This post is sponsored by Nordstrom. Shop the Anniversary Sale: Next Season on Sale Now. Prices go up August 1.

When prompted to go shop the Nordstrom’s sale for this ad campaign and share what tempted us ~ it definitely sounded fun and silly enough. After all, we’re perusing Nordstrom often anyhow ~ and you can check out the catalog online… while they do sponsor this post, they picks are all stuff we’re liking and shopping anyhow… i seem to be on a boot hunt tonight ~ from thigh high boots to wedged wellies to strappy biker flat boots… take a peek at what’s grabbed my eye on the next page…

p.s. thanks to all the fun readers who have been sharing what they’ve already bought/lusted after from the sale while i was trying to figure out what else to want while on twitter/facebook.

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This post is sponsored (and written) by Visa! Thanks, Visa, for your support of NOTCOT!

A picture’s worth a thousand words, right? Or more? And at 30fps, video must be worth millions! Now geolocate those photos and video … and they’ll be worth trillions! Vacation photos and videos are dreamy escapes you have for the rest of your life… as for how you share them, options keep expanding and the latest is the Memory Mapper application at the Facebook.com/Visa. Merging your photos and videos with Google Maps satellite technology (think of that fun flying feeling you get playing with Google Earth as you zoom in and out from one place to the next!) all set to music, essentially creating a whole visual experience to share with your friends!

How it works: Upload your photos and videos, enter personalized captions and the addresses of where the action took place then choose a soundtrack. Memory Mapper will merge Google Maps satellite technology with your content to create a multimedia travelogue. You can even post your creation on your friends’ walls, tweet to your followers or email to friends and family to make sure they don’t miss it. Besides sharing memories with this app, when Visa cardholders use their cards from now through October 31, they will be automatically entered for a chance to win $100,000 to plan their ultimate trip of a lifetime.

Head to Visa’s Memory Mapper at http://www.facebook.com/visa to turn your travel tales into stories of legends.

NO PURCHASE OR OBLIGATION NECESSARY TO ENTER OR WIN THE VISA 2011 TRIP OF A LIFETIME SWEEPSTAKES. Open to legal U.S. residents, 18 years or older as of 4/27/11. PIN-based and ATM transactions are not eligible. Void in Puerto Rico and where prohibited. Sweepstakes ends 10/31/11. For complete details on non-purchase entries, http://on.fb.me/jBn2PD.

This post is a NOTCOT Exclusive sponsored by Honda as part of their Super Civic Quest running across the internet. Odds are you either found this post like a normal NOTCOTer or found your way here through the Super Civic Quest!

You found it! The hipster lumberjack and his squirrel, the ninja asian girl, the luchador, the monster, and the zombie! What do they all have in common? 2012 Honda Civics - one customized for each of them! How fun is the idea that amongst all kinds of crazy new features, your car can be a super digital photo frame? Yes, you can actually set wallpapers on your car dash with the i-MID system (available on the EX model with navigation) - so instantly flip over from checking your mileage range, making phone calls, exploring your mp3 player… back to any picture of your choice! And Honda’s given us an exclusive set of wallpapers with their latest characters as part of this secret quest spread throughout the internet… Their videos crack me up too! So check out the videos and wallpapers… and maybe the clue to your next destination… on the next page! Happy hunting!

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Thanks to American Express OPEN for sponsoring this post as part of the Big Break for Small Business program. Visit FaceBook.com to learn more about the Big Break contest. Enter your small business for a chance to win a trip to Facebook headquarters for a one-on-one business makeover and $20,000 to grow your business with social media. See Official Rules for complete details.

It’s always strange to stop and think about NOTCOT as a business. Usually shiny objects, exciting inspiration, things to see and places to go get in the way ~ and my mind spins off towards some awesome distraction. But as a business, particularly as a super visual internet business, there are partners and products i can’t imagine getting here without! The evolution of all things NOTCOT has been so gradual ~ fueled by following passions and spontaneous experiments ~ i don’t know if there’s ONE thing that gave it a “big break” ~ but there are definitely major moments when you feel the shift ~ transitions from one level to the next! So perhaps the moment i had to start admitting NOTCOT was bigger than a fun project and i needed to start thinking about bringing on help was one of the biggest ones! When American Express OPEN reached out to sponsor content around what gave NOTCOT its “Big Break” ~ i couldn’t resist this excuse to share some of them with you, and also shout out a huge THANK YOU to them! So take a peek on the next page at what powers the world of NOTCOT (besides giddy passion and a continual hunt for inspiration)!

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We’re excited to announce being part of a new Wordpress project, PopPressed, featuring daily arts and style coverage from around the web (including NOTCOT!). The collaboration between the blogging platform and our ad folks, Federated Media, promises “the freshest in culture” across photos and features. It’s presented and supported by Lexus’ new CT Hybrid. You can follow PopPressed on Twitter and Facebook and send along your own concepts for coverage.

