Monday, December 1, 2008
Star Wars Millennium Falcon £149.95
This is a gift that, if we’re being honest, many dads will covet for themselves. The gigantic ship (it’s the better part of a yard long) is the ultimate Star Wars toy: It features an appropriately rakish Han Solo figure and a hulking wookie. It fires missiles, it lights up, it makes authentic ‘failed hyperdrive’ noises. It has secret compartments, a working gun turret, a separate mini-shuttle, even somewhere for Luke to practice his light-saber. Every red-blooded boy from 3 to 53 will absolutely adore this, if they can only find room for it. I daresay a few green-blooded boys might got for it too.
Biscuit the loving pup £119.95
President-elect Obama’s greatest dilemma right now seems to be selecting the ideal puppy to live with his family in the White House. He clearly knows that a pet can be a terrific stimulus to a child’s development but we can’t all afford the space or the time to care for a dog properly. One of an ever-more realistic lineage of robot playmates Biscuit is less likely to exacerbate the First Kid’s allergies and, apart from a few dead batteries, won’t leave any nasty surprises on the hall rug.
JVC KD-10 Headphones £22.00
It’s increasingly common for kids to entertain themselves on long journeys with a portable DVD player or a hand-me-down iPod, but the headphones that come with expensive electronics are rarely suitable for delicate young ears. Enter JVC with these sturdy cans that feature a volume limiter that can be set by the concerned parent.
SparrowKids Routemaster Bus Kit £9.99
Sparrowkids make a huge range of craft kits for children – there are dozens of pretty but achievable projects for young girls but this London bus might also tempt a young boy to take up his (safe plastic) needle and sew.
Lego Indiana Jones Motorcycle chase £8.99
This Christmas will undoubtedly see a new generation of Indy Fans born as the Crystal Skull movie arrives on DVD. What better way to expand on that enthusiasm than to give a little Lego motorcycle and sidecar combination featuring everyone’s favourite renegade archaeologist? Unless you count Tony Robinson of course. Lego’s always a great gift because it encourages young minds to pull things apart and reassemble them, encouraging analytical thought. It also teaches them to endure the pain of stepping on a loose piece barefoot, which encourages fortitude. Character building entertainment.
Kitchen Chemistry Set £15.99
Bring our the budding Heston Blumenthal in any 6-14 year old with a chemistry set that uses common household ingredients to teach kids about acids and alkalis, chemical reactions, enzymes and mixing. Not quite as the virtual bomb-making kits that our grandparents grew up with but still good, educational messy fun.
Holz wooden airport £52.95
It might sensibly be said that Britain doesn’t need another airport but when it’s a chunkily traditional (sustainable) wooden toy one like this even the most eco-concious of us would agree that it’s a good thing. Especially as, treated with a little care, this sturdy playset could easily entertain several generations of young air traffic controllers. How many High School Musical Dance Mats can make that boast?
Dressing up is one of those activities that never quite gets boring, no matter how old we get. This red tulle dress with elegant gossamer wings supplies enough age-appropriate glamour to pass muster at a birthday party or two as well as being the star of every sleepover and playdate until the lucky recipient regretfully grows out of it. Best of all, it will survive a 40 degree wash so it will resist a certain amount of blancmange.
Pirate Outfit £25
Everybody loves a pirate. With a satin-lined waistcoat adorned with (unfortunately not real) gold buttons, artfully distressed pantaloons, an eyepatch and a Jolly Roger bandana this has that authentic buccaneer style that will please every young boy (and not a few young girls) with a longing for the Spanish Main.
Catch a beast £19.99
Already a huge craze in Japan, the Catch a Beast phenomenon might baffle us busy adults, but captivate most single-minded young boys with its Lovecraftian mythology of a world seething with invisible beasts just waiting to be captured, trained and exchanged with other beast-masters
Fortnum & Mason cup and saucer set £35
Tea isn’t really tea unless you’re drinking it from a very thin cup. These rather nice Fortnum & Mason tea cups are really very thin indeed, with a design that neatly addresses the key "sweet old lady" and "ironic fashionista" demographics. The bonus, of course, is that if the gift is a success there’s a whole service you can buy bit by bit so the recurrent birthday and Christmas dilemmas become but a distant memory.
Anya Hindmarch 'Charlie' bag £575
Simultaneously plain enough to be used every day and distinctive enough to guarantee at least one full-blown swank per day, this admittedly rather pricey bag more than pays for itself by allowing the lucky recipient the additional pleasure of pointing out that her husband bought it for her, thus identifying her as a keen judge of manflesh among her envious friends.
