Welcome to 2012! It’s that time of year where we get to start fresh, make new goals and look forward to all that the new year has to offer. It’s a great time to get organized and what better way than with a pretty calendar? While some prefer to keep track of everything digitally, I love having an actual printed calendar on my bulletin board. I design a full-page calendar each year for my readers to download and I’m sharing it today with our HGTV readers, as well.

Download printable calendar

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My, my.  You’ve all been busy! We asked what you were baking and making this season, and you gave us hundreds of great ideas,   from HappyGecko’s cranberry-jalapeno salsa (yum!) to Maryann’s traditional family-recipe German pepper cookies. Reader Sara P. is taking homemade a step further by making mead this year with honey from her very own beehives.

Now, a treat for five of you: We’ve picked the random winners of the custom-made Premium Collection Food Processor from Magimix by Robot Coupe. Ready?

This month’s winners are Amanda A., Melissa, Michelle D., Tara and Linda. Each random winner will have two weeks from today to respond to our messages, and choose their favorite shade from Magimix’s nine trendy hues: white, ivory, black, red, orange, citrus, blue, fuschia pink or chrome.  Then, the processors will be custom-made and shipped with all the available accessories.

Congratulations to our winners, and happy baking, everyone!

My kitchen gets quite the workout every December, since I spend most of my free time whipping up homemade gifts, crafting the perfect appetizer for that holiday party and baking entirely too many Christmas cookies.

If your kitchen is anywhere near as tired as mine by December 31, you’ll love this month’s giveaway. In celebration of the 40th anniversary of Magimix and the first food processor, we’re giving away 5 Premium Collection Food Processors from Magimix by Robot Coupe — perfect for everything from doughs to dips.

This new special edition is not yet for sale in the United States, and comes with all available accessories and kits, including a citrus press, juice extractor, mash and puree kit, dough bowl and more. Best of all, the 5 lucky winners will get to choose their favorite from 9 bright, cheery colors.

Leave a comment to be entered for a chance to win! This week’s question: What homemade gifts are you cooking up this holiday season?

You may only comment once to be considered, and you don’t have to purchase anything to win; a purchase will not increase your chances of winning. Odds depend on total number of entries. Void where prohibited by law. Only open to legal residents of 50 U.S., D.C. or Puerto Rico, and you must be at least 18 years of age to win. All entries (comments) must be entered between 9:00 a.m. ET on December 2, 2011 and 12:00 p.m. ET on December 5, 2011. Subject to full official rules. By leaving a comment on the blog, you acknowledge your acceptance to the Official Rules. ARV of each prize: $650.00. Sponsor: Scripps Networks, LLC, d/b/a HGTV, 9721 Sherrill Boulevard, Knoxville, TN 37932.

For last Friday’s freebie giveaway, we asked you what holiday music you’d blast on your brand-spanking-new, wireless home music set from Sonos. You got in the holiday spirit, shouting out everything from classics like “The Christmas Song” by Nat King Cole and “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby to more recent favorites like Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas”  and “Joseph, Better You Than Me” by The Killers.

Now that you’re in the holiday mood (I may just start my Christmas playlist a little early this year), I’ll reveal this week’s lucky winner. Congratulations to Stacie M., who prefers Nat King Cole and Gene Autry when December roll around. Stacie has two weeks to respond before we choose another random winner.

Just in time for the holidays, this week’s winner will get everything they need to fill their home with the sounds of the season — or drown out the in-laws. We’re giving away a complete Sonos wireless home music system, which combines three integrated speakers powered by three digital amps into one streamlined, rich-sounding stereo. Use it vertically or horizontally; tucked onto a shelf or front-and-center. We’re also throwing in a wireless bridge, so you can stream music into any room. Control it all with a free app for your iPad, iPhone or Android. Not tech-savvy? Give it to that geek in your life and prepare to be bear hugged.

To be entered for a chance to win this Sonos PLAY:3 music player and bridge set, simply leave us a comment in the field below before 12/11c on Monday, November 7. The winner gets to pick the color: black or white.

This week’s question: What’s your all-time favorite holiday tune? Are you a traditionalist who loves the smooth notes of Bing Crosby and Vince Guaraldi, or do you rock out to Chuck Berry and The Ramones? Tell us in the comments below.

Note: Going forward, Freebie Fridays will be monthly rather than weekly. Come back the first Friday of every month for even more fabulous giveaways!

Click for official rules.

For last Friday’s freebie giveaway, we asked you to tell us your best holiday entertaining ideas to be entered for a random chance to win this chic faux-shagreen tray from SkateModerne.  You had some great tips — here are some of our favorites.

Delegate, Delegate, Delegate
Most friends don’t mind helping out a little, especially if they’re among the first to arrive. “I like to have a friend or family member in charge of welcoming people when they arrive, helping them with their coats, purses, food set up and getting them settled in with a drink…even leading them to mix and mingle if necessary,” says Jan T.  Or ask guests to bring a homemade dish, like reader cnpeyton does.

Get Together Ahead of Time
December too busy? Celebrate with friends in the summer, like two of our commenters do. “Since the holidays are so busy with family, we have a garden party in August with decorations and Christmas carols and many courses of food under a tent in my friend’s lovely yard. It’s less stressful for everyone, and there’s better weather,” says Andrea.  And Sylvie R. looks forward to her Christmas in July party every year: “We all dress up in thick, tacky sweaters, reindeer headbands, etc., and enjoy making gingerbread, peppermint schapps-infused hot cocoa and a white elephant gift exchange. Who says holidays only come once a year?”

