My goals would be to
a) return the wonder to magic items
b) significantly reduce the number of magic items; particularly at the high power level.
I've always liked the idea of a wizard who gains his power by having a number of arcane tools on his person - a staff, a few noxious powders, a familiar, a carved bone etc.. So I'm not opposed to the idea of wizards creating magic items. But these should be relatively minor items principally of use to the wizard - minor spell enhancement, defensive aid, concentration bonus. These items would float at around the same level of power as a healing potion appropriate to the wizard's level. Creating anything more substantial should be a major ritual with a significant cost in materials and time. So - no legions outfitted entirely with magical swords that are so common they are referred to (in game terms) simply as '+1 swords'. Yet, the cost shouldn't be so prohibitive that these items would never exist, just enough to discourage their production unless the need is dire. Basically, the 9th level Ranger can still carry a sword with a +2 bonus, it's just that the sword should come with a name, a history and say a whole lot about that Ranger's deeds.
I'd also like to see a system where magic items acquire their 'magic' through usage - along the lines of 'the sword of the great hero x spilt so much orc blood it acquired a taste for it' producing a sword with an enhanced bonus versus Orcs. Magic item creation rules give a manufactured flavor to magic items, this system would try and bring back some of the mystery.
Edit: I also really like the idea of smiths being able to forge these items, under special circumstances with rare components (like say, the heart of a dragon)