Cut down on holiday stress this year by setting up a station for gift wrapping and holiday mailing. Last year was the first year in my life I didn't wrap a single present the week of Christmas, let alone on Christmas Eve, and I chalk that up entirely to having a gift wrapping station. Over at the holiday-loving blog Organized Christmas they have a guide to setting up a wrapping and mailing centre in your home whether you have an entire room to dedicate to it or a temporary space on half a kitchen table. Many of the tips centre on temporarily repurposing household objects for double duty as wrapping aides:

Long, low molded plastic boxes with storage for bows and gift cards slide easily under beds or on a linen closet shelf. An over-the-door shoe bag will keep scissors, bows, tags and ribbons visible as you work.

Even if you live in a studio apartment, it's still possible to convert a bed into a temporary gift wrapping station by placing a heavy sheet of cardboard on the bed to protect it from your fast and furious wrapping paper cutting. Photo by Compromised Exposure.

With Halloween just around the corner, DIY web site Instructables details how to build a killer costume with this living severed hand. All you need is some heavy gloves, a few household items, and a desire to impress on the 31st.

The Wired How-To Wiki provides the know-how for anyone who has taken great shots of landscapes, landmarks or other scenes, only to find that some random dude has stumbled into your frame. The wiki covers the steps needed in Photoshop (or free alternatives like the GIMP) to manually remove and replace a person, while also suggesting you grab multiple shots at the scene if there's just no escaping a waving arm or insistent gawker. No patience for lassos, layers and the like? Try the free, previously mentioned webapp Tourist Remover.

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Honing your outdoor culinary skills is a lot more simple than it seems, given the right tools, a little preparation, and a few tips on technique. Take a look at some pointers on getting the right gear, turning out great meals, and even preparing for uncooperative weather, after the jump. Photo by Another Pint Please....

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Sure we like our chocolate bunny ears, but around these parts the best easter eggs aren't painted pink and stuffed with jelly beans—they're the undocumented and unexpected fun features hidden deep inside various software apps. While new software Easter eggs don't come around often, there's still a basket full of classics we love. After the jump, get roundup of our favourite software Easter eggs.

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What, you gave up on ever finding an e-card web site that isn't totally cheesy and/or riddled with Flash ads and annoying jingles? Cheeky e-card site SomeEcards may change your mind. There you'll find gems that read things like "Carpe diem before the glaciers drown us" and my two Easter favourites, "Please join us for Easter dinner unless you've already committed to Satan" and "Adorable candy will help distract us from the astounding horror of a man being nailed to a cross." Not all of them are this good, but the few that are make it worth the visit.

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Forgot to wear green today, little leprechaun? Dress up your computer desktop instead with a few St. Patrick's Day screensavers and games.

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With Easter and spring breaks coming up fast, many families are looking ahead to travel plans, whether heading to warmer weather, to the house the Walt built, or just to visit relatives across the country. Whether you've already experienced the challenge of getting kids onto and off of a plane or are new to that kind of fun, the Dumb Little Man blog has lots of advice on making everything run a bit smoother. One must-do I had no clue about, for example:

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Just in time for Valentine's Day, the New York Times examines the common "date night" tradition, highlighting studies that suggest making date night unfamiliar and exciting rather than the standard dinner-and-a-movie can do wonders for a stale relationship. For example:

One group was instructed to spend 90 minutes a week doing pleasant and familiar activities, like dining out or going to a movie. Couples in another group were instructed to spend 90 minutes a week on "exciting" activities that appealed to both husband and wife. Those couples did things they didn't typically do -- attending concerts or plays, skiing, hiking and dancing. The third group was not assigned any particular activity.

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Want to go beyond construction paper, glue, and scissors this year? Do-it-yourselfer Ian Lesnet wired up a pulsating LED Valentine's day heart that's touch activated. Check out the video to see it in action, and download the plan details over at his web site. (Also hit the the via link for more great DIY Valentines for geeks from Make.)