Yes, I know, not only do you have to continue to deal with your own everyday life routines — grocery shopping, dentist appointments, bathtub scrubbing, botox injections — but now you’re also supposed to stuff your December calendar full with a scheduled battery of last minute home baked fruitcakes, programming the family’s traditional lawn light show and sprinting through a blizzardly flurry of breathless shopping for mom, dad, your twin sister and your six nephews (my god, doesn’t your brother know anything about birth control?!) . . . not to mention the Secret Santa office gift exchange you guilted yourself into organizing once again, despite the rancid cheese ball set you received in 2009 that landed you dizzy and nauseous for five hours in the office washroom after just one mega-potent whiff.
It’s enough to drive any sane person into the comforting arms of Mr. Hot Buttered Rum. Trust me, I know.
So as a gesture of my sincerest sympathy over your presently frazzled (and delicate) state of being, I’m offering this short list of stellar gift ideas for the ones you love (or even the ones you just kind of like a lot) in the hopes of making this holiday shopping season a little kinder, a lot gentler, and hopefully one that your best gift-getting pals will never, ever forget.
But you’re on your own when it comes to kicking the hot buttered rum habit, capiche?
1.) Black Hound Bakery, New York City: Everyone likes food, right? And what better shape, form and substance of food can there be but one that involves loads of butter, chocolate, marzipan, vanilla cream and crushed nuts, and goes by the name of “cake”?
That’s a rhetorical question, so you can all put down your hands.
The Black Hound Bakery in New York City is a sugar-lovin’ paradise, and they ship everywhere in the U.S. I’ve personally ordered holiday cakes for Louise, birthday pastries for my sister and gift boxes of crunchy munchies for Avery Gilbert. The verdict was a huge, delighted thumbs-up from all involved.
So if you’re stressed for time yet feel like givin’ some sugar for the holidays, the Black Hound Bakery comes highly recommended.
Black Hound Bakery cakes start at $40 for a six inch cake and top out at around $79 for a ten inch cake. Cookies and muchies can run less or more, depending on how greedily you load your shopping cart.
2.) Betsy Bensen handmade jewelry: I wrote a two-part Artisan Series article about Betsy Bensen’s work back in September and she’s still chugging along, offering up some great new items like these long lampworked glass and sterling silver articulated earrings, handmade sterling pet charms, double leaf silver earrings and a sterling silver embellished band that can be custom ordered to fit.
One of Bensen’s glass and sterling silver rings
Speaking of custom ordering, Bensen thoroughly enjoys putting together unique orders, so contact her directly through Etsy if you have something special in mind. Prices in her shop presently range from $15 to $395.
3.) Bambas Leather Bags: I first discovered Bambas leather goods when I visited Prague back in 2008. The BF and I were out for an exploratory walk when I literally screeched to a halt in front of a shop window featuring the most extraordinary handbags: “My god,” I thought. “Louise would kill to have one of these!” So I stormed the shop, snagged a particularly vibrant tote, and Louise responded with appropriately ecstatic, rapturous and profusive thanks. Bambas has been on my radar ever since.
But a very big obstacle has been the actual purchasing and shipping. It wasn’t like I could take a jaunt to Prague every six months just to stock up on handpainted handbags, Bambas doesn’t sell directly from their own website, and the only online source I could find at that time was out of Australia. The Australian shop had a great selection and the shop owners were perfectly happy to work with me to get items shipped to the U.S., but the shipping expenses were so high that I ordered from them only once and decided, never again.
So imagine my great delight when I received an email this past month from a company called Czech Your Bag that had obtained the exclusive rights to distribute Bambas goods in the U.S. So, seriously, if you’re looking for a gift that’ll stand out from the crowd, take a peek at their range of Bambas wallets, clutches, shoulder bags and totes.
Louise’s first Bambas bag
The leather is finished with a patented process that bonds the handpainted designs into the (Italian) leather so that the painted surfaces don’t scratch, peel or flake. Louise adores her Bambas bags (she has a tote, a shoulder bag and a clutch) and trots them out whenever she’s looking to make a statement . . . or just feels particularly artsy. They’re also great for everyday wear, as the leather and hardware are tough and durable — so the leather will start off feeling a little stiff, but it softens nicely with age.
