Robeez Shoes (Holiday Collection)
Robeez carries soft-sole shoes with a holiday/winter theme that could make a cute holiday gift. They have both boy styles and girl styles. The best part is that they are currently on sale for $19.99 (regularly priced at $27.95). For my review on Robeez shoes, click here.
Shanghai Tang Baby Shoes
If you want to go luxury with shoe gift giving, these Shanghai Tang baby shoes would fit the bill. They are made of silk, and the outsole is made of polyester and suede leather. The Chinese characters for "right" and "left" are embroidered on each respective shoe, which is a cute touch. The shoes come with a silk pouch, as shown above. Available in red, pink, and blue. Sizes range from 0-3 months to 12-18 months, though the blue is only available in size 12-18 months.
Retail price: $63
Beaba Baby Cook
This multifunctional blender could be a great, albeit pricey, gift for moms that prefer to feed their little ones fresh, homemade baby food instead of store-bought. From the Williams-Sonoma website:
"This compact countertop appliance multitasks as a steamer, blender, warmer and defroster to prepare fresh, healthy meals for baby. It starts by steam cooking vegetables, fruits, meat and fish in less than 15 minutes, preserving their vitamins and flavors, then purees or blends them to your desired consistency. You can also use it to quickly reheat or defrost precooked foods."
Retail Price: $149.95 (also available from other online retailers besides Williams-Sonoma)
NOTE: The product originated in Europe and just recently became available in the US. After entering the US market, there was some debate about whether or not this product is Bisphenol-A free. Apparently, the bowl part originally was made of polycarbonate plastic, which is known to contain BPA but as of 2005 is made of polysulfone, a plastic material which sometimes contains Bisphenol-A. According to this article on the site "Healthy Child Healthy World," the Babycook has been tested and found not to contain BPA. The article was written by one of the writers of "Z Recommends," a popular blog that researches and discusses safe baby products.
Pee-pee Teepees
If you've ever changed the diaper of a baby boy, I'm sure you know the risk of getting showered upon by a wayward wee-wee. These little cones made of cotton are designed to protect diaper changers from those little accidents. I don't know how effective they really are, but they are a very cute concept, and as a mom who has gotten sprinkled upon many a time, I'd be willing to give them a try! They come in different patterns, but these Santa hat cones would be especially cute for Christmas. The recipient would probably get a good chuckle out of them.
Retail price: approx. $8-$14 for a pack of 5 cones (available on Amazon and other online stores)
Photo Gift Ideas:
I have always found that a photo gift adds a really nice personal touch to holiday gift giving, and this year, the majority of my gifts to family members is going to consist of photo gifts (with SB as the photo subject, of course), including the Fotoflot listed below.
Fotoflot
This site offers a unique and attractive alternative to framed photos. Instead of frames, glass, and matting, Fotoflot uses a system where it creates mounted enlargements of your photo, which you then can mount on your wall in a way that makes it look like the photo is floating (hence the name "Fotoflot"). It is similar to what you might see at a modern art gallery - very stylish. They provide the mounting bracket and necessary hardware to install it on your wall. A nice aspect of their mounting system is that it involves magnetized mounting, so you can interchange your Fotoflot photos if you have more than one mounting bracket. Here are some examples. If you don't like the idea of mounting brackets on your wall, they also offer desktop options, as well. They offer a variety of shapes and sizes with corresponding prices, ranging from $50 for a 7.5"x10" to $235 for a 20"x30." Prices include hardware and shipping.
Photofiddle
Convert any photo into framed or unframed "artwork" in a style of your choosing - e.g., modern art, Andy Warhol-style pop art, oil painting, watercolor, charcoal sketch, abstract, etc. See samples here. Some of the photos seem to convert really well and others not. I have yet to try it out, but the concept seems neat. A canvas "painting" of your little one's smiling face could make a great gift. A bit pricey, though. For unframed canvas art, prices range from $33.95 for 8" x 8" all the way to $2899.95 for 280" x 70". For a framed art print (not canvas), prices range from $36.95 for 8" x 8" to $2999.95 for 280" x 70".
Photo Book
My mother-in-law saw these being advertised on Oprah as a great way of preserving your kids' drawings (scan, upload, and compile them in a photo book). You could get really creative and turn photos into story books by setting them against fun backgrounds and writing captions. Various photo sharing sites offer them:
Snapfish - Options range from $5.99 for Mini Book to $49.99 for Signature Book. Offers various generic themes under categories like "kids & babies" and "holidays." Use coupon code WINTER08 for 20% off thru 12/31.
Kodak Gallery - Options range from $6.99 for Mini Photo Book to $69.99 for Legacy Photo Book. Offers a few book themes that include Eric Carle (of children's book fame) and Hello Kitty.
Shutterfly - Options range from $9.99 for Snapbooks to $54.99 for Memory Book. Offers many different themes, even ones like Dora the Explorer and Spongebob Squarepants. Limited-time promotion gives you 15%-30% off select photo books. Read more...
