Twinkling lights, glittering tinsel, wreaths of greenery, and mistletoe waiting to inspire kisses are just a few of the reasons we love this time of year. Here at Ped HQ, we think you, too, should shine as brightly as the Holidays! As long as you’re hanging ornaments on the tree or lighting the menorah candles, why not add a little dazzle to your neck (or to the one of someone you love)? We have the prettiest necklaces at Ped to make your festive spirit sparkle (and they’ll look just as beautiful in the new year)!

Nothing catches the eye quite like diamonds and gold! Jamie Joseph’s new Buttercup necklace is absolutely stunning:

Jamie’s organic designs always make us swoon! This necklace’s trio of diamonds look like tiny stars sitting so prettily in their gold buttercup.

Want to make a bolder statement with your jewelry? Sophie Digard has just the thing:

Ped’s Laura recently got Sophie’s Pastille Pop necklace, and she says everyone goes gaga whenever she wears it! Not only do the velvety beads slide, allowing you to cluster them in a variety of ways, but each features a different color combo on each side, so you can spin them to change up the overall composition!

If you really want to create a buzz, nothing gets people talking like Pepita’s imaginative jewelry!

We can’t get over this Agnese necklace with its fantastic mix of fabric beads, brass fittings, glass beads, braided silk cord, and chiffon rosette! Imagine how great this necklace would look with your favorite little black dress on New Year’s Eve!!! Everyone will be toasting your style!

So, deck your neck as you deck the halls! You’ll look spectacular!

Don’t panic. We’ve all been there! You want to get something really lovely and stylish for that special gal who makes you smile—girlfriend, daughter, wife, BFF, mom, mentor who got you where you are today—but you’re just not sure what size she wears. No problem! Although we love the footwear here at Ped, we also have lots of gorgeous things that require no knowledge of numbers. So, let us offer a few ideas for what we think would make wonderful tokens of your affection.

If you really want to delight someone, you can’t go wrong with a scarf from Sophie Digard, our favorite Parisian textile artist.

Whatever design you select, the work is guaranteed to be dazzling (use the “zoom” feature at the Ped site to appreciate the intricacy of Sophie’s artistry).

Maybe you’re enamored of Mademoiselle Digard but want to give something slightly smaller. Why not one of her wonderful brooches?

So pretty and what a lovely reminder that spring is not too far away!

But, then again, maybe the razzle-dazzle is exactly what you want, in which case, look no further than Jamie Joseph:

Everyone here at Ped HQ—including Terry—adores this Halo Diamond Pendant. What makes it so special is each of the organically shaped silver ovals moves independently, and the diamonds, well, they’re diamonds—need we say more?

If the woman you admire prefers adorning her lobes, we’re also especially fond of these Indian ruby earrings:

They are simply designed yet absolutely drop-dead gorgeous! Jamie’s hand-selected stones are truly out of this world!

Admittedly, jewelry is a rather intimate gift, so if you’re looking for something lovely but a little less emotionally charged, the 49 Square Miles Clingy Wallet may be just the thing:

Practical and luxurious! (Plus, the leather is so soft.)

Speaking of practical, any woman who has a chilly commute or who has to walk across campus when the mercury plunges will thank you profusely for a pair of Rain + Jack wooly arm warmers:

The colors alone will warm her heart.

We’ve also heard toasty toes are the key to winter smiles! Unlike shoes, socks are pretty much one-size-fits-all, and Antipast makes the socks everyone wants because they’re just so darn cute (and warm):

Any chilly day is going to be a lot more fun with pom-poms!

See? No need to worry about measurements or numbers! Everything above is guaranteed to brighten the holidays for your favorite gal!

And if you see something that sings, “my heart’s desire,”  to you—yes, you!— as you browse around Ped’s site, just click the green box that says, “add to favorites.” Then you can e-mail your wish to the people who’d like to make you happy this holiday season!

Admittedly, what follows is not exactly a “tale,” but we felt so happy after reading Frances Hersey’s note that she immediately became our October favorite. We really do think of you Ped fans as our friends—people who are unique and interesting—so it makes our day to find out that affection is mutual. Plus, we love the photo Frances sent, which had everyone at Ped Central smiling. (We do love a cute pooch!) So, without further ado, here’s what Frances wrote that made us blush and feel warm all over:

Oh, my gosh!! I am in love with the shoes and boots that you sent to me. I love them so much, and they are both so special and beautiful. I have the Chie Mihara’s on today, and they are just to die for.

This morning as I was getting ready for work I had the Fiorentini + Baker Emma Boot on, and I could live in those boots. They are incredible, and I truly think they are a work or art.  (Thank you also for the kind note that you sent—it made my day.) I really appreciate you remembering that I wanted to try the boots. They are even more incredible in person. I must have looked at them online a thousand times, and now I have them. I am in heaven.

