We Covet | Better Living Through Consumerism

We Covet Dark Games

You are so goth and or emo your playing cards are black.  These scary cards would make it really difficult for your opponents to see your hand and you could keep them on the coffee table as a little piece of art.  They should last a while since they are made out of PVC.  Perhaps a game of strip poker with these cards?

Black Deck of Cards, $29.00 @ gnr8.biz

We Covet Smart T-Shirts That Can Be Sexy

Unshelved is a truly hilarious daily comic strip set in a public library with a bizarre (yet not unrealistic) cast of characters. The comic has also produced some of the funniest T-Shirts I have ever come across- Book Club and My Safeword is "OW!" are two of my favorites.

This latest tee has trumped them in both simplicity and ambiguity. It doesn't have to be sexy, but it sure can be! AND it is available in sizes from a Women's Junior Small to a Standard Adult 3X. Everybody reads!

read to me T-Shirt $18.95 @Unshelved.com

One Man's Trash Is Another Man's Treasure We Covet

I love this idea. Danish designer Ornamented Life takes discarded dinnerware that is pocked with cracks and creates tiny works of art from the cracks. The designer fills in the cracks with 24k gold then adds floral enamel transfers. What was once an imperfection is now a work of art. Just as it should be.

Crackery Crockery, $52-$64 @ shophorne.com

We Covet Products That Easily Make for the Most Boring We Covet Reading Ever

Look--I'm not going to pretend that these Rubbermaid drink boxes are any less boring than they sound.  Because what's the point?  But if you're looking for more environmentally friendly ways to pack beverages in your kids' lunches, there's really nothing better than these.  Fill 'em with water, fill 'em with juice; no matter what liquid you fill 'em with, they're not going to leak all over the place (unless you're devil-may-care enough to fill above the fill line, in which case, honestly, the fate of the universe rests on your shoulders).  They're BPA-free, dishwasher- and freezer-safe, and, if we're being generous, a little bit sexy.  Plus, of course, they're infinitely reusable, which means that you can say good-bye forever to those nasty, earth-rotting juice pouches. 

Rubbermaid Litterless Juice Box (8.5 ounce size), $3.49 each at The Container Store

We Covet Our Own Unique Portrait

I want one of these DNA portraits and I think it is an awesome gift for the person who has everything as well as the person who loves everything.  Awesome nerd present especially.  This DNA Mini Portrait measures 8” x 10”.

The process begins with the DNA being collected using an easy to use, non-invasive DNA collection kit. DNA11 will send you everything you need to get started. The sample is then sent to a highly secure, certified laboratory, where the DNA is extracted to create a unique genetic fingerprint, using a technique that takes advantage of the variation that occurs among the DNA sequence of every individual. Each art piece is completely unique and customized.

DNA Mini Portrait, $160.00 @ 2modern.com

We Covet Braaaaaaains

Everyone knows that zombies are the new pirates, and so what could be cooler than having this zombie mobile hanging in your house, twirling around menacingly in the breeze above everyone's heads?

Inspired by countless horror movies, this mobile is part one in the Zombies series and illustrates the ultimate showdown between the living and the undead (complete with the ubiquitous shot of zombies breaking through the locked door!). This is perfect for Halloween or as a gift for the year-round horror junky in the household.

Figures are laser cut from 1/16" solid black mat board and joined with black wire. See photo size reference (quarter for scale). The Six Feet Over mobile is extremely lightweight and stays in motion with even the slightest breeze.

All mobiles are mailed 100% assembled and ready to hang. Free shipping within the US. Not recommended for children.

(I especially love that last bit -- "Not recommened for children." Because you KNOW there are people out there considering this for their nursery. snort.)

Six Feet Over Mobile, $30.00 @ SaltyandSweet

We Covet Cameron Frye's House

I'm pretty sure that anyone who came of age in the 1980s had a John Hughes quota. It was like part of your pop culture dietary requirements, right up there with milk and broccoli. Arguably the best of the Hughes canon was Ferris Bueller's Day Off, the classic tale of a couple of kids who stick it to the authority figures in their lives and do whatever they want, even if it's only for one day.
Ferris' long-suffering friend, Cameron, lived in what Ferris described as a museum: "It's very beautiful and you can't touch anything." So, obviously, the best way to come full-circle would be to buy the house and touch everything. Indeed, Cameron's house is for sale and I want one of you to buy it so I can come visit. Otherwise, I'm just gonna keep calling you and calling you and calling you. Okay, I'll go, I'll go, I'll go.

Cameron Frye House, $2,300,000 @ realtor.com

Piggy Products We Covet

  I am, like some of the We Covet writers, a bacon fan. OK, I'm a bacon fan-atic! But I'm gonna get right down to it now folks (vegetarians and vegans- look away!). I just like pork. It's the Southern roots. I grew up eating pork roasts, chops, sausage, hams, bbq, and other things some of you dare not imagine.

 So when I saw there was a line of t-shirts and an apron with this graphic on it I simply could not resist. I love me some pig. And some piggy products!

Bacon Pig Apron $20.99 @TheWarehouseStore.com

We Covet Bacon. In Most Forms. Not So Much In Others.

