In a little brick building nestled near the beautiful Cathedral Hill in downtown Saint Paul, beekeeping chocolatier, Mademoiselle Miel designs her honey-sweetened confections. This past Monday, I visited her studio. The room smelled like warm cocoa and the decor mimicked the elegant designs found on her chocolate boxes. I was greeted by an assistant of Mademoiselle Miel, Abby, who was working on creating a batch of new chocolates. The holiday season is a busy time of year for Susan Brown, a.k.a.

It was one of those, “Why didn’t I do this sooner?” moments.

I slid the tall metal shelves located in the back of the WAM Shop back and forth, exploring a wide variety of artwork. The art rental program allows University of Minnesota students, employees, and departments to pick out, rent, and hang original framed pieces in their homes and offices. Students pay only $15 per piece per semester.

When the weather gets colder and the semester becomes more hectic, I always find it challenging to relax and get into the holiday spirit. This week, I attempted to distract myself from the multitude of stressors in my life by taking a few moments to stroll through the WAM shop after class. I figured that it was never too early to start thinking about holiday shopping. Since I am a horrible procrastinator, I tend to put off holiday shopping until the last minute, and therefore equate  the experience of purchasing of holiday gifts to a walk through pure hellfire.

WAM Collective has created a thoughtful gift guide inspired by our own favorite items in the WAM shop, and the friends or family we buy gifts for every year. Relationships don't always fit into categories like "dad," "girlfriend," "husband," or "daughter," and gift giving is more fun when you consider the true character of your loved ones.