This is the last of three gift guides for those on the GO! This content series is brought to you by Intel AppUp℠. Find free and paid apps for your lifestyle. Get started.

Gift Guide time! This time ideas for the Kids On The Go ~ unlike the Business Traveler on the Go list and the Jetsetter On The Go list… here’s one for traveling with KIDS! (Particularly the younger ones! So, some fun ideas for newer parents transitioning from jetsetter to jetsetter and a half?) Check out the product picks on the next page!

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This post is a sponsored series that takes a fun peek at the gorgeous details of modern life. The irresistible design details that enhance our lives… Gillette is the sponsor (Thanks, Gillette!)… but, as always, the post and ideas are 100% NOTCOT!

I had no idea a printer could be such a lustworthy design object ~ inside and out! HP sent over one of the new HP Envy100 e-All-in-One, and it’s kind of magical. Firstly, it looks like a sleek black box with some mirrored details, like the dots on the top… but really, it looks like a box, it doesn’t scream printer/scanner/networked object. In fact, at first glance, i didn’t even understand where the paper went IN or came out. Secondly, it comes wrapped in minimal packaging! The final layer being a reusable bag - that is subtly patterned, a pretty nice tote shape, and perfect for groceries. It’s even the world’s first PVC free printer. Thirdly, it is not only wirelessly networked, it can be printed to from ANYWHERE. Via email! Yes, emailing to print… is like faxing minus the phone line?

So those are the three things that blew my mind first. It’s surprisingly stylish and un-printer like… unexpectedly green from unboxing to materials… and they’ve made great use of the wireless connection! Now the last thing i expected to find useful… the APPS. With its 3.45” highres capacitive touchscreen (basically, its like a smart phone built into it)… you can browse and download apps… without touching a computer, someone who’s lost and needs directions home can browse google maps, and print out two sided page of directions. Surprisingly easily. Coloring pages - paper toy designs - recipes… just like that! Even movie tickets… though it does feel weird feeding my credit card number into my PRINTER. You can even play Sudoku on it… i guess good for office while you’re waiting for it to print/scan? But you have to see the pics on the next page… and what’s inside it… as well as FINLEY! My CubeeCraft i couldn’t help making after printing him out to get some action pics for this post. A printer that distracts me with toys to build… devious!

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This is the second of three gift guides for those on the GO! This content series is brought to you by Intel AppUp℠. Find free and paid apps for your lifestyle. Get started.

Gift Guide time! This time ideas for the Jetsetter On The Go ~ unlike the Business Traveler on the Go list, this list is more for that person on an escape! a vacation! a luxurious relaxing getaway… ok fine, this is secretly a wishlist of sorts as well… may 2011 hold the kind of vacations that need the goodies on the next page ;)

Go see the list!

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This is the first of three gift guides for those on the GO! This content series is brought to you by Intel AppUp℠. Find free and paid apps for your lifestyle. Get started.

Traveling constantly and for different reasons result in SO many different packing techniques and needs… well this time we’re looking at Business Travelers. Non stop, constantly hopping on and off phone calls, netbooking on the go, in and out of airport lounges and cars/taxis and hotels… never even knowing what city you’re flying to or departing from… it’s a stressful, fast paced life of madness to say the least! So what would you gift them (or yourself if you are one?) to help ease that crazy? See some of my picks on the next page!

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This sponsored post is brought to you by Windows 7 - text is by Federated Media, silly pic is me… and i couldn’t resist, so i embedded some of the hilarious Windows 7 “To The Cloud” ads i love on the next page just for fun!

Defying the Laws of Physics
Who says you can’t be in more than one place at a time? Sorry, physics - modern technology has defied you and found a way for us to be at home while at work, or at work while at home. No, this isn’t a figment of some multitasker’s imagination. It’s reality for those who get to the cloud with Windows Live.

With Active Desktop, you can access your PC from almost anywhere. The days of lost zip drives and forgotten files are but a distant, bad memory. And, Windows Mesh assures that the files on your PC sync up with all of your devices - from your laptop to your smart phone to your office computer, so that you always have the most recent version of your work in front of you.

Of course, it’s not all about work. You’ll also be able to tap into and share your music collection, photos, and other media. Cloud computing is really about staying connected - not only to your own data, but to others. Whether you start up an HD Chat to share and discuss files, or use one click to share a photo from your awesome concert seats with your social network, you’re connected.

In other words, you’re everywhere.