Bambas leather goods are designed and manufactured by a small company in the Czech Republic, and they just celebrated their 20th year in business this year (2010). Prices range from $135 for handpainted eyeglass cases and $250 for bi-fold wallets to $575 for medium shoulder bags and up to $1150 for large leather satchels. Other clutches, totes and items are priced somewhere in between.
*UPDATE: I just got an email from a rep of the Czech Your Bag company and she stated that they’re expecting an arrival of new designs within the week: “I have a large shipment coming and should have them by this weekend. I’ll have everything photographed and up on the web-site by next weekend (December 10th-13th). The items are new designs that Atelier Bambas created and we will ‘officially’ unveil at the Czech Consulate Holiday party in New York on Dec. 13th. Bambas also worked with me on some new motifs for the American market” — so if you don’t see something there today that you presently love to bits, make sure you check back later. She included some photos, and a few of the new designs are doozies.
4.) Aftelier Bath and Body oils: Honestly, I can’t say enough wonderful things about Mandy Aftel’s all-natural body oils. The Chocolate & Saffron oil especially is like a slice of heaven on earth . . . and I mean that literally, as in the chocolate essence = heaven and the saffron essence = earth and there they are, combined in one unassuming bottle of glorious moisturizing goodness that costs only $40 a pop.
My skin laps up the oil so I never feel greasy, and it leaves me smelling fantastic all day long in a very subtle, understated fashion. Cuz you know that’s so me — subtle and understated. *ahem*
Tamron Lohan over at Fashion Binge (a regular stop of mine) writes that the Aftelier face oil changed her life: “Hand to God, people, her elixir made me look instantly younger. Like TEENAGE years, guys. Pre-teen even. It moisturizes, hydrates and RADIATES youth. There’s absolutely no messy greasiness. Just the clearest, brightest, softest skin I can ever remember experiencing. I wouldn’t be surprised if people mistook me for a toddler. The difference between my skin when I use this and when I don’t is the difference between awesomely perfect and gross.”
Take your Chocolate & Saffron Aftelier body oil victory lap
I mean, really, what more could I add to that? Just do yourself a favor and check out Mandy’s bath and body line. Whoever receives the likes of this all-natural bundle of joy under their tree (or stuffed inside a stocking) will owe you. Big time.
Aftelier body oils are $40, and Mandy just added two new scents in time for the holiday — Rose oil and Patchouli Spice oil. The face elixirs are also $40, and her perfumed bath oils are $45.
5.) Sinfully Wicked Soaps: Have you ever cruised onto Etsy looking for some good handmade soap and wound up overwhelmed with the number of sellers yet underwhelmed with the perceived level of quality? Well, let me come to your rescue and introduce you to Misty from Charlotte, Michigan and her Wicked Bath and Body products.
I have what can only politely be referred to as “hyper-sensitive skin” — most days I just call it “G*dd***ed F****ing Annoying, Piece of S**t Skin” and leave it at that. But this means that any old soap from the drugstore or grocery store doesn’t cut it for me, unless I wish to resign myself to a never-ending parade of lumps, bumps, rashes and irritations. And sometimes I do exactly that. Resign myself, I mean. But not anymore!
Misty’s goat milk soap bars are a bathing, cleansing revelation: creamy, gentle, moisturizing and oh my god they smell so good! Turkish Mocha, Sea Salt Caramel, Pumpkin Apple Butter, Oatmeal Milk & Honey, Cedar & Saffron, Gingerbread Vanilla, Rosemary Mint, Butterscotch Brulee . . . *pant drool pant* . . . it’s a veritable cornucopia of delicious, delightful, brain stimulating aromas.
I love the stuff myself, and also sent a big box of it to Louise so that she could use the bars for bathtime for her two little girls. Piercing squeals of excitement and happiness ensued. Her husband even snuck into the stash and grabbed some for himself. Bad husband, but good taste.
Misty’s Wicked goat milk soaps are $5.00 a bar. She also offers scented scrubs, body polishes, lotions, facial products and more. Hand out these beauties and your favorite pals will *know* you care.
6.) Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara: One of the benefits of being a gay man is that I’m not afraid to go browsing through the cosmetics aisle when it comes to looking for gifts for my best gal pals. I mean, I don’t have to worry about anyone thinking I might be gay because I *am* gay. Situation resolved.