Host a Traveling Party
Don’t want to play host all night? Try a progressive party like reader SweetLiz and her family members: “We go from house to house so we can see each other’s decorated homes and share a drink, snack or dessert. Sometimes we start with a brunch, sometimes with a late lunch. We try to do this a week before Christmas.”

Don’t Forget the Details
Little touches will put your party over the top — like simple homemade appetizers instead of store-bought or fresh greenery from the yard. And Felipe33 reminds us that “a must for entertaining is a clean and fresh-smelling half bath. This can be a deal breaker.”

Relax and Have Fun
So, you didn’t have a chance to make letterpress place cards or get out your fondue set. It’s okay! Once the party starts, go with what you’ve got and don’t sweat the unfinished details.  As wise reader Pat D says, “If you are enjoying yourself, most likely your guests will too.”  And as this week’s random winner, vintageviolet, reminds us, “Holidays are for spending time with friends and family, so don’t get so stressed that you forget that part!”

Congratulations to this week’s winner! She will have 2 weeks to respond to our emails before we pick another random winner.

We’re roughly one month from December, the annual can’t-eat-another-cookie, party-every-weekend month. No matter what holiday you celebrate, this is a month jam-packed with open houses, cocktail parties and cookie exchanges. Be ready for anything — even drop-by guests — with today’s Freebie Friday giveaway,  the SkateModerne Teal Logo Tray.

SkateModerne makes couture furniture and trays in any size or pattern, but the one we’re giving away is 12 3/4″ x 12 3/4″ x 1 1/2″ and made of teal faux shagreen. (It’s both chic and environmentally friendly.) Load it up with an ombre decander filled with your favorite spirits, cocktail glasses and a few bar snacks for an instant (and portable) party.  Or, use the tray as part of an of-the-moment teal-themed party.

To be entered for a chance to win this chic tray, simply leave us a comment in the field below before 12/11c on Monday, October 31.

This week’s question: What’s your best holiday entertaining tip? Do you have a go-to cocktail? A theme party that people look forward to all year? A super-simple homemade favor? Tell us in the comments below.

Click for the official rules.

For last Friday’s freebie giveaway, we asked you to tell us about your most memorable Thanksgiving — good or bad. You had some amazing tales of Thanksgiving folly, from a yellow lab that gobbled up the main course (glazed ham) to ellenh’s unsuccessful quest to find a turkey overseas.

I loved this tale from crash_the_dog: The first time that that my wife and I hosted Thanksgiving for our combined families, we were faced with the dilemma of how to keep the respective patriarch’s ego in check. Our solution was to divvy up a couple of the “head of household” tasks such as carving the turkey and making the gravy. My old man got the gravy responsibility, and he was determined to awe the in-laws. He bought another turkey to cook at his house just so that he could make stock from it, and arrived at our place with a 3-gallon pot full of liquid gold – actually, he almost arrived with it – he tried to bring it up the stairs while also bringing his dog inside. The dog bolted, yanking his arm, and dumping three gallons of all over our stairs. Dad yelled at the dog, gather up his pot (leaving the gravy pool), and retreated to his house to make another batch. Dinner was late, but the gravy was well worth it.

But despite the collection of (now) hilarious Thanksgiving mishaps, most of you echoed what Thanksgiving is really about: Enjoying the season’s bounty and your closest friend and family. So, who gets to share four of these Thonet chairs from Bauhaus2YourHouse with their near and dear?

Congratulations to this week’s winner, Kim, who shared this Thanksgiving memory: My favorite Thanksgiving was the one where I had Thanksgiving at my house. I had marinated the pre-cut turkey–yes, I took that baby off the bone all by myself–and griled it on a flatgrill. I did not have to slave over it all day, so I actually got to enjoy my family.

Kim has two weeks to respond to our emails before we pick another random winner.

Guess who’s coming to dinner? Your family and friends, this holiday season, that’s who.  And, for one lucky winner, four of those holiday guests will be sitting on these modern-classic Thonet chairs from Bauhaus2YourHouse. Based on the design from modern classic furniture pioneer Michael Thonet, these streamlined beauties will look just as home alongside a traditional dining set as they do by an Eero Saarinen tulip table.

Chairs like these – with a bentwood frame, a woven cane back and a gingko chocolate faux leather seat — will elevate your Thanksgiving dining room (or heck, any-room) decor, and keep Uncle Bernard from dwelling on a few pesky lumps in the gravy. Okay, maybe not that last part, but they’ll be comfy enough to carry to the living room for some post-meal board games or football-watching, whatever your pleasure. To be entered for a chance to win the set of four Thonet chairs, simply leave us a comment in the field below before 12/11c on Monday, October 24.

This week’s question: What has been your most memorable Thanksgiving (good or bad)? Did you catch the garage on fire with a deep-fryer? Eat Chinese food on the floor of your new house with a few good friends? Make the best cranberry sauce ever? Tell us now.

Click for the official rules.

For the final of four Halloween-themed giveaways from Grandin Road, we wanted to know your best DIY Halloween decorating tip or find out what monster is the scariest and why. Based on your comments, I think the next horror movie should be a showdown between a horde of zombies and Freddy Krueger.

Design Happens fans also shared many helpful and fun decorating tips. I especially liked this one from HeatherM, as she offers a practical use for oscillating and box fans outside of summer: “Fans blowing cobwebs and black drapery fabric is pretty scary…when you can’t see around the corner and something… happens… out of the corner of your eye!”

Perhaps this week’s winner, Jill B., will go with a monsters of a Greek mythology Halloween decorating theme…cyclops, hydra and gorgons like Medusa.

Jill B. has two weeks to reply to our messages before we pick another random winner.