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Sponsored by DonQ Rum ~ We were recently tapped to help them for a contest called Master of All Skills. The goal? To create playful Liqurious themed quizzes aimed at finding the Masters of Mixology! Complete all the Masters challenges for a chance at the grand prize ~ a trip to the DonQ Rum distillery in Ponce, Puerto Rico, where you’ll learn how they make rum first-hand! Anyhow, all the details are over at the the DonQ Master of All Skills site ~ but first things first, ready for the first of the NOTCOT/Liqurious quiz? Check it out on the next page!

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Here’s the latest post in our Inspiration series! Sponsored by Veer.com ~ we get to have some fun and go image researching across the internet around random themes inspiring us at the moment.. and share what we find! This time i’m all about the red stripey goodness of the season.

I’ve seriously been on a peppermint/candy cane kick since it started getting chilly. On pattern’s that scream HOLIDAYS! to me ~ red and white stripes definitely do it. That and the super delicious limited edition Peppermint Mocha Kahlua that is just divine in hot chocolate on these brisk wintry days (ok fine, so it’s a bit wet and chilly here in LA ~ not snowing or anything)… So when hunting for some visual inspiration, my stomach took me to flickr where i promptly obsessed on smashed candy canes turning into sweet temptations… like peppermint bark! First one to grab me? That awesome pic up there by Erin and Ben… see more tempting inspirations i found on the next page… and even more as i moved on to Veer to see what visual red and white striped goodness i could find (housed in my album here!).

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On fun new sponsorships ~ Starbucks is celebrating their 12 Days of Sharing advent calendar like holiday event on NOTCOT.org with fun hidden surprises popping up each day around the site! Click on them to find out more ~ and see if you spot them all over the next 12 days! Every day will be a little different!

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This post is sponsored by American Express - content is mine, they are enabling me to ramble on small biz today!

Happy almost small business day!!! It’s coming - this saturday! November 27th! Loving the idea of this new “holiday” to celebrate the small business in our lives, especially around the holidays! On small businesses, isn’t it amazing how nearly anyone can be (or is!) a small business? With a dash of internet mixed with amazing platforms and services, from blogs to etsy to kickstarter to kiva to ebay, it has never been easier to pop up a new business… Small Business day is an amazing idea to help nurture those who are starting up businesses, and for the big ones to look back and remember where they came from… after all, you certainly can’t become a BIG business without first starting small…

So, how will we be celebrating? Well, it’s time for our annual NOTCOT Gift Guides and Giveaways to launch! Holidays have always been one of my favorite times to help support the amazing designers and small businesses we celebrate year round on NOTCOT ~ as well a chance to give back to all of you amazing readers! This is the time we invite some of our favorite small businesses/brands to donate giveaways/discounts for readers ~ giving them an extra chance to show off their awesomeness, and provide a mind blowing collection of gifts for you! This year we have 30 amazing giveaways starting later today and unfolding daily throughout the season. Coupled with our gift guides and our page of exclusive coupons ~ we hope you’ll have no problem supporting small businesses for Small Business Saturday with us along with American Express!

American Express is presenting Small Business Saturday, November 27. They’re offering statement credits to people who shop at small businesses, advertising for small-business owners, and donations to Girls Inc. for “Likes” of the Facebook page. Join the celebration by clicking the “Like” button below and visiting the Small Business Saturday page to learn more about the program and read the terms and conditions that apply.

So are you ready? Personally, as a fellow small business, i can’t wait!

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This is a sponsored post from our friends at Currency℠ a service from American Express! A new site focused on helping you make smart decisions when it comes to money ~ and NOTCOT even has a column there showcasing some of our favorite products that are worth every penny!

Finances as a Work of Art? Sort of… Thanks to Unique American Express Site

Navigating your finances these days can be like trying to understand a piece of contemporary art. Although it’s hard to make sense of it at first, it’s really not all that complex once you break it down. The Currency℠ site from American Express helps do just that with resources dedicated to helping young adults simplify their money matters, plan for the future, and take control of their financial lives.

To get a good sense of all the site has to offer, start with the Currency 101 blog that provides an overview of the site’s offerings. The “Spending” section is all about making your money work for you. “Planning & Savings” helps prepare you for your future—managing your finances a year from now, or starting to put money away for retirement. “Big Decisions” helps prepare you financially for life’s milestones. Surf around and score financial strategies on all parts of your life: saving up to get a pet, cheap ideas for going out, how to negotiate your lease, how to handle student loan payments.

Beyond reading the Currency℠ site’s articles and blog posts, users can take advantage of some cool interactive content as well. There’s Currency Coursework, which brings the classroom to you, educating users about personal finance topics with guidance from Knowledge@Wharton at the University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School. Log in and learn—and there won’t be any midterms.

And for iPhone users, the Social Currency app, powered by Foursquare, lets you check in and share your purchasing experiences and deals with your friends, while racking up points and earning badges.

Head to GetCurrency.com, and get socially and sensibly savvy with your money.