posts by Katie
Over the years, we’ve all seen (and probably owned) dozens of different variations on the reusable water bottle theme. Nalgene. Sigg. Kleen Kanteen. The list goes on. Yet somehow, those annoying disposable plastic water bottles endure, and in fact seem to be growing in popularity. People buy flats of them at megastores, take them with them when they leave home, and toss or recycle the bottles after an all-too-brief life.
I get it, I think. My mom is one of those people. She drinks a lot of water. She doesn’t always trust the drinking fountain or bathroom tap at her destination. So she buys disposable bottles of water and keeps several in the car. But then it becomes a habit, and she drinks out of those annoying disposable bottles even when she has access to good, trustworthy water. It makes me a little bit nuts.
I’m hoping I’ve finally found the product that will help her turn the corner: the Water Bobble.
It’s a reusable water bottle with a carbon filter built in. Pour water into the bottle, and it gets filtered as you drink. (Carbon filters are the same things that are used in a Brita pitcher.) The filters last for two months (or forty gallons) and can be replaced. The bottle itself is stylish looking and well-designed, and comes in six pretty colors. It’s BPA-free. And the price is so right: ten little bucks. Compared to some of the stainless steel options out there, that’s a steal.
I think they’ve hit it on the head with this design. Simple, inexpensive, clean. Now, according to the website, it’s not for use in place where bacteria and parasites might be a problem (ie, camping, or traveling to places with unreliable water supplies) but for those of us whose water bottles mostly travel with us to school and work and the airport? It’s a great idea.
The product is brand new- it’s not even available in stores yet, only through their website. But starting this month, you can look for them at Bed Bath and Beyond and other retailers. Earth Day is coming up, you know. I think this would make an excellent earth day gift to yourself.
Water Bobble, $9.95, at Waterbobble.com
Does Bodyglide not sound like a naughty product? It totally does, right? Except it’s not.
Bodyglide is an anti-chafing product. It provides a thin layer of smooth slickness any place where you might get chafing. (Um, this description isn’t really making it sound any less naughty, is it?) It was originally designed for athletes, to help with chafing from straps, shirt cuffs, thighs, that sort of thing. It’s a solid stick, like a deodorant, so it’s easy and non-messy to apply. And in honor of the half marathon I’m running this week, I thought it was time to share it with you- I’ve been using it to eliminate chafing from seams on the sleeves of my running shirts, and it’s made a HUGE difference.
But I’ve owned BodyGlide for YEARS, even though I just started running. Why? Because it is a miracle foot blister preventing stick. Forget those teensy tiny foot care sticks Johnson and Johnson sells - this works better, and is a better value. When I want to wear cute flats and heels without wearing horrid sweat-inducing pantyhose, a rub of BodyGlide all over my feet keeps them blister-free. This is a minor miracle, particularly in the spring and summer when warm swollen feet seem to sprout blisters just by LOOKING at high heels. When I was working at a law firm and I had to wear heels every day, I kept Bodyglide in my desk drawer at work. True story.
I’ve heard it used for lots of other purposes, too- to prevent chafing between the thighs when wearing skirts in hot weather, on the palms of hands if you’re doing garden work or kayaking or anything else that can cause blisters, even to lessen the itching/rubbing from a particularly itchy tag inside your clothing.
It sounds a little weird, and people might look at you funny if they find it in your desk drawer at work, but this is one product I highly recommend, for athletes and stiletto-wearers and everyone in between.
Bodyglide, $7.95 (also available in travel size) at REI.com
In what is perhaps the least-glamorous item to ever grace the pages of LiveWellSpendWell, I’m here to sing you the praises of…..epsom salts. Yes! Like your grandmother used to use! The ones that come in a large four-pound container that looks like a milk carton! Sexxxay.
I first discovered the joy of epsom salts when I got an incredibly gnarly ingrown toenail. After paying a doctor an absurd amount of money to hack it out (with what I later realized were $5 ingrown toenail scissors), I asked him if there was anything I could do to make it hurt less and to keep it from happening again.
