We love the Maison Gerard, a chic little gallery in Greenwich Village that specializes in very fine 20th-century French furniture (Jaques Adnet, LeLeu, Jean-Michel Frank, etc.), as well as work by contemporary artists, craftsmen and designers. The Maison’s current exhibit features a selection of alabaster, wood and steel “luminous sculptures” by Stephen Downes, a New York City native who attended the School of Visual Arts and studied under master stone carver René Lavaggi. Stephen’s pieces (like the Moon Sconce, shown above) are all recent creations, but they evoke another era and suggest an interesting combination of American and European sensibilities. They’re also rare works of art that function as lighting, which we find particularly chic.

Ghosts, ghouls and goblins aside, Halloween can be chic–especially with the help of a makeup wizard like Monika Crouch. This talented young woman turned a hobby–and obsession–into a full-time job, rendering beautiful faces even more so (she specializes in brow shaping and eyelash extensions at Manhattan’s Pierre Michel salon). Monika also works regularly with private clients–and, like a fashion-savvy fairy godmother, appears wherever she’s needed with powder brush and mascara wand in hand. For Halloween, she can transform you, giving you eyes of fire, perhaps, or the death’s-head look of a chalky skull. We, of course, wanted something glamorous: a “mask” of makeup that’s comfortable and chic. The result, shown above, is spectacular.

It’s the hardest job in the world, being a mother: every day of the year should be Mother’s Day. But the calendar’s one “official” holiday–meant to honor the women who raised us–is coming up (May 8), so, thinking as a daughter, and a mother myself, I put together this list of unexpected gifts. I’d love to give my mother any of these things–and I’d be thrilled to receive one myself.

I was inspired to go glam–big time–for my holiday gift guide this year. While thinking about what to buy everyone, I (naturally) considered what I would love–and, usually, what I love is what my family and friends would like, too. With this in mind, I made a short list of items for her (that’s me) and him (my husband). And while my list is short, everything on it is exclusive, special and totally chic. Christmas comes but once a year, so why not go for the crème de la crème? I hope Santa is good to you!