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Economic and environmental concerns have combined to generate more interest in having a green Christmas this year, and experts have plenty of sustainability advice.

Do your parents still have the clay bowl you made for them in second grade? In many homes, it’s the simple, handmade gifts that are most appreciated. Parents aren’t the only ones that appreciate a gift made by hand. Visit the sites below to find ideas for gifts that you can make especially for the ones you love.

Mayday! Sunday, May 9, is Mother’s Day! Repeat: Sunday is Mother’s Day! Even if the holiday completely slipped your mind, there are plenty of gifts you can whip up for your mom at the last minute. Many of them even provide the illusion that you’ve prepared in advance, but all of them are guaranteed to show you care.

Ottoman-inspired styles are popping up on runways in established fashion capitals around the globe. Istanbul has long been a source of textiles for the fashion world, but now the bi-continental city is becoming a hub of culture and design in its own right.

Sales of plus-size lines have decreased more sharply during the recession than other lines. Is it smart business to cut back on apparel worn by half of America’s women?

After one Amazon customer mockingly called the shirt a “babe magnet,” online commentary significantly boosted sales, in a rare example of an online viral sensation actually turning a profit.

Although sales of videogames were sluggish during March and April, investors are voicing their confidence in the industry.

“A penny saved is a penny earned” may seem archaic to us, given the current rate of inflation. But when juxtaposed with the current rate of unemployment, saving even a penny is starting to seem like a really good idea. The bad times have inspired plenty of people to adopt some pretty radical ways to trim the budget.

Thanks to deft management practices and affordable prices, some restaurant chains are weathering the recession well.

For eager college students everywhere, years of hard work are finally culminating in the moment they’ve been thinking about for quite some time: graduation. But what gift can you get your graduate that they’ll really need and use?

Whether you’re still working or looking for a job, you’ve got to keep wearing work-appropriate clothing. But should your style change to reflect the economic climate? Are there any ways to save money and still look polished? We've got the answers here.

The number of existing home sales went up in March, construction spending is improving and Estee Lauder’s recent quarterly report shows hope for luxury beauty products.

Soon after we published a feature with advice on what items to keep buying despite the recession, we got hit with a wave of additional suggestions from our readers. We stand by our assertion that health insurance is something nobody should sacrifice, but we loved your contributions. Here’s what you said.

Among May’s first upbeat business stories: the Reuters/University of Michigan Consumer Confidence Index and the Institute for Supply Management’s manufacturing index both see growth; repair shops benefit from tightened budgets.

Pharmaceutical company Pfizer and clothing label Under Armour outperformed Wall Street projections during the first three months of 2009. Meanwhile, the latest Conference Board confidence index shows the highest monthly jump in four years.

Twenty years ago, half of male car buyers wanted a stick shift; these days, manual transmission cars make up only about 7 percent of new car sales, but why?

Bright spots in business April 27, 2009: An industry analyst says swine flu is not the next SARS, Verizon is the latest communications company to beat earnings projections and a private equity investor feels confident about investing in India’s emerging market economy.

Business news to feel good about this Friday: Ford is poised on the road to recovery. Meanwhile, Amazon and Microsoft post encouraging earnings and Netflix smashes analyst estimates.

Positive business news for April 23, 2009: Radio Shack and Apple post significant year-on-year Q1 profits and Packaging Corp. of America beat earnings estimates.

Feel-good business and financial news of April 17, 2009: Citigroup and GE’s first-quarter reports surpass projections; the Reuters/University of Michigan preliminary consumer sentiment index shows shoppers are feeling better about the economy.

Among today’s positive news headlines: Bed, Bath & Beyond and Ruby Tuesday shares boosted by better-than-expected numbers, financial master’s grads stand to benefit from current economic conditions and a financial company CEO points out the good news inherent in negative headlines.

Among today’s positive financial news headlines: one index shows a rise in consumer confidence; New York’s Madison Avenue gains new retail life; and AmEx’s stock gets upgraded from “sell” to “hold.”

The numbers indicate that this recession is nowhere nearly as dire as the 1930s, argues a Federal Reserve researcher. Topshop’s U.S. opening shows people are still excited about buying clothes and China’s manufacturing output is up for the first time in six months.

Traders and consumers ended March on a positive note, with the Dow showing a sharp uptick to close out the quarter and the Consumer Confidence Index up slightly. And, in a testament to the resiliency of retail, fashion house Armani is still flourishing.

Sure, we’re all cutting back, but there are some things we just can’t give up. We highlighted five things still worth spending money on: Readers responded with their own non-negotiables. Tell us yours by answering the question within the article below.

Positive indicators that wrap up the week: American consumers slightly increased their spending in February and market observers see potential in Best Buy and Buffalo Wild Wings.

Among today’s positive financial and economic indicators: the housewares sector looks to build upon the home-entertainment trend; Andersen Windows hires back laid-off employees to keep up with demand; and the Nasdaq closed up on 2008 for the first time this year.

TiVo stocks performed well Wednesday on the back of its business partnership with Blockbuster. Commerce Dept. data show improvement in two benchmarks: durable goods orders and new home sales.

Figures from the Federal Housing Finance Agency show home prices recovering during January. Discount chain Dollar General is booming during the recession and a Chicago economist says the financial media is being needlessly negative.

Sales of previously owned homes were up last month. Other rebounders include fourth-quarter profits at luxe jewelry brand Tiffany and stocks at e-commerce sites, cell phone companies and coffeehouses.