Our Favorite Things 2018

December 11, 2018

Our favorite time of year brings gift guides from every corner of your life – real and virtual. Here are some of our favorite things for the upcoming holiday season for you to give yourself or your loved ones!

Not only are these lit, in every sense of the word, the LED Bike Wheel by Activ Lights makes a bike brighter and more visible from every possible angle! These are fast becoming a bestseller on Amazon and come in seven different colors for $25.

We’ve been toying with this as a gift idea all year and this Christmas might be the year we pay Ancestry DNA $60 and send away for a kit for mom and dad. Here’s what we like about it — in addition to the holiday discount: the test will reveal a person’s origins – in more than 350 regions of the world – at least twice the geographical detail of any other DNA test. Your results include your ancestors’ journeys over time – and follow and how and possibly why — your family moved from place to place. It takes about six or eight weeks to get the online results, but by spring, whoever gets your gift will be able  find potential relatives through DNA matching with others who have taken the test.

A 15-inch divided nonstick pan is a great gift for anyone who hates washing more than one prep pan or skillet! Look at this breakfast layout, eggs, sausage and hash browns (is that gravy?!) all in one pan. The Master Pan has four fry pan compartments and one grill pan compartment and is made of 100 percent cast aluminum. From Amazon for about $40.

Our Favorite Things for Women

The GH editor loves the tasseled Deluxity cross-body handbag that’s slim but big enough for your favorite girl’s essentials (10” W x 9” L x .5” D). And with 23 different colors to choose from and a great price, buying more than one won’t put a strain on YOUR handbag (or wallet!).

When Barbara Bush passed away earlier this year, one posthumous tribute tagged her ever-present string of pearls – sometimes multiple strands – like these from Blue Nile. But $1K is a little more than we’d like to pay. Every department store carries freshwater pearl necklaces – you can even find them on Amazon and in Costco stores. But we like this trio of twisted strands, an elegant and somewhat novel look from Overstock, and we like the price, ($99) too!

Embroidered jeans are on fleek and you can get them at Macy’s, Nordstrom, Old Navy and Target (7400 S. Gartrell in Aurora!), but you know what’s even better? Giving the gift of DIY embroidery, so your giftee can customize a pair of their own denims with a favorite design! From Apprvl (tagline handmade in NYC), this learn-to-embroidery kit lets you create a special design for a jacket or pair of jeans and comes with a tutorial and a variety of designs. (Etsy also has loads of contemporary embroidery patterns, too.)

For Men, Mostly

Do you know what RFD stands for? We can help. Passports and some credit cards have RFID chips that allow information to be read wirelessly and that means by cyber thieves as well as legitimate businesses. An industry has sprung up to make protective wallets and other products that block hackers from “skimming” the data.

The Ridge has made a series of wallets that block skimming devices made from aluminum, titanium or carbon fiber. The products are minimalist, safe and lightweight. The Ridge wallet can hold up to 12 credit cards, with a convenient cash strap on the outside.

We can see LOTS of giftees being happy about unwrapping a Sheffield Premium 14-in-one tool. It’s not only multipurpose, it’s affordable (at $15) and includes 14 tools in one: Hammer Head, Nail Claw, Linesman Pliers, Regular Pliers, ¼” Slotted Screwdriver, 1/8-inch Slotted Screwdriver, #2 Phillips Screwdriver, 2-1/2-inch Drop-Point Blade, 2-inch Serrated Blade, Can Opener, Wire Cutters, Wire Stripper, Soft File and Key Ring. Now, all his, her or your tools can be in one place. Finally!

For Kids

Teach kids all about the amazing world of artificial intelligence with M.A.X. This programmable playmate makes use of S.T.E.M. skills to function, learn, and move and will keep your kids entertained and intrigued for hours. Pick up M.A.X. at the Walmart right at Southlands about five minutes from your front door in Southshore.

Today has a gift guide for everyone too, including littles, teens, men, women, best friends, secret Santas and a few gag gift and stocking stuffer ideas. We found more than we can afford, and lots to love. 

Our Favorite Place: Southshore!

The newly built homes in the master-planned community of Southshore have something to offer for every taste, style and floor plan preference. Explore the amazing models from Toll Brothers, Richmond American Homes or Century Communities in ranch and two-story designs, in one of the fastest growing communities in the state. You’ll find the lakeside home of your dreams, priced between the upper $300s and the $700s.