If your tired old desktop needs a February facelift, check out the latest selections at Fossil. Tomorrow you can kick off a new month with a fresh look, available here.
My Mum sewed up another of Erin Erickson's Hipster bags, this time in the Dusk colorway of my Sticks fabric. It features orange zippers requested by moi. The strap on the bag is adjustable so you can carry it over your shoulder or across your torso. 
See? All my orange stuff fits in it. Notebook, calendar (yep, I'm old school like that), and my iPad. (P.S. If you need this orange iPad wallpaper, grab it here.)
This baby is going everywhere with me. Thank you, Mum!
How about a Friday quiz? Time magazine will determine whether you're an introvert or extrovert with this quiz. I answered yes to every single question and would have added exclamation points if possible. The quiz rightly suspects I am "likely to be an introvert." And I just learned the word "ambivert," so I'm smarter now, too. It's a good day. Test yourself right here.
A variation of yesterday's striped paper garland—try solid-color hearts folded from origami paper. They even have a pocket in the back to run your string through, so no taping needed. Get the instructions here.
These striped origami hearts are quick and easy to fold—you won't be tempted to say any bad words as you make them. (Unlike with this box or this cat.) Connect the hearts with twine to make a simple Valentine's Day decoration. 
Get the folding instructions here; choose diagram or animation. I used 6" sheets from this awesome pack of 100 different colors of origami paper. Each square will yield two hearts that are about 3 1/2" wide. And a tip: use a little piece of double-stick tape to keep the fronts of the hearts from popping forward. They'll lie flatter this way.
For a party or special dinner, try decorating plain dishes with icing. Designs will be perfectly edible, and if you make a mistake while painting, just lick it off and start over. (Don't tell anyone your tongue made contact with their plate.)
To make this "paint," I mixed 3 tablespoons of powdered sugar, 1 teaspoon of water, and 2 drops of liquid food coloring. Apply with a paintbrush. If needed, run your fingernail around any wiggly edges to smooth them out before they dry. 
After days out of town, I've got a work pile-up and an overflowing inbox. I struggled all day to resist the impulse to lie on the couch and eat cookies. If you, too, need a breather (and something stronger than cookies), try out Drinkify. Type in a musician or band, and you'll get a cocktail recipe to pair it with! (Via It's a Small Web.)
I'm headed to the Altitude Design Summit today, so Grandma G. will have to look after the blog while I'm gone. (For those unaware, she's my mom. And a frequent commenter.) I've noticed that many bloggers are enthusiastic about their Alt wardrobes, and lots of style articles have been popping up. See examples here, here, here, and here. 
Floris of Love vs. Design just sent over a link to a new printable. It's a Valentine's Day card and a set of coupons you can fill out for your sweetie to redeem. Help yourself to the free download here!
An addendum to the list of things to sew in the last post: check out these little macaron coin purses. One hundred percent adorable! I want to eat them up. Get the instructions here from Joanne at Craft Passion. You know her. She's the same genius who provided directions for the self-zipping coin purse.
Check out these bag, pouch, and apron instructions, graciously provided by the people of the internet:
On You Tube I found video instructions for making a cat bookmark designed by Jo Nakashima. So I tried it out. A couple of the steps were tricky, but I managed to prevail! I think this kitty is funny. He looks like he tried to cross the road at the wrong moment. 
While it's still January, you might enjoy this quirky desktop art from illustrators Julianna Brion and Rand Renfrow. The image is part of the Desktop Wallpaper Project at The Fox is Black. Grab it here!
Geometric 3D solids are popping up around the internet lately. Adorn yourself, your home, or your party with gem pendants and paper polyhedra using these smart tutorials:
Here's a Friday time-waster: guess which movie the illustrated object comes from at Famous Objects From Classic Movies. I was horrendous at this game. Maybe you'll have better luck! (Via It's a Small Web).
Check out some more nice font freebies I found at Myfonts.com. Log in and add these to your cart for a complimentary download: Novecento Wide (scroll down the page to find the freebies), Nashville Serial, Abril Fatface, Deftone Stylus, and Wichita Serial. I often grab the free weights (ha, that sounds like I'm at the gym) for use in logo and print projects, and then go back and purchase the heavier or lighter weights as I need them.
I'm a big Jonathan Adler fan. And now I see (via Felt & Wire) that he has designed some toilet paper boxes for Cottonelle. Yours for a mere $1.99 when you buy a specially marked roll of TP. I'm torn between "what the heck would I need that for" and "shoot, they're kind of cool and I could put something else in there." Plus I received this awesomely orange Jonathan Adler turtle tray for Christmas and it might need a friend. (Not that I keep the tray near the toilet, I hasten to add.)
Mr. Adler intends the TP covers to be "mood-enhancing." Wow. So just think how mind-blowing my baño would be if I added toilet paper origami, too. I could go sit in there whenever I felt sad. 
I'm back from vacation and wanted to start off 2012 by thanking you for reading How About Orange. It's so much fun to feel like I belong to a community of nice people. I love your comments, helpful emails, and the spirit of goodwill around here. You guys make me giggle, offer great ideas, and email me tips with cool links all the time. I love it. Not to mention the way your kind comments boost my self confidence. Here are just a few real examples from the past year:
