Entries in holidays (19)

Merry Movie Madness!

Posted Friday, December 5, 2008 at 01:04PM
I’m not gonna lie. I’m a sucker for Christmas movies. Or any holiday movie. There’s always a moral at the end and they are so timeless. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve seen “It’s a Wonderful Life”… and it never gets bad. And as a kid I watched “Home Alone” until the VHS tape wore out!

The best part of Holiday Movies, is that you leave with a feeling of warmth and snuggliness (ok so I made up that word, it’s still true!) Gather some popcorn balls and spiced apple cider, wrap that blanket around you, go ahead light scented candles, and check out some of my favorite Holiday movies.

Get Your Babydoll On, Baby Doll

Posted Tuesday, December 26, 2006 at 11:27AM

We’re hitting the last stretch, dolls:

You gave thanks at Thanksgiving, giving your hot gym bod a nod and kudos with an extra slice and a half of pecan pie. 

You played Santa on ChristHannuKwanzaka, gifting your boy and BFF and fam, celebrating the peak of your holidaze with gingerbread biscotti and a mocha soy latte or two or three.

And now you’ve one business week until New Year’s Eve, until you’re back to business as usual. 

Meanwhile, you’re figuring how you’ll fit your not-as-fit figure into something naughty and nice for your New Year’s Eve.

Simple - just get your babydoll on, baby doll.

Tailored tight at your bust, flowing full below, a babydoll hides a multitude of sins.

...continued: Get Your Babydoll On, Baby Doll

Buddy up

Posted Thursday, December 21, 2006 at 08:01PM

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Here’s an addendum to our yoga lovers’ gift guide: Yoga Buddy, the cheerily colored yoga blocks recommended by Squire of Binsted. “I used to use them stacked up to sit on whilst I meditated,” explains our shopcaster. “I now find just one more comfortable, so I keep one at my house and one at my girlfriend’s.” Perfect for keeping your spine straight in sitting postures, the blocks are “very light and a good mix of firm and comfortable,” according to the good squire.

For Fido

Posted Thursday, December 21, 2006 at 07:42PM

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Don’t leave your darling pooch off your shopping list! Ideal for pets of hikers, backpackers, and other outdoorsy types, the Ruff Wear Palisades II Dog Pack features a three-strap system to disperse the load evenly so as not to trouble your doggie’s back. The pack also comes complete with two collapsible water bladders, a grab handle on the back, and a reflective trim to keep your puppy visible in the dark.

Of course, this one’s a gift that very much gives back to the giver, as evidenced by ThisNexter Kristine’s shopcast: “Poor fortune for my dogs I live by the rule ‘There’s no such thing as a free ride,’” she says. “These backpacks work very well for carrying groceries.”

BTW, has anyone ever actually named his/her dog Fido in all of world history? I’m guessing not.

Gift Guide: Good-for-you grub

Posted Wednesday, December 20, 2006 at 08:31PM

Fruitcake’s just dandy, but there’s a whole world of giftworthy grub that offers more than just densely packed sugar. To treat health-conscious friends or family members, go for food gifts that both taste deelish and deliver good-for-you stuff like antioxidants, healthy fats, dark chocolate, fruits, and nuts. The Whole Foods Gift Basket, for instance, includes almond butter, blackberry preserves, salsa, dried cranberries, and a slew of other snacks far more appealing and heart-smart than WisPride spreadable cheese and Hickory Farms Sausage Delights.

...continued: Gift Guide: Good-for-you grub

The girly-girl tent

Posted Saturday, December 16, 2006 at 10:15AM

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Bath salts and balms and beauty serums aren’t the only rose-kissed gifts you can give this season. For the more rugged rose-lover, there’s the Ted Baker Rose Print Tent from Blacks. Sure to be the most lovely tent at your campsite, the two-berth dome features a porch for gear storage and breathable polyester inner with storage pockets - plus it’s got SPF 30 protection. ThisNexter mouseking finds the tent so pretty that “I think I’ll set one up in my living room for a few days!” And it would be so very perfect to take to Coachella next year…

Gift Guide: The at-home spa

Posted Sunday, December 10, 2006 at 01:56PM

While a spa getaway probably ranks as one of the most rapturously received gifts possible, spa junkies can also be immensely gratified with pampering treats that make staying at home feel as indulgent as a trip to some Spa Finder-approved destination. To start, consider a deliciously soft and cozy robe like the Kashwere Shawl Collar Robe selected by ThisNexter Traci Meyer. Made with microfiber knit, the robe is lightweight and “really yummy,” according to Traci.

