ll spice things up in our communication. That’s where the tape comes in. We also pay attention to postage stamps which have become quite a personal statement and design option as well.

Travel and Packing Bags – These colorful flannel bags were custom made to be small, cheery, and flexible. Some of the bags are used for packing ceramics and hand-crafted wood items when meeting with clients. The bags keep artisan pieces protected, and separated by type, making it easy to find and share. We also saved some bags for shoes, a necessity when you have client meetings in cities and need to carry dress shoes. We like to engrave when appropriate too, it takes things up a notch and feels more personal.

Cool Coasters – When the sun goes down and the feet go up, we like to unwind with drinks ranging from hot tea to sparkling water or perhaps something more spirited in nature. No matter what the choice is, coasters are everywhere in our house and work. We like the color, the added texture, and the fact that they protect wood and marble furniture. Whether wooden or woven, hand-crafted coasters are ready to entertain a refreshing beverage break.

#Workshoplife

The workshop is full of large machinery that can sometimes make a freight train sound quiet, however, there are small tools and toys for craftspeople who love to tinker in the land of saw dust and sanders. When you’re tired of turning to duct tape as the last gift resort, here are a few tips for the Workshop:

Noise Cancelling Headphones – We searched for a compact yet effective accessory because this one is important. It needed to be relatively small, and at the same time, do the intended job of dimming the saw noise. Spending hours around the sounds of Table and Planer saws may have an impact on hearing over the weeks and months, and at the very least can invite discomfort. We thought it best to be safe not sorry.

Push Block – This lightweight piece is used with table saws to help push the wood through saw blade and avoid getting fingers too close to the blade. Easy and lightweight, you just need to remember to use it.

Orbit Sander – This electric sander works in a circular motion to quickly and evenly sand larger boards. It fits in the palm of your hand, which makes it easy to use. If you need to sand in tight spots or corners for touch up work, you’ll need to resort to traditional sand-paper or a sanding block, since the orbit is round.