Guest Editor: Melissa from Mighty Junior

Melissa Summers is the editor of Mighty Junior, a shopping site for kids, and editor of Mighty Haus a design and shopping site for people who like to nest. She’s also a columnist for AlphaMom. Her personal website, Suburban Bliss, attracts thousands of readers each day. Summers is a sought-after expert on blogging, who has been interviewed by the Today Show, the New York Times, and the Detroit News, among others. She lives in Detroit with her husband and two children.

| Posted: 23 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

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• Set of Six Succulents

  

  I’ve got kids and cats that need my attention. My plants have to fend for themselves.

  $85 at 1-800-Flowers | Buy

  

  | Posted 22 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Vintage Perpetual Calendars

  

  I know your computer has a calendar, but that one doesn’t make you feel like a private detective.

  $129 at Pedlars | Buy

  (Price converted from British pounds.)

  

  | Posted 22 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Method All Purpose Cleanser

  

  Since we moved into our new home I’ve developed an obsession with making the counter tops shiny. This works great, smells like cucumbers, and isn’t slowly poisoning my family.

  $28 at Amazon | Buy

  (For a pack of eight.)

  

  | Posted 21 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• “there is nothing wrong with you” Print

  

  You could spend a couple years in therapy instead, but this is a cheaper reminder.

  $25 at The Suspect Shoppe | Buy

  

  | Posted 21 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• York Glasses

  

  Once, while working at Crate and Barrel, I broke about 500 hand-blown glasses from Poland. That incident has prompted me to stick with sturdier machine-made glassware in my home.

  I don’t fear letting the kids use these glasses, but the heavy base and clear glass still makes it an attractive cocktail glass at parties.

  And when one breaks, as it inevitably does, it’s inexpensive to replace one. Or 500.

  $3 at Crate and Barrel | Buy

  

  | Posted 20 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Pyhtovolume Shampoo

  

  There was this one year when I was supposed to spend $100 a month on household goods. I used coupons for as much as I could and scraped together enough so I could buy this expensive shampoo guilt free.

  I have ridiculously baby-fine hair and this shampoo bulks it up. It also makes me smell delicious.

  $24 at Nordstrom | Buy

  

  | Posted 18 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Vintage Bingo Roller

  

  I found one of these at a local thrift store and was inexplicably drawn to it. Mine came with the little bingo balls in it, and I put it on a bookcase because I like it as an object. You could also use it to hang earrings, store scarves or belts, or create a whole new drinking game.

  $75 at White Elephant Vintage | Buy

  

  | Posted 18 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Clarins Extra Firming Contour Serum

  

  Some people inherit money from their parents. I got the family eye pouches.

  $57 at Sephora | Buy

  

  | Posted 17 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Outdoor Solar String Lights

  

  We like having strings of lights over our patio for ambiance, but making sure there’s a plug for them is always a heavy middle-class challenge.

  These lights can go anywhere, because they use the sun during the day to recharge. Now I can get back to worrying about the weeds in my lawn.

  $79 at LL Bean | Buy

  

  | Posted 17 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Mirielle Vessels

  

  If you had nothing else in your house, and just put these in the middle of your living room floor, people would still ooh and ahh over your keen decorating sense.

  $175 at Modern Dose | Buy

  

  | Posted 16 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Pre Fab Chocolate Party

  

  This kit comes with everything you need to throw a simple chocolate party: two balloon sculptures, coordinating fabric banner, graphics for invites, paper boxes for displaying chocolates, and a handpicked list of unique chocolates to stock the party.

  So much better than a wine tasting.

  $135 at Food+Flower+Style | Buy

  

  | Posted 16 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers

• Lapsac

  

  This bag has a padded pocket to hold your laptop. My laptop is so small it could hold two of them easily.

  It has plenty of room for me to lug all my things while traveling or working at the coffee shop without a second purse necessary.

  I love that it doesn’t look like a laptop case screaming, “Please! Steal! Me!”

  $62 at Nanda | Buy

  

  | Posted 16 Jul, 2008 by Melissa Summers