So during my many expeditions through the wilderness of department store beauty brands, I’ve picked up various products to test on Louise, my sister Laura, and a crowd of other enduring buds who shall remain nameless but never forgotten. I’ve snagged eye shadows, lipsticks, glosses, eye primers, lip primers, face primers, nail polish, mattifying powders, bronzers and mascaras for my rainbow assortment of favored associates and dearest lab rats, but it’s the Armani Eyes to Kill mascara that, every single time, elicits the most effusive outpouring of thanks and gratitude.
It lifts, separates and elongates the lashes with no clumping, smearing or streaking. I know that every big and little name brand says this is what their mascara will do, but by gum, Eyes to Kill actually does it. The look is sleek yet still natural (well, you know, “natural” is relative — it’s not goopy or heavy, how’s that?), and the wow-factor that this particular mascara adds to the presentation of a woman’s eyes is nothing short of astonishing,.
Yet in the grand scheme of things, mascara is such a small item, really — a tiny little gift that should by all rights and means be insignificant . . . but it’s not. And should you decide to quietly, slyly slip a little wrapped package of Armani Eyes to Kill mascara into your best friend’s coat pocket when she’s not looking, an angel will get its wings. Swear to god.
If you don’t believe me, just ask Marin. I dragged her to Neiman Marcus when we met in Vegas a few months ago, bought a couple of tubes of Eyes to Kill mascara (brown and black) and forced them on her. She gamely played along, but when we met up the next day, she was happily sporting the stuff, genuinely surprised that a mascara could be so easy to use and look so effortlessly perfect.
Giorgio Armani Eyes to Kill Mascara is $30 a pop and TOTALLY WORTH IT.
*NOTE: If you’re searching for other often overlooked yet invaluable beauty product gifts, check out the Trish McEvoy essential lip pencil at $25, Trish McEvoy eye base at $25 (the “sheer gold” hue is a crowd pleaser), and the Armani fluid master face primer at $56.
7.) Mast Brothers Chocolate: The Mast Brothers are an independent, small batch chocolate company out of Brooklyn, New York. Michael and Rick Mast personally scout out and source their beans from sustainable farms around the world, and their old-world chocolatier methods are such a hit that they can barely keep up with the amount of orders that flood in.
There are numerous places they list on their website where you can buy their chocolate bars and products, but through their own website, they offer only one purchase option — a ‘Maker’s Choice’ assortment of ten chocolate bars (2.5 oz each), selected from available stock, which can include single origin bars from Madagascar or Venezuela, as well as dark chocolate with sea salt, cocoa nibs, hot chilis or nuts.
One luscious dark chocolate Mast Brothers bar
Orders take about 7-10 days to process, so don’t wait until the last minute if this is where you want to go. Mast Brothers chocolate bars would make fantastic hostess gifts for a dinner party, or just an all around great addition to an evening of coffee and wine. Their Serrano Peppers chocolate is surprisingly spicy, but it was their Cocoa Nibs bar that I liked the best.
Mast Brothers Chocolate bars sell for $80 for an assortment of ten.
8.) Sonoma Scent Studio ‘Winter Woods’ perfume: I’m officially declaring indie perfumer Laurie Erickson’s Winter Woods a Fall/Winter classic. Yeah, I know it’s only been around for about two years, but in the internet age, two years is an eternity, so new definition of classic, here we come!
When I first reviewed the Winter Woods fragrance in October of 2008, I wrote that it was “the smell of a sugared pine forest permeated with chimney smoke . . . a cozy, cashmere-soft blanket of a woodsy fragrance that turns too sweet for my taste, but I’ll readily admit that the majority of amber/powder fans will consider this sweetness a feature rather than a bug.”
But Erickson has continued to tweak and refine her original Winter Woods formula since then, and she’s only made it better — smoother, warmer, a little less powdery sweet (more honeyed now than powder) but just as darn cozy and comfortable.
If you wish to surprise a friend with an honest to goodness indie American perfume that recalls a holiday getaway in the northern mountains, Winter Woods might just be your ticket. And you’d be supporting the little guy (er, gal) while you’re at it, too. Which, now that I think about it, is so very smalltown, Main Street, “It’s a Wonderful Life” sweet that I don’t even *need* a plate of freshly baked Christmas cookies to get me in the spirit.
Though the wanting is different from the needing, just so you know.
Winter Woods is handblended in California (oh, all that golden sunlight!) from a combination of quality natural and synthetic essences, and is priced at $75 per 34ml bottle.
Now go forth and conquer.
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