“Well,” he said, “obviously you’ll want to use epsom salts.”
Huh. That would not have occurred to me. Advil? Sure. Neosporin? Absolutely. Some sort of prescription-issue painkilling ointment? Bring it. But little crystals of magesium sulfate that you dissolve in water and then soak your foot in? Sounds old fashioned and silly.
Well it may be old fashioned, but it ain’t silly. Magnesium sulfate has anti-inflammatory properties, so it’s excellent for soaking sore feet, and it made that toenail feel waaay better. My husband, who is prone to sprained ankles, dissolved two cups of the stuff in a bucket of warm water and reported a dramatic improvement in ankle pain and swelling. And since I’ve been training for a half marathon, I’ve started taking epsom salt baths after particularly grueling long runs and my hips, which are prone to soreness, feel WAY better. Miraculous.
It’s got other uses too- tofu binding agent (not kidding), natural laxative, broken-lava-lamp reviver (apparently it makes things more buoyant and can help merge the flecks of wax in a lava lamp that’s been shaken back into a cohesive mass). Really, you should check out the wikipedia page. Fascinating. In short, it’s a pretty screaming deal for a couple bucks.
Epsom Salts, available for $6.99 for a 4-pound box on drugstore.com, and substantially cheaper at your local drugstore.
One of my best friends has a great story about going on a date with a guy who was an annoying know-it-all all night, acting like he was much more sophisticated than she was, bragging about where he’d traveled, boasting about his foodie pedigree, that kind of thing. At the end of the insufferable evening, he topped it off by ordering the “pot de creme”- pronounced “paht dee creem,” rather than the more traditional “poh duh crehm,” thus redeeming the awful date by giving her a fun story to tell for all eternity.
So yes, pots de creme may seem a little…fussy. But I cannot get over how cute these little pots are. They have the classic lion’s head accent, and each hold two ounces. They’re dishwasher safe, microwave safe, and oven safe to 350 degrees.
And at $13.96 for a SET OF TWELVE, I will FIND reasons to use them. Chocolate pudding! Creme brulee! Really tiny portions of soup! Serving dips and condiments at a party! Heck, I’d use one on my bedside table to hold my rings at night.
If, like me, you’re eying the upcoming wedding season with some trepidation, I’d also note that they’d make an excellent classy-looking, not-too-expensive shower gift.
Set of twelve pots de creme pots, $13.96 on sale at Sur La Table.
This is a cookie scoop:
It is used for, among other things, scooping cookie dough into nice even balls and then releasing it onto baking sheets.
If you had told me five years ago that I would own a cookie scoop, I would have scoffed. Had you told me that I would be writing to sing its praises to other people, I would have guffawed.
Yet here we are.
A cookie scoop is one of those things that seems unnecessary and ridiculous. How hard is it to use a spoon to scoop up cookie dough and make it into nice-shaped balls? Use a soup spoon! Heck, use your tablespoon measure if you want! Who would waste $14 on a device like this?
Well, full disclosure: I didn’t, and I probably never would have owned a cookie scoop had it not been for a spot of good luck. I got mine for free from a restaurant that was going out of business. We knew the owners and after the place closed, they let us come in and take some of their old kitchenware before they sold it for pennies on the dollar at an auction. This is also how I came to own: my favorite pot (All Clad!) my offset spatula, two frying pans, and oil and vinegar cruets. Should you be lucky enough to know the owners of a going-out-of-business restaurant, I highly recommend telling them earnestly that you’re sorry the business didn’t work out, then raiding their kitchen.
And after I got the cookie scoop (which, by the way, would also make a very nice ice cream scoop for making small-size portions, if one were into that sort of thing, which I am not,) I let it languish in my drawer for many months, not thinking to use it even when I was making cookies.
But then I discovered the New York Times Overnight Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe From the Heavens. People, have you tried these cookies? Oh my stars, they are THE COOKIE. If you haven’t made them yet, I highly recommend you do so immediately. Ignore the part where it says you need $8 feves instead of chocolate chips- I use the Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips and they are AMAZING.