Thank you for wonderful you and for your wonderful online store. Everything you sell is special and beautiful, and I am so appreciative and grateful that I found you. I also love my scarves and wear them almost everyday. Thank you for helping me look stylish and for being so great to work with. I am so thrilled with my new shoes and boots. Thank you, Dayna.

Frances and her sweet dog, Ruth, looking gorgeous in Sophie Digard scarves and Chie Mihara heels.

You are welcome, Frances!!! Doesn’t she look fantastic? She’s radiant! We like to think wearing Ped will do that for a gal. For being such a sweetheart and sending us such a great picture and lovely note, Frances gets $100 in Ped credit!

Do you have a Tale of the Sole? Tell us—and show us (we LOVE pictures!!!)—what happened to you while wearing a Ped item, and you, too, might be the recipient of $100 in Ped credit. Each month we pick the most sole-ful tale to share on the blog. So, let us know what in the world you’ve been doing in your Ped!

As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, everyone at Ped HQ shares nostalgia for that back-to-school excitement that used to fill us with a mix of nerves, sadness that summer was over, and elation at seeing our friends again. Those of you who are who involved in education—whether you’re a grad student, prof, or administrator—still get the thrill of the fall transition, while the rest of us simply live vicariously. To help recreate that zesty, anything-could-happen-this-year feeling, we’ve put together a cool-for-school list that also works outside the ivory tower. Take notes!

1) Book bag.

Let’s face it, 49 Square Miles’ Bookworm Slim Tote is in a class of its own. It’s roomy enough to accommodate files, notebooks, and even a small laptop, but it’s not so large that you’ll end up with a back problem from hauling too much across campus or to the office (allow us be your guidance counselor on this one). And the color! If you’re feeling sleepy in your seminar, just look at this beauty for a wake-up call.

2) Go-with-everything shoes.

When you need a shoe that you can wear day in and day out, whether you’re dolled up in a cute skirt or going casual in your sweetheart’s jeans, look no further than the Cydwoq Dance. This super easy flat is schooled in style, yet it’s comfortable enough to race through a mad dash when you’re running late for class or a meeting (and a bit of rubber on the leather sole will keep you on your feet).

3) BGOC (Big Gal on Campus) Boots.

Of course, your classmates and/or colleagues admire your smarts, but it doesn’t hurt to let them ooh and aaah over your style, too. Brains and beauty, yeah, that’s right, you’ve got it ALL going on—a point you can make clearly by skipping from class to meetings to lunch in Cydwoq’s Native Boots. These knockout lace-ups are at once classic and modern and will just get better the more you wear them. Turn those heads!

4) Chilly days scarf.

Fall weather is unpredictable. Warm days turn chilly and vice versa. Let the mercury rise and fall—when you’ve got a soft and cozy wool scarf from Sophie Digard, you’re all set for whatever the day brings. Hand-crocheted and Parisian chic, a Sophie scarf is the way to look beautiful and stay toasty! We especially love her Check Square design (although it’s so hard to choose—tomorrow we may have a new favorite)!

With these items in your wardrobe, you’ll be a walking lesson in style!

There’s nothing better than getting dolled up and having someone notice! So, we are always thrilled when independent bloggers find Ped items worth showcasing. After all, these gals (mostly) know a thing or two about design and put us in such good company! So, we want to thank them for their kind attention.

• Blue Moss Design’s Michelle Taylor publishes the loveliest blog, bluemossgirls.blogspot.com, about things she finds inspiring. A wonderful jeweler who repurposes baubles from the past, she makes our day when she shines her light on Ped.
• The anonymous blogger at I Spuddle, who authors books when not blogging, puts up five thematic things  every Friday. We were delighted to discover Ped’s Chie Miharas made her shoe list in June!
• We are absolutely crazy about Nanashi’s taste at if-i-owned-a-boutique.blogspot.com, so we loved it when she got the last pair of Ped’s Giraudon’s Bristol oxfords and then posted pics of how cute they looked on her feet. Sweet!
• Havilah Savage is a Portland designer who blogs about things she finds inspiring at darlingsavage.blogspot.com. What a treat that she found a spark in Ped’s Argila sandals!
• Down under in Melbourne, Australia, MissyP blogs about design in general and textiles in particular at So Sew Poppy, where she recently gave a shout-out to our favorite goddess of crochet, Sophie Digard!
• Finally, Mrs. French, the wonderful photographer who blogs at Bliss, always makes us sigh with her dreamy posts about things we covet and places we’d like to visit. When she notices us, well, it’s bliss.