Hot New Additions to Patti’s Prattles Gift Guide Gone Wild

November 23, 2008:  My gift guide really has really run wild this year with more nifty ideas than ever. Remember I only print the very best  I find and here’s some new ideas to mull over…..beginning with the hottest items on the shelves like Flowboards and Mio Motiva heart monitoring watches..and well, lots more…

Let them “flow”…. Help them be the first on their block or strand to experience the Flowboard   from Sport Technology of Long Beach, CA.  The big, 14-wheeler looks like a land version of the snowboard or surfboard. Perfect for Xtreme athletes on your list, it sells for $80 to $110. I must confess I haven’t personally tested this one, a little too extreme for me, but it sounded awesome so I had to put it in this year’s guide.
 Call 800-503-9432 or go to: www.flowlab.com 

It’s just too cool and trendy…Gift of Health–Mio Motiva Petite strapless heart rate watch. Just got mine and trying it out on my run tomorrow. It looks cool on the wrist. Perfect for any exercisers on your list who not only want to keep up on their heart rate but also how many calories they’re burning with personalized data programmed right into the watch. www.miowatch.com

Be Brief & Lift your man’s butt–Your guy need a little help in that department? Get him Andrew Christian Anti Muffin Top Elastic Flashback, Police, Fire and Pro Lifeguard underwear. You can stop nagging him about his flabby mid-section and appreciate his firm and lifted butt. www.andrewchristian.com

Andrew just introduced a female version, and not a moment too soon. It’s scary how many women let it all hang out when wearing low-cut jeans…I’ll be sampling them soon and report back in on how well they function.

Okay now wrap them all up pretty bows by Gliza Classic Bows (getting my samples soon and will let you know, but it sounds good). Each bow has a name like Xmas Mix, Jolly Holly, and my favorite Diva Delight (me being the Dining Diva and the Divaonthego on wordpress.com and on Rick Dees in the Morning on Movin 93.9 FM,the mix that makes you  move).  Anyhow the selection ofGliza bows is awesome, ($12 – $18 for packages of 6 and 12) check it out at www.gliza.net. 

Keep them hydrated with a gift of FIJI Water,  a personal fave, and yes, I can taste the difference in water and FIJI tastes pure and good, I buy it by the case and keep it in my car and gym  bag.  Anyhow while I buy it in bottles I didn’t know they did home delivery. What a great gift idea to buy someone a year’s supply of H20. www.fijiwater.com.

 Sweet Treats–cookies are forever, more about these after I haved a taste….

 

Light up their life– flash lights seem to fizzle out just when you need them or don’t provide enough light. Well the LED tech, Energizer Hard Case Professional solves all that.  It even looks good, black, sleek, handsome, with a smooth taper style that fits in a pocket. Even comes with batteries and a storage pouch, now that’s a plus. Perfect for men and women, it can survive a 20 foot drop, provides 80 lumens of light, has a swivel head and costs just $39.99, www.energizer.com.

 

Toilet-tries–okay, not exactly a romantic gift, but fun to give to female friends living with a guy who forgets this nicety or married folk, households with children. It;s called Seat Down  and can go hand and glove the Johnny Light I wrote about in my other entry, or stand alone as it were. Anyhow it’s a creative idea from LB Products, Inc., a Newport News, VA, company headed by  feisty, entrepreneurial president/CEO Vicki A. LaBarre, who says the million dollar plus invention is made of only the “finest materials.” Anyhow the gadget replaces toilet seat handles with handles in front and 18 adjustments that lower the seat or the lid and seat when you flush. She calls it a “Battle of the Sexes” playful gift but one she feels is well-engineered (it was designed by an inventor whose work appears in the Smithsonian, fyi). www.seatdown.org.

  

Gifts of Beauty–

Twinkle toes–Or rather keep their toes aligned with Flex-Tastic. I just got one and used it for the prescribed initial 5 minute starter time and will keep it up because I have bunions and it’s supposed to help with them as well as aid in circulation , reduce stress and tension in feet and legs and more. A perfect stocking stuffer for everybody. www.profootcare.com.

  

 Body image boosters–  Help  her feel scrumptious with Hot Chocolate Sugar Scrub with crushed cocoa beans, from Giovanni–I use it regularly during a steam bath at my health club.  It leaves my skin silky and soft and it smells so good.

Cellulite/slimming aids: okay it might be tough giving a gift designed to eliminate cellulite and reduce bulges, but hey what women doesn’t want to be skinnier. After all one can never be too…..so to the rescue Sineez Skincare Wear designed an undergarment that actually smooths tummy, hips and thighs and reputedly reduces ugly cellulite. If you have a really close friend, sister or even you Mom this might make for a nifty gift. And some of the procceds go to fun women’s health. I’m am wearing a waist slimmer as I blog, just got it. Supposed to keep it on 8 hours a day for a month or so and then notice smoother,firmer, softer skin. I’ll let you know how it goes. Comes in XS to XL, I’m tiny and got a Small which is a little too big but should work.  Here’s what the company says about the product, “Skineez is a brand new product that is going to make a lot of women happy this holiday season – from new moms looking to get their pre-pregnancy bodies back, to women wanting to tone up after holiday splurges, and brides-to-be.   Skineez is the first Cosmetotextile product available in the U.S. Already popular in Europe, Cosmetotextiles is the marriage of cosmetics and textiles.  The body’s heat and the friction from wearing the garment slowly release anti-cellulite and moisturizing ingredients into the skin, which is PROVEN to reduce the appearance of cellulite and the circumference around thighs and the waist. Clinical trials prove the results and the technology.  A portion of every sale goes to Remote Area Medical Volunteer Corps (RMA) to help uninsured or underinsured women receive medical care and mammograms. In addition, all packages contain information on how to maintain good breast health. Skineez is available now at Macy’s and Macys.com for $68 and www.myskineez.com .”

 

Face lifts:  Let her be the first to experience the wonders of  M2 products, a new line of luxuriant, effective cosmetics. I just started using M2 exfoliating cleanser, Skin Recovery Moisturizer and the  HP Skin Refinish and they work wonders. www.M2skintech.com.

Give Good Hair Days: She’ll flip over celebrity stylist,  Robert Amos’ s new line of hair care products, especially if she enjoys “bigging” up her tresses. The Volumizer springs strands into action with special algae, amino acids and rice protein that help protect while giving her a salon look at home. I just tried it and it’s great.  $31.  Also the Love It & Leave It Conditioner. Her hair will shimmer and shine, mine does. He uses Aloe Vera,horsetail extract and green tea in this formula. Costs $25 at www.robertamos.com or at Estilo Salon in Los Angeles. And to complete the look, Robert Amos Texture Crema,  a styling aid that’s light but effective. I was having a bad hair day and rubbed a dab her and there and puffed up my mane big time. Looks good. I’ve been a beauty writer for two decades and these are some of the best products to come into my test lab in a long time.

 

Flex-Tastic secret to healthier feet

Put a cap on them: I just got back from Palm Springs where I worn my nigty pink, glittery Madcapz which garnered lots of compliments. The company has all sorts of nifty styles to suit any of your female friends. Madcapz, designed specifically for women by a woman feature an adjustable strap for an easy fit, and 100% cotton. 
Madcapz are made home-grown in the USA – just try to find other caps made in America.
And they’re only $19.99. Check out the styles at: www.madcapz.net. They also do visors.