Bacon is pretty awesome. As a Canadian, I'm pretty much obliged to say that, but still. It's true. Even when I was a die-hard vegan, I trembled a little at the smell of bacon. BAAACONNNNN.

But bacon lip balm? Is just a little too much like getting all the oily aftergrease of bacon with none of the delicious yum. Which, you know, is kind of like getting all the weight-gain of cake without any of the frosting. Or all of the hangover of liquor with none of the bottle-tossing fun. Or, or...

You get the picture. Thanks but no thanks.

Bacon-Flavored Lip Balm, $3.99 @ J&D's Original Bacon Salt

We Covet Giveaway FAIL, Not.

Wow, so, this isn't supposed to happen. I just realized that a Giveaway Update that I'd thought I'd posted just didn't post at all. It was for a Rick Springfield CD, so it's possible that the universe decided to intervene on grounds of possible crimes against music, but Jesse's Girl was in the 80's, and his decidedly inoffensive lullabies should have, I thought, redeemed him.

Also, Jesse's Girl is awesome, so. But I digress.

The winner of the Rick Springfield's 'This CD Has Nothing With To Do With Jesse's Girl' CD of lullabies goes to Tadpole Drain! Send us your particulars so that we can get that to you!

And from a more recent Giveaway, in case you missed it:  Anne In Canada won Backyard Baseball for Wii! Again, send particulars!

As you were.

We Covet This Bedroom

To the best of my knowledge, you've never been to my bedroom--and if you have, don't even tell me, because I have enough trouble falling asleep already--so you'll just have to trust me when I say that this quilt, in all of its blue-green, expensive glory, would look absolutely amazing in there.  It would look amazing now, between the blue walls that I hate but am too lazy, apparently, to get up and paint, and it would look even better between the sagey green walls that I dream about in my laziness. 

Seriously, I'm coveting this quilt so hard that I think I might have busted my coveting gland.  And what do you do when you bust your coveting gland?  Why, you take a lie-down on a beautiful, rest-inviting quilt . . . a quilt that clearly you desperately need. 

Quintana Roo Bedding, $58.00-$228.00 @ Anthropologie.com

We Covet Redonkulous Things For Our Kitties

Crazy cat lady here.  I have to admit I am more than intrigued by this cat fire engine.  Perhaps having a fire engine to play with will deter one of my kitties from barfing on my rug.  The theory here is that cats like to crawl into small places and hide or nap or jump out at anytime and FREAK YOU OUT!  I can understand it.  Your kid will likely enjoy it as well.

Cat Play Box: Fire Engine,

£22.00 @ stardustkids.co.uk

Ridiculously Cute Slippers We Covet

If it were possible to die from the force of sheer, unadulterated cute, I'm pretty sure I'd have stopped breathing by now. BEHOLD, DEATH BY TWEE!

My daughter got a pair of these comfy bunny slippers a few weeks back, and I'm kind of secretly jealous, to be honest. They're thick and squishy and insanely adorable. And, well, just a little bit on the goofy side, I guess. But that's the point, right? After all, what's funnier than a six-year-old shuffling about with bunny heads on her feet? Yep, NOT MUCH.

These high quality slippers feature wireframe adjustable ears, cotton ball tail, and a soft, plush and fluffy fabric. Our fuzzy pink slippers are also open-backed like the classic ones and offer additional care for cold, tired feet with their microwavable insoles that give off a soothing scent of lavender when heated. 

I mean, if you're going to go so far as to wear slippers fer crissakes, you really should go with the classics, right? SO SAYS I.

Classic Bunny Slippers for Men, Women and Kids, 24.95-29.95 @ bunnyslippers.com

Surreal Jewelry We Covet

This necklace reminds me of one of the tattoos you'd see on Kat Von D's arm, or maybe it somehow popped out of the cartoon part of the "Take On Me" video... To me that this piece is above being compartmentalized as "tattoo art"-  which is by itself awesome!

I mean, who wouldn't think this was gorgeous? Or at least striking? Definitely surreal. This necklace would complete any outfit from a little black dress to cut-offs and a tank top.

"Big vintage black and white surreal tattoo rose necklace" by WickedMinky, $21 @etsy.com

We Covet The Salty With The Sweet

I did not know salt could be this fancy, eco-friendly, or sustainable. Why is this HimalaSalt cube so cool? You grate the salt into a super fine powder akin to powdered sugar, and create a fine dusting over all sorts of dishes, including and even desserts.

"The flavor of the salt really blossoms when you grate it, you get to taste the sweet, salty, all the subtle nuances of the essential trace elements... this is what salt is supposed to taste like... no tongue burning here."

• Kosher Passover Certified

• Made by 100% wind and solar energy)

• All Natural, Unrefined, No Additives

• Hand-Harvested from a Protected Source

• Contains whole essential trace elements

• Pristine, unlike sea salt from today's polluted oceans

• 5% of the profits go to the environment!

It is really pretty and would be a great gift to yourself or any foodie or aspiring gourmand. 

Artisan Carved HimalaSalt Zen Cube with Italian Stainless Grater, $16.00 @ sustainablesourcing.com