With our winters of ever more arbitrary length and bitterness a nice warm hat that’s both stylish and resistant to being crammed into a handbag is essential. This is that hat. The additional fair-trade angle can only add to your seasonal tally of brownie points.
One of those classic items that everyone needs, but only thinks about a few hours before the picnic. This is a gift that guarantees the giver more than one long hot summer of picnic invitations. Who could ask for more?
A luxurious portmanteau that promises wicked weekends away but will serve just as well to store those once-a-year lingerie items on top of her wardrobe.
A little too small to be tucked underneath Paris Hilton’s arm but still retaining that all-important celebrity flibbertigibbet factor, these tiny perfumed pooches are ideal to secrete in a Christmas stocking or between layers of giftwrap for that wrapped-with-love feeling.
On the Horizon gloves £18.34
Luxury lambswool and angora gloves that are glamorous enough to draw admiring glances when she arrives at the New Year's Eve party and still cosy enough to make a snowball fight on the way home a realistic possibility.
My Single Friend gift membership £18
Clearly not something one should buy for a wife or girlfriend, but if you know a young, single woman this comparatively inexpensive gift should ensure that she will at least have a date for next New Year’s Eve.
Few men know where the cushions in their house came from. They’re just one of those mysterious things that women bring with them. Surprise her with one of these fat, squashy treasures and you will be seen as a sensitive and thoughtful poet of the soft furnishings department.
Neal’s Yard Box £48
A box of bath stuff is the default present for a female relative that’s hard to buy for. If you absolutely have to buy a box of smelly bath stuff, this is the one to get. A selection of rose-scented soaps and creams with a candle to burn in the bathroom for a classic indulgent Boxing Day soak
Fathers, husbands and the more mature type of son can be hellishly tricky to buy for. Let us take the stress out of the season with ten foolproof suggestions that are sure to please.
Paul Smith scarf £135
Neutral enough in colour to work with everything from jeans to pinstripes, yet with a certain undeniable style this cashmere beauty may well be the perfect scarf.
My Monopoly £70.95
He’s seen The Apprentice. And a million property development shows. He fancies his chances. But getting on one of those televisiual annoyances isn’t as easy as it looks. He can generate his own personal Boom & Bust with a Monopoly set printed with individual street (or pub) names that mean something special to him. Plus, with is name on the board no-one’s going to dare to stop him being the Racing Car.
Gieves & Hawkes cufflinks £125
Few of us can wear Savile Row suits every day, but these stylish, almost aggressively plain links will give the humblest outfit a touch of Old World elegance and will really shine when he’s unexpectedly summoned to a Black Tie affair.
Eelus Audrey print £100
Subversive and stylish, Eelus prints are a complement to almost any bachelor pad and are just a little less common than the now rather overplayed Banksy reproductions. This twist on the classic Hepburn image is probably pick of the bunch.
Bunker Mentality Merino V-neck £79.95
A cosy soft wool sweater? That’s equally at home in the pub, at work, or slobbing around the house? With a little ironic golfer chic? Perfect.
Snowball launcher $29.95
Only sold in the US, you’ll need to be quick to snag on of these awesome urban combat essentials before the big day, but even if it arrives a little late it shouldn’t matter too much: We probably won’t get much snow until June.
iRecorder £99.95
In our gadget-rich, time-poor culture it’s handy to be able to watch last night’s TV on the way in to work. Only trouble is, it’s often quite a fiddle. The iRecorder takes all the IT out of Entertainment and just delivers the recordings you've designated painlessly to your iPod while you’re in the shower, giving you at least half a chance of catching the morning train.
Toy Crossbow £12.95
We can’t all be Sarah Palin. Especially not if we’re young British and male. The powerful but not entirely lethal action of this indoor crossbow will have the youngest, males, and Britishest of us bowhunting like an ex-Alaskan beauty queen in no time.
Cooks Blowtorch £22.00
Our television schedules are crammed with beefy two-fisted super-chefs making complicated foood look easy. They’re not messing about with girly salad spinners though: They have manly tools to make manly food. A blowtorch is just the kind of deadly weapon to get the most kitchen-phobic man cooking crèmes brûlées, putting the finishing touches to barbecues and (when no-one’s looking) lighting cigars.
Falcon Longbeach Cruiser £149.99
If he’s a serious cyclist, he’s already got the bike he wants. If, like most of us, he’s just a dilettante who wants to potter to the shops for croissants on Sundays and tool around the neighbourhood on those rare sunny days he needs something well-made, not ridiculously expensive, and above all rather stylish. Enter the Longbeach Cruiser. It has that Seventies Chopper feeling without being totally Nathan Barley, and will stand up to the odd venture off-road (even if that just means across the park)