Savvy Traveler
Louis Vuitton luggage is so Reagan era. Help the savvy traveler toss out his or her excessive baggage in favor of a sleek and chic suitcase designed by the Don Corleone of minimalism, Philippe Starck. Although it won't help you score a room at the Delano, this Starckian spin on the classic Samsonite will definitely earn its carrier status in the Wallpaper magazine club of trendy travel.
From $195, www.retromodern.com
Fly Roller
Last year's scooter is just taking up space in the living room and the rollerblades? Those are now being used as flower vases. There's nothing wrong with improvisational multifunctioning, which is why the roller sneakers were invented. If you feel like walking or sprinting, you can. If you feel like rolling, just pop out the retractable wheel located in each heel and make like Olivia Newton John in Xanadu as passersby muse at your nifty footwear. When you tire of them, attach them to the legs on your coffee table.
$80-$110, www.heelys.com
Granola Chick
She'll only shop at Wild Oats and won't wear leather. Even her toilet paper is made of organic material. What to get the girl who cries when she sees a tangelo because she thinks it's an unnatural cross breeding of earthly goods? How about Kalani Organic Coffee, a perky, all-natural pick- me-up that's proven to be just that by the Ralph Nader of websites that investigates all the claims of responsibly made merchandise? If she's against caffeine, the website's got a host of all-natural, unfettered products from soap to nuts.
Coffee, $11, www.ethicalshopper.com
Slut
The word slut is not gender-specific. While men take it as a compliment, women are offended. Or are they? Whatever the case, treat your favorite slut to a swank Smythson of Bond Street Visitor Book bound in goatskin, not latex, in which everyone who passes through his or her boudoir can sign their name, proving they were there. It also helps the more forgetful sluts to remember the names of those they've bedded when compiling those inevitable "lists."
$330, 1-877-SMYTHSON or
[email protected]
Jordache Girl
She was a Barbie girl in a Barbie world a few years ago. But now she's too old for those plasticine prissies. So she's a spoiled brat with an attitude. She'll grow out of it. In the meantime, she likes her dolls to have attitude, just like her. Which is why Jordache has created the Fashion Attitude Dolls (FAD), each with its own identity and, this is no joke, oversized head. Although their heads are in no way proportion to their skinny little bodies, there's something endearing about these dolls. Perhaps it's the ease with which you can rip their heads off. Nonetheless, we're sure the girls will love these dolls, if not for their big heads, for their keen, Jordache- brand of fashion sense.
$19.99, KB Toys, 2374 E Sunrise Blvd.,
Fort Lauderdale, 954-561-9209;
10300 W Forest Hill Blvd.,
West Palm Beach, 561-784-1536;
www.kbkids.com
Expectant Mom
Who can forget the stir caused by a preggers Demi Moore when she posed half-naked for the cover of Vanity Fair? While some folks found it more offensive than Roseanne's nudie spread in Playboy, many people rallied to Moore's swollen side, harping on the beauty of naked pregnant women. If you know someone who's expecting, consider capturing the abdominal anticipation with a special maternity photo session. Heck, it's practically the only time in a woman's life when it's okay to be fat and bloated, so why not?
$45 for a session, Cabrera Photography,
12371 S Dixie Hwy., Miami, 305-255-9922
New Mom
You're not a shrink, so you can't prescribe her a lifetime supply of mood-altering drugs, but the next best thing to soothe the postpartum stress is the Forty Weeks Special Momease Essential Comfort Kit in which pampering holds an entirely different, mess-free meaning. Designed in consultation with an OB/GYN, this kit contains a refreshing Wake Up Call shower gel with rosemary mint, eucalyptus and grapefruit, hand lotion with lemongrass, sage, Vitamins A and E, all-over body reconditioning oil with marigold and chamomile (she just popped out a human being, after all), Reflections for a New Mother journal (in which her private thoughts, including "Remind me again, "Why did I forget to take my birth control pills?'" remain just that), and, finally, Lullabies for a New Mother CD--calming piano music that was composed to help her block out the impending sounds of Barney the Dinosaur. All of the above come in a lovely zippered pouch, which can be taken with her when she leaves you with the baby and escapes for a weekend at her mother's house where she can be the baby just one last time.
$52, Nordstrom, 5820 Glades Rd.,
Boca Raton, 561-620-5555;
www.nordstrom.com