...continued: Gift Guide: The at-home spa

Songs of Christmas past

Posted Saturday, December 9, 2006 at 02:41PM

Christmas is the perfect occasion to O.D. on nostalgia, and nothing inspires wistful remembrances of holidays past like the music you loved when you were wee. Having been born three days after Christmas of 1977, I’ve got a special fondness for that year’s release of David Bowie/Bing Crosby collaboration “Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy.” The video still makes me giddy, partly because - as blogger Patch at In Search of Arcadia points out - “the Thin White Duke is really at his most stylish here.”

...continued: Songs of Christmas past

Gift Guide: Everything's coming up roses

Posted Thursday, December 7, 2006 at 03:03PM

It takes more than 60,000 fresh-plucked roses to yield just one ounce of rose oil. But that ounce can work wonders for your spirit - not to mention your skin. Said to ease stress, anxiety, and even depression, rose also has a soothing, rehydrating, gently astringent effect on your complexion. Couple those health and beauty benefits with rose’s pretty power, and you’ve got the perfect present for those flower-fancying ladies on your gift list.

One of the simplest but still splendid forms of rose, products like Kiehl’s French Rosewater and Santa Maria Novella Rose Water can be highly versatile. Kristin Petrovich uses her bottle of Santa Maria Novella as a beauty treat that’s “wonderfully re-freshing and hydrating for skin,” while I like to transfer my Kiehl’s into a spray bottle for spritzing onto my face when I’m all stressed out. (I actually received my bottle as a Christmas gift last year, and I’m still so taken with all the precious rose petals floating in the water.)

...continued: Gift Guide: Everything's coming up roses

Gift Guide: For the snowboarder

Posted Tuesday, December 5, 2006 at 09:59PM

The perfect gift for a beloved snowboarder? Probably an all-expense-paid getaway to Park City, Breckenridge, Mammoth Mountain, or some other dream destination. But for a real-world shopping budget, a must-have like the Ogio Agent Rolling Snowboard Bag or the Ogio Terminal Travel Bag should do quite nicely. Both come recommended by ThisNexter Mike Osachuk who promises the former’s got “so many pockets for gear” and the latter “makes traveling so much easier.”

...continued: Gift Guide: For the snowboarder

Let your fingers do the walking

Posted Tuesday, December 5, 2006 at 05:09PM

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Here’s a groovy gift idea for that very Zen someone on your list: Relax4Life’s finger labyrinths serve as a meditation tool, helping to unwind your mind in the same manner as a full-size walking labyrinth. Last year I experienced labyrinth-walking for the first time at Sycamore Mineral Springs in San Luis Obispo and was amazed at the happy calm that overcame me as I strolled through the set stone-lined path. Finger labyrinths, according to ThisNexter kayzee can achieve a similar effect, allowing you to “meditate your cares away.” You can even get a maple or compressed wood model of the Chartres Cathedral in France, said to bring about an especially deep and introspective “journey to the center.”

Happy Repeal Day!

Posted Tuesday, December 5, 2006 at 12:01PM

prohibition-sm.jpgAt last, a legitimate excuse to get blind, stinking drunk on a Tuesday! Blogger Jeffrey Morgenthaler is a man on a mission: To recognize Repeal Day, the anniversary of the repeal of Prohibition, as a bona fide drinking holiday. To his point, all the other major drinking days, like St. Patrick’s Day and Cinco de Mayo, have nothing to do historically with alcohol. Repeal Day, on the other hand, should be celebrated by indulging in the very thing that was made available on that day: Liquor.

So we think you should take a stroll down liquor lane and see what ThisNexters recommend in the way of their favorite imbibables. There’s fancy rums, whiskeys, vodkas and tequila. We’ve got a veritable flood of wine (maybe a little bubbly?) and beer. Or, of you want something a tad more demure, try one of these classy liqueurs. Whatever you choose, just hoist one and drink, dammit. It’s your duty as an American citizen.

The Detox Box

Posted Thursday, November 30, 2006 at 10:37PM

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It’s not even December yet and I’ve already begun my first self-created detox program of the holiday season (lots of green tea and vegetarian sushi to hopefully counteract the effects of way too many Thanksgiving leftovers). And for a little extra help, I might pick up the Biggs and Featherbelle Detox Box recently recommended by ThisNexter modish. Available at Cut + Paste (home of all things D.I.Y. and divine), the collection of handmade self-care stuff includes an Achy Muscles Massage Bar (good for when you’ve overexerted yourself whilst gift-shopping), a detoxifying muscle soak (yummy bath salts), and a dry skin brush (really amazing for stimulating circulation and getting a little energy boost, especially in the early morn’).

Modish suggests picking up the Detox Box to “pamper someone you love,” but it’s never a bad idea to go ahead and pamper yourself in preparation for all the overindulgence that’s yet to come…

Gift Guide: For the yoga lover

Posted Thursday, November 30, 2006 at 08:27PM

Supporting a loved one’s yoga practice is a sure path to good karma, right? We thought so. And that must mean that gifting your favorite yogi - whether she’s new to the mat or a master of savasana - with planet-friendly gifts such as the Vertical (Doom) Yoga Bag from Ecoist brings double karma points. “This yoga bag is made from a recycled movie billboard,” says ThisNexter ecochica, noting that the bag shown here comes from a billboard for Doom. “So you are actually saving waste from the landfill, plus, Ecoist plants a tree for every bag purchased.” Another lovely find for the conscious consumer, Attapinya’s Brass Silk yoga mat bag (selected by Tammy) is fair trade and handcrafted. And with an equally elegant look, the Deluxe Hibiscus Tote from Wai Lana Yoga - predicted to make for an excellent gift by shopcaster politicalpoet - comes in bright and beautiful colors like turquoise, magenta, gold, and silver.

...continued: Gift Guide: For the yoga lover

Couldn't miss this one this year

Posted Monday, November 27, 2006 at 06:08PM

Although a good deal of my record collection might suggest that I’m somewhat of a joyless music snob, I’m actually a complete sucker for the sugary, sappy fluff that turns up on lite-and-easy and oldies stations around the holidays. Case in point: I just heard Paul McCartney’s “Wonderful Christmas Time” on the radio and became so ridiculously happy and probably even sang along loudly (mid-traffic, windows rolled all the way down). But while that song’s a great big slice of holiday cheese, so many of this season’s soundtrack staples are more like candy-cane-striped pop confections – sometimes with a little bit of genius hidden inside their gooey centers.

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Nobody does Christmas classics better, I do believe, than the 60s girl groups showcased on A Christmas Gift for You from Phil Spector. And while the title may be slightly scary in this day and age, you can’t deny the giddy sweetness of songs like Darlene Love’s “Marshmallow World” and The Ronettes’ “Sleigh Ride.” Ronnie and Co. have certainly charmed Pogo A Go-Go blogger Phil, who recently shared an MP3 of one of the album’s highlights (“Although we have a moratorium on Chrimbo music in our household until December (enforced unflinchingly by Dearest Wife), I couldn’t resist posting The Ronettes’s sublime version of ‘Frosty the Snowman,’” Phil confesses).