Well, this chocolate chip cookie recipe requires you to refrigerate dough for 36 hours. And after 36 hours, dough is really hard to scoop. Plus, the recipe requires huge portions of dough- the size of a golf ball. I struggled and complained as I tried to do it with a spoon, and was about to give up, when I remembered my large cookie scoop…voila! No more wrist-breaking effort and misshapen cookies.
So, if you are making large cookies, particularly those that spend a lot of time in the fridge before scooping: you might want to invest in one of these. If you are looking for a “signature recipe” for bake sales and the like, I highly recommend that this be it, and that you buy a cookie scoop.
So, do I need a cookie scoop?
Verdict: if you want to make the best chocolate chip cookies ever, yes. If you hate perfect cookies, you can probably skip it.
Oxo Large Cookie Scoop, $12.99 at amazon.
(Hey! It seems those gift guides really wore us out! It’s mid-January already! How the eff did that happen? Moving on.)
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At this time of year, I always feel ready to scale it back a little, food-wise. I try to eat more fresh food to make up for the holiday gorging on cookies and candy (this year I made approximately 842 salted caramels, of which I gave away approximately 300 and ate approximately 542).
But let’s be honest, shall we? While there are days when I want to lovingly chop hand-selected organic vegetables for a brown rice and tofu stir fry, there are other nights when I get home and I really want to order a pizza.
For those nights, I find it’s good to have a few shortcuts and tricks at the ready. I’m not talking Sandra Lee’s semi homemade (shudder) – just some pantry staples that make it possible for me to step away from the takeout menus and make something relatively healthy.
This is one of my best weapons:
This is Frontera Tomatillo Salsa, and it is insanely delicious. It tastes bright and acidic and almost citrusy, with a gentle bit of heat. I get it in the “international foods” aisle of my supermarket. (Frontera is a well-known Mexican restaurant in Chicago run by Iron Chef Master Rick Bayless, so it’s possible this is easier to find in the Chicago area. But if you can find it, I highly recommend you buy it immediately.)
Allow me to share with you its ingredient list:
Ingredients: Tomatillos, tomatoes, filtered water, onions, serrano chiles, cilantro, garlic, salt, evaporated cane juice, spices.
Look at that! I can pronounce all of those things! I could buy them all individually and make this myself! Except I don’t have to, because Rick Bayless has done it for me!
I use this salsa a zillion ways. One of my favorites is to stir it in at the last minute to a bunch of scrambled eggs, then serve with tortillas (or wheat toast) for a quick Mexican breakfast-for-dinner. Or I sautee an onion and carrot and celery, add a can of drained black beans and 4 cups of water, simmer it for 45 minutes or so, then swirl in a huge dollop of this stuff. Voila! Soup! I’ve even been known to spread it on sandwiches with cheese and avocado and tomato and pop it in the panini press for a super delicious twist on grilled cheese. Or I whisk together a dollop of this with a dollop of fat free greek yogurt or sour cream to make an awesome salad dressing for a taco-style salad.
Sometimes, I like to make my own salsa. For dipping chips, there’s nothing better, in my mind, than a freshly-chopped pico de gallo. But for a super-versatile, delicious, and healthy way to season foods quickly, this salsa is well worth checking out.
Frontera Tomatillo Salsa, $4.95 for 16 oz, at grocery stores and at FronteraKitchens.com
Is there a beauty products junkie in your life? She’s sure to appreciate any of these classic, useful beauty gifts. They make great stocking stuffers, too! (Since we’re getting down to the wire, from here on out the gift guides will feature items that are easy to find in-person, not just online, so you can run out and get one on your lunch break. You’re welcome!)
Clinique Quickliner for Eyes
Line with one side, smudge with the other. Comes in amazing colors, and much nicer quality than a lot of those drug store brands.
Quickliner, $14.50 at Clinique counters
Rosebud Salve
