It's that time of year again to start to panic when you haven't found gifts for all of the significant people in your life!  I'm kind of glad that my family has figured out that Christmas is more about creating lasting memories for the kids, so we don't really give gifts amongst the adults anymore.  I know that certainly makes my December a lot less stressful!  At the same time, I do miss the satisfaction of finding those awesome gifts that make people smile.  So, to satisfy my gift hunting desires, I give you my four lists of "5 Things" that I think would make great gifts for the gadget person, the foodie, the fashionista, and the "just because" people in your lives!

 5 Gadget Gift Ideas

If you're an overthinker or planner like me, sometimes thoughts come to you at the most inconvenient of times...solution: AQUANOTES WATERPROOF NOTEPAD


For the artist and the lover of novelty items who loves the recent 3-D printing trend, get him or her a more affordable option to the 3-D market - a 3-D DOODLE PEN!


For all of the people in my improv community in Washington D.C. that remind me not to make a phone with my fingers during a scene, well guess what...now I have legit proof that finger phones exist! Check out these BLUETOOTH GLOVES!
I'm not sure I want to relinquish the excuse that "my phone died," but at the rate we are all using our phones for multiple everyday activities (and let's all agree the iPhone 5 battery is terrible), I think having this heavy-duty MULTIPLE CHARGE SMARTPHONE CHARGER would be a great addition.
On my recent photography trip to Zion National Park, we had several conversations about iPhoneography, or taking photos exclusively with the iPhone camera and photography apps.  It's very doable, and since landscape photography benefits from zoom capabilities and circular polarizing filters, then why not bump up your iPhoneography with this iPHONE TELEPHOTO AND POLARIZER COMBO.  Too be honest, I think I want one for myself...hint to anyone getting me a gift this year!

5 Gifts for your Foodie Friend

I know when I go to Chinese restaurants, I always start out deluding myself by cracking open the package of chopsticks, then within 5 minutes I'm searching for my fork.  So why not get a 2-IN-ONE CHOPSTICKS SILVERWARE COMBO!

Wait..what??  A PIGS IN A BLANKET MAKER??  Uhhh...yum!



For a great way to make a batch of cookies even more special, try stamping them with these MADE WITH LOVE and HOMEMADE COOKIE STAMPS.


Does your recipe call for batonet, chiffonade, julienne, brunoise, or whatever kind of vegetable cutting technique? Is your chef in the house a perfectionist?  Let them forget about having to remember all the exact dimensions with this convenient CHOPPING BOARD.


OK, I'm a dork.  I highly doubt anyone would ever even get to the point of even seeing this novelty on the bottom of the pie pan except the pie maker or the dish washer.  But it made me laugh.  Do you get it? It says I EIGHT SUM PI!


5 Gifts for the Fashonista


In my last 5 Favorite Things post with my 2013 fall favorites, I talked about this company, FashionABLE, that supports the employment of vulnerable women in Ethiopia.  Well, in addition to scarves, they also have a small line of leather goods that are neat and rustic.  I like this SMALL LEATHER CLUTCH.

 Because sometimes a SASSY STATEMENT BAG is necessary.

On Season 1 of The Mindy Project (one of my favorite shows), Mindy shows up to train for a triathlon with her doctor colleagues wearing a Wildfox pink t-shirt with the hilarious statement, "Shopping is my cardio."  Of course, that t-shirt sold out quick.  So now, Wildfox has brought the statement back for their winter line on a RED "SHOPPING IS MY CARDIO" SEQUIN SWEATER.

I can't tell you how many cashmere sweaters I have thrown out because they got irreparable holes in them from one thing or another.  I saw these patches and thought that they were a great alternative because it hides the hole in an awesome way!  Add a few in just the right way, and it looks like they were meant to be part of the design. These BAND-AID CASHMERE SWEATER PATCHES come in several colors.

I just got my first puffy vest, and I love it.  There are tons to choose from, because they are on trend this winter, but my preference is black paired with an above the knee a-line black skirt, fun tights, and moto boots.  Finding DOWN VESTS at REI is a good place to start for brands like The North Face, Marmot, and Patagonia.

 5 "Just Because" Fun Gifts

Now that I'm learning guitar, I am constantly losing my picks.  Of course, then I find them all over the place when I don't need one - the car coin catcher, my wallet, my bedroom nightstand...  I thought this was a great novelty item for the guitar picker in your life, a GUITAR PICK STAMP.


I love building Legos with my nephew.  During the holiday season, Lego releases additional sets to their LEGO WINTER VILLAGE series, so you can start an annual tradition of adding on to your winter scene every year.  By the way, the carousel horses even bob up and down as it rotates! Amazing!

No, I am not in a 12-step program for my Mumford and Sons addiction!  They are just fantastic in my opinion, Marcus Mumford in particular, and I won't give them up any time soon.  Recently, a small set of recorded tracks were released of Marcus collaborating with other artists during one of the Mumford & Sons Gentleman of the Road Stopovers.  I am not a fan of Bob Dylan, but for some reason when Marcus reinterprets a Dylan song, I am hooked!  Check out "Don't Think Twice, It's Alright" on the Troy, Ohio set, then click over to the Dixon, Illinois set from last year.  To download the songs, you will have to sign up for a Daytrotter membership, but the monthly cost is just $4, and you can cancel.  Check out all of the other artists on the site as well! Who doesn't love a homemade playlist on a CD as a gift??
I don't know if you heard, but the boys of Monty Python's Flying Circus are reuniting for a short run at London's O2 arena in July 2014.  Alas, I did not get tickets, but I'm not sure how well the Monty Python magic would translate on stage versus the TV screen anyway.  To celebrate the return of these crazy characters, why not give someone some KILLER RABBIT SLIPPERS from the Holy Grail movie?
Oh my gosh!  If I had this RAZOR CRAZY CART drifting go-kart as a kid, who knows what kind of trouble I would have gotten into!  Hmmm....they say they weight limit is 140, so I guess it's a possibility that this could also be a go-kart for adults...trouble with a capital T!



Good luck with your shopping!!