Hate hotel bedding? Us, too. The lightweight (less than 8 ounces) DreamSack wraps you in comfortable, breathable, 100-percent silk. You can use it as a luxurious sleeping bag liner or spread it out on top of those scratchy hotel sheets and get a good night’s sleep. The extra-roomy version pictured here costs $75 and comes in a variety of colors online at DreamSack.com.

Sponsored post:

Rugs are usually such utilitarian things, uninspiring squares of textured taupe or plush wall-to-wall carpet. Not these. The Rug Designer’s Studio (RDS) offers gorgeous, handmade rugs that are truly works of art. Their hand-knotted striped carpets are fun and funky — they’re a great choice for kids’ rooms since they’re made with all-natural fibers like wool and silk. And their luxurious hand-tufted area rugs (seen here) are so beautiful you may want to hang them on your walls and admire them instead of walking on them.

The carpets are made to order and highly customizable; you can work directly with RDS’s Founder and Director of Design, Deborah Hernandez, to create one in exactly the pattern and colors that best compliment your home.

Prices vary depending on size, design, and materials; contact The Rug Designer’s Studio (telephone 781-288-6165, or email info@rugdesignersstudio.com) more information.

Have you created a product that’s perfect for working moms? Please email victoria@workitmom.com for rates and details about Sponsored Posts.

The Snack Trap by Made for Mom keeps cookies contained, even if your child drops the cup. Extra lids are available, including ones that turn the Snack Trap into a sippy cup. The basic Snack Trap costs about $5 at Babies ‘‘R’’ Us and Toys ‘‘R’’ Us stores and online at snacktrap.com.

I get frustrated reading magazine articles that tell me to take long baths to relax after a stressful day. Who has time for that? So I am constantly looking for shortcuts that make me feel like I’ve just had a min-spa hour, but in five minutes.

I read once that the smell of lavender helps to reduce stress and when I smelled the Pacifica French Lavender Candle, I realized that stress-reduction can smell really great. I have a few in my bathroom and I light them when I brush my teeth and get ready for bed. Not the same as a bath, but it does make those few minutes a bit more relaxing. I call it aromatherapy for the overworked mom.

From $7-14, pacificacandles.com .

One of my favorite trends this season is the breezy scarf, worn with anything.

Standing in line for my vanilla soy latte yesterday morning, I noticed the barista wearing cute shorts, a long, flattering tank top, and a blue-and-white funky scarf knotted casually around her neck. It wasn’t for warmth, it was for style, and it was doing a mighty fine job.

I’ve purchased two scarves for summer, one light linen kiwi lime number, and another grapefruit pink. The green I’ve worn with a silvery wrap sundress, and now I have my eye on a third hot number….and it’s for a good cause!

Safe Horizon, a leading victim assistance organization, is launching an initiative to raise awareness about child abuse and programs that can assist, called Hope Shining. Part of the initiative is the sale of this scarf, designed by Secrets of Charm, funky designers of celeb-worn vintage clothes.

100% of the proceeds of the sale of the scarf go to the Hope Shining campaign to help abused kids. I can think of no better reason to buy scarf-presents for everyone I know.

(Bonus: orange is super hot this summer!)

Today’s guest post is from our partner, MomFinds.com: Hip Finds for Moms and Kids.

Love the look of European shoes but don’t want to break the piggy bank? Then run, don’t walk, over to Vincent Shoes and stock up and save up to 75% off on select styles. Their popular Flagga shoe is half off for just $14.95, leaving you enough spending money to grab a Union Jack shoe along with the U.S. shoe (mix and match to make a statement). They also have some very cute sandals for little girls with pretty flower cutouts for only $9.95—cheap!

We recommend looking through the entire site and shopping early for the next school year. The rain boots are funky and kids can never have enough sneakers.

www.vincentshoestore.us

Control clutter and decorate at the same time? We’re so there. These display boxes let you turn your favorite small objects into objets d’art. They come in several different sizes and colors and cost $39.95 to $59.95 each via the Plow & Hearth catalog (800-494-7944) and online at Plowhearth.com.

There’s few things more embarrassing than standing in a boardroom in pin stripes, about to give an important and polished presentation to senior buyers and realizing your laptop is covered with small fingerprints. And smeared lines. And possibly — is that iced tea? Or coffee? Or perhaps a bit of stray peach clinging to the ‘g’ key?

It’s not that I don’t clean my laptop, I’ve just never found a really effective cleaner. Most I’ve tried have left my laptop with subtle, translucent streaks that weren’t much prettier than the toddler-provoked streaks.

This weekend, though, I picked up a package of iKlear. It’s packaging says its especially made for Apple gear (I mostly use a Mac) - but I road-tested it on my old PC and it works great on that computer, also. The stuff comes with a soft cloth and a spray bottle, but it also comes with a bunch of for-the-road packages, so you can just stuff them into your laptop bag before a business trip, and dust off your screen before a big presentation. Crystal, shiny perfection. Not sure what they put in their cloths that the competitors don’t have, but it’s golden, and blessedly streak-free.

You know when you’re having one of those days when you want to be left alone and all your colleagues want to do is ask if everything is OK? Well, I’ve had many of those days and I’ve thought about putting a sign on my desk saying something like BAD DAY. PLEASE LEAVE.

With these Kimochi Emotion Dolls I can do this in style. Each one comes with 9 emotions written on small felt circles: Happy, sad, hurt, mad, proud, etc. So instead of putting a sign on my desk I can display one of these funky little dolls with my day’s emotion in its mouth. Much more creative, don’t you think?

Each doll with 9 emotions runs $55, so this barely fits our “affordable luxuries” criteria, but I can’t resist. You can find them at uncommongoods.com.

TruFresh is the first frozen shrimp product we’ve tried that actually tastes as good as fresh, and if you’re thinking, “Ridiculous! Why bother when I can make it easily at home?” all we have to say is: lunch at work. The 6-ounce package contains two servings of tender shrimp slathered in a kicky salsa-verde sauce or a classic lemon-herb marinade; all you have to do is pack a side of pasta or rice, microwave it for a couple of minutes, and lunch is served. $5 per package at many supermarkets and online at Trufresh.com.