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Another early-’60s Christmas must-have, The Beach Boys’ Christmas Album always seems to hop into my CD carousel the day after Thanksgiving and stay put till the end of December (and “Santa’s Beard” just gets me every time). I grew up hearing that record over and over every holiday season, just as I did the first volume of A Very Special Christmas. To this day I’ve still got a major soft spot for the Pretenders’ rendition of “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” and U2’s “Baby, Please Come Home,” and it makes me giggle to find that a recent reissue of the 1989 release replaces Bon Jovi’s “Back Door Santa” with a much-tamer “I Wish Everyday Could Be Like Christmas” by the same poodle-haired band.

...continued: Couldn't miss this one this year

Gift guide: Soy candles

Posted Saturday, November 25, 2006 at 12:08PM

Apart from bubble bath, candles are maybe my most frequently relied-upon gift solution for the ladies on my holiday shopping list: Every girl loves a new pretty thing that makes her house smell lovely and feel all nice and cozy. But after a recent experience with some gorgeously packaged, heavenly scented, and rather pricey candles that ended up coating practically every surface of my home in grosser-than-gross black soot, I’ve made some changes to my candle-selecting criteria: From now on it’s only clean-burning, petroleum-free waxes that won’t cause any indoor air pollution or make bad things happen to my lungs. I’m going to stick with essential-oil-infused blends based in soy, which is nontoxic, renewable, and helps support our country’s farmers.

Luckily my most beloved candle, Pacifica’s Persian Rose is available in a soywax variety. One of the most fragrant candles I’ve ever lit – but never in an overpowering way – this Pacifica product gets its scent from “the Queen of the flowers,” along with notes of violet and myrrh. (Perfect for unapologetically girly-girl types and hopeless romantics, if you happen to know of any such characters.)

...continued: Gift guide: Soy candles

Party Outfit: Meet the Parents

Posted Friday, November 10, 2006 at 07:01PM

His dad’ll say you’re a looker.

In a completely flattering, respectful, you won’t need to smile and stare at the ground sort of way.

Promise.

Because while Kay Unger’s silk cocktail dress is all siren red, she has you covered neck to knee, and while a deep scoop shows your sexy back, it’s more like Justin Timberlake radio-friendly than the mothafak;jdsf’ing album version.

“The back has wonderful detailing. Possibly the perfect party dress. Pretty and sexy,” says Lisa Bagg.

Ooh la love, indeed, doll.

...continued: Party Outfit: Meet the Parents

Gift Idea: Rocking Boat

Posted Tuesday, October 31, 2006 at 09:52AM

RockingBoat.jpgThanks to ThisNext, I’ll be doing almost 90% of my Christmas shopping online this year, and I can’t wait!

Since Halloween is semi-unofficially the gateway into Holiday madness (starting the holiday season on Thanksgiving is sooo 1953), today marks my first entry for 2006 Holiday Season Gift Ideas.  All items will of course be available on the web, priced with your bank account in mind, and (imho) sure to warm the cuckolds of you and yours. 

So…HOW WONDERFUL IS THIS ROCKING BOAT??? Why WHY do kids get all the cool stuff?? I gotta think that if I could fold all 6ft of me into this classic, wooden rocking boat, all instances of writers block and un-creativity would be immediately thwarted.

That said, there isn’t a kid around that wouldn’t love to have this in their play room.  Plus, it’s built for two - so if you want to combine a gift for a sibling duo that’s easy to share, timelessly fun and classically designed, then this is for you.  I can’t hardly believe it’s $139.

Available at Hearth Song 

via Mighty Goods

* full shopcast >> Holiday Gift Ideas on ThisNext 

Ooh La Love: Dressing for the Holidays

Posted Saturday, October 21, 2006 at 12:24PM

Seeing as holiday  joy is getting pimped by retailers already, I figure tis the season for us ladies to figuring holiday party outfits.

Every outfit needs a strong, pin-thin foundation - while I’m partial to four or more inches on a heel, three inches and above can do.

But anything shorter, and you may as well rock Nikes with that holiday frock.

is my new Italiano lover (don’t tell Giuseppe) - check these patent platform sandals and understand that he knows how to treat the ladies. Naughty but nice, these are perfect for the after-9 to 5 party or a holiday dinner with the family. 

...continued: Ooh La Love: Dressing for the Holidays