Website lil Loves

Artist Carter Kustera has gained acclaim for his chic, playful approach to portraiture and has had his work displayed in both Barneys New York and Jonathan Adler stores. His hand-painted silhouettes are labor-intensive works of love that range between $110 and $750 — a worthy investment for some, but not everyone can swing it.

For those of us who love Kustera's style but have a budget of, well, nada, enter Portraits With Carter Kustera. It's a supereasy, three-step process that allows you to print, download, and share your creation. We love the idea of using these as a digital holiday greeting or a fun social-media profile pic.

Enjoy, and share your creations with us on Instagram using hashtag #lilsugar!

One man's trash is another man's treasure — and that goes for tots, too. Most parents learn before the baby is even born just how much stuff one tiny little bundle requires. Between clothes, diapers, toys, and books, that spacious kid-friendly home can quickly become the before picture on an episode of Hoarders, putting a real dent in parents' eco-friendly aspirations. Going totally waste-free with kids may be too overwhelming a commitment for most, but one simple way to cut down on waste and clutter is to opt for the more eco-friendly option of renting. These websites give parents and parents-to-be access to quality goods without a lifetime commitment.

• Baby Clothes: Since its launch last month, Plum has been so inundated with sign-ups, that the online destination for designer baby clothes — for rent — started a wait list for interested parents. With plans starting at just $16 a month for popular baby brands laundered only in eco-friendly Seventh Generation products, parents-to-be will do themselves a favor by signing up right now. Parents looking for more specific short-term clothes rentals will appreciate bebarang, an online rental service for those "special occasion" clothes babies and kids never get to use more than once or twice before the inevitable growth spurt. Unlike Plum, bebarang is a pay-per-use service and parents only keep the clothes for up to four days, which is all you need to get through a Bar Mitzvah, wedding, etc.
• Toys and Books: For the toys that tots lose interest in well before they're worn out, Toys to Trade is a free online service that allows parents to swap last month's castoffs for this month's dream toy. Keep kids interested in reading with the large selection at Booksfree; set up just like Netflix, plans start at $14 a month, and there's no due date.
• Maternity Clothes: Spending a lot of money on maternity is pretty brutal. Mamas-to-be are pretty much guaranteed a maximum shelf life of 40 weeks, and even families planning for a large brood might not want to keep boxes of last year's maternity fashions around, taking up precious storage space (especially important for city dwellers). Renting maternity gear lets stylish mamas stay on top of the current trends without losing sight of their budget. Mine for Nine is the most recent addition to the world of online maternity clothes rentals, with high-end clothes from top maternity designers including Seraphine, Everly Grey, and Maternité.

Earlier this week we found out that 20,000 kids are banned from Facebook every day after trying to sign up for an account. Others, however, lie about their age in order to get access, which can set them up for privacy or safety issues.

If your tot or tween has been begging for the ability to update her status, there are many safe, kid-specific social networks to choose from. These sites follow the regulations of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act, which regulates how much personal information sites can ask from children, among other things. Check out the list of the top social networking sites for kids after the break!

Take a step back in time, while easing your kids into bed! BunnyEars.tv is a collection of animated video shorts from around the world that transport viewers back to the classic age of cartoons. Created by a mom who grew up in Hungary, where cartoons were only shown before bedtime to help lull tots to sleep, the site features traditional European tales that often offer lessons without ever uttering a word. Each Wednesday new videos are uploaded, which then play for a week before being replaced. And unlike YouTube, you don't have to fish around for an appropriate video — they're all child-safe (geared toward the 3 and older crowd) and ready to roll.

Newborns are small, precious bundles of joy, but they're also pretty boring. They don't talk, they don't react to your attempts at humor and they spend most of their days (but not, unfortunately, their nights) sleeping. Before giving birth, few experienced moms tell you just how uneventful the first few months of a lil one's life can be – particularly for women who have left the hustle and bustle of life in the workplace for maternity leave.

Heather Flett and Whitney Moss know just how tedious the first three months of motherhood can be, and took to the web to share ideas for new moms. Rookie Moms offers first time mothers a variety of outings, projects and to-do lists that not only help pass the time, but encourage newbies to venture beyond the front door. From learning how to shower when home alone to taking your wee one for his first swim, their suggestions are written in a way that makes any mom feel like an adventurer, rather than a nervous nilly. And for moms of older tots, the Rookie Moms continue the exploration with activities and crafts that will keep toddlers and preschoolers busy for hours!

Turn off the boob tube and help your kids go from couch potatoes to outdoorsy types! PlanetExplore helps mom and pop find family activities in their area in a couple of minutes by logging onto the site. Users type their area code and a category from hiking and biking to climbing and camping into the search and wait for results. Events like climbing Oregon's Mt. Hood, a Range Creek archeological overnight in Utah, art lessons at Stoked Sessions LA, and Spruce Gulch Invasive Weed Removal in Colorado are listed. The site is enabled by The North Face, the well-respected active clothing company.

There comes a day when a marker makes its way onto the walls, the floor, your outfit or all three! When it happens, it's never a pretty scene. Rather than suffer in silence, mamas can turn to "Stuff" My Kids Ruined a visual blog filled with photos of furniture, meals and clothing that kids have intentionally or accidentally destroyed. Readers submit photos that have one-sentence captions that are enough to make fellow moms perusing the site laugh or cry.

Over the past four years, I have had to dispose of a beloved throw pillow, several picture frames, and countless cozy t-shirts after my sons were through with them. Tell us, what have your kids ruined?

For most new moms, the thought of walking the red carpet just eight days after giving birth is more of a nightmare than a dream. Victoria's Secret model moms may strut their postpartum bodies down the catwalk – in sexy lingerie no less – just a month after delivery, but most of us prefer to keep our bodies under wraps in the weeks and months after childbirth. Though the supermarket checkout lane is filled with magazines showing off yet another bikini-baring, celebrity mom's rapid baby weight diet plan, the true reality is that the physical aftermath of birth leaves us with many postpartum surprises – sagging boobs and stretch marks anyone?

Heidi and Gisele may have bodacious bods, but it is the real woman's post-baby body that should be celebrated. The Shape of a Mother does just that. Founded by a woman who was tired of women hiding their not airbrushed and non-surgery-enhanced bodies under baggy clothing, the site invites moms to upload photos of their post-pregnancy body parts (nude or clothed, anonymously or bylined) for the world to see. The resulting collection of self-portraits, and the stories behind them are both empowering and inspiring.