handmade Archives | Page 2 of 73

Attention knitters: This new yarn is transforming plastic into gorgeous sweaters and scarves

We all know that knitting is a fantastic way to soothe anxiety, but this Wool and the Gang New Wave yarn delivers even more peace of mind, because it’s helping rid the oceans of discarded plastic — each ball of yarn is upcycled from three entire plastic...

11 anti-Valentine’s gifts for people who hate Valentine’s Day (you know who you are!)

by Liz Gumbinner | Valentine's Day

Each year, we love putting together Valentine’s Day gift ideas, but I admittedly have had a love/hate relationship with Valentine’s Day throughout my life. Love the opportunity to tell people in my life I love them, hate the pressure, love helping my kids...

The cutest Year of the Pig baby gifts for all the 2019 little piggies

by Liz Gumbinner | Baby

On Tuesday, February 5, we celebrate Chinese New Year and ring in the Year of the Pig. We’ve always loved Chinese New Year animal gifts as thoughtful baby gifts — and I’m kind of amazed realizing we’ve now come full Chinese Zodiac circle,...

Handmade baby blankets to inspire dreams. Hopefully the sleeping kind, too.

by Liz Gumbinner | Baby

When we first started this site, at the dawn of Etsy, I feel like we were sharing cute handmade baby blankets every other day. Well it’s been a while since I found a new one that caught my attention, until I discovered Elegant Infant Co. Mom-of-three Hope makes...

12 cool DIY Christmas gifts from the kids, for parents, grandparents, teachers and friends

by Kate Etue | DIY, Holiday Picks

Shhh, don’t tell our grandparents, cousins and neighbors, but this year is going to be a handmade, DIY Christmas gifts from the kids kind of a year. Even if we’re not the craftiest people on the block, I want to give out gifts that feel more personal than,...

17 feminist gifts that honor our activist women friends after a long, hard year

by Liz Gumbinner | Books for Adults, Holiday Picks, Style + Beauty

While our 2018 Holiday Gift Guide is up and running with hundreds of gift ideas, there are still a few very specific types of people on our lists that you might be shopping for. In my case, I’m thinking of all the incredible, engaged, active, activist women who...

The best teacher gift ideas from people who know: actual teachers.

by Kristen Chase | Tips + Tricks

We are always on the lookout for the best teacher gift ideas every year, and it may in fact be one of the top gift questions we get from readers every year about this time. (Then again in May.) And hey, I get it; if there are any people on my holiday shopping list...

10 creative Advent calendars for 2018 that make the Christmas countdown even more fun.

by Caroline Siegrist | DIY, Holiday Picks

We’ve had so much find finding creative 2018 Advent calendars for kids. And even if you don’t think the holiday season needs more presents and candy (agree to disagree), I think you might change your mind when you see these awesome calendars. Whether your...

Get well soon Ruth Bader Ginsburg! We need you!

by Liz Gumbinner | Holiday Picks, Toys + Playthings

I just received a news alert that our strong, feisty, beloved SCOTUS Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, fell and fractured three ribs last night. It’s happened before (she evidently “did not skip a beat” during that time, according to the court because,...

Cool non-candy Halloween gift for a cynical tween or teen? Reader Q & A

by Liz Gumbinner | Kids

When Lisa asked us for cool non-candy Halloween gift ideas for her tween/teen nieces and nephews, I was on the case! I checked with my own Halloween-loving but decidedly…particular tween and teen to see what kinds of things they would think are cool. I mean, of...

Hi! We’re Kristen + Liz!

Kristen Chase + Liz Gumbinner of Cool Mom Picks

We started Cool Mom Picks in 2006 to help make life cooler, more meaningful, and more fun for parents of all kinds.

Trivia: It was called Cool Mom Sh*t for the first two days. (Yeah, we rethought that.)

We had no idea our site would grow to become a major lifestyle network, that we'd end up sharing our finds with the TODAY Show and Martha Stewart, that we'd be able to make a real difference for so many small businesses and women-run companies, or that we'd end up with an incredible community of the coolest readers on the planet. (If we do say so ourselves).

We did.

And we still love what we do every single day.

We're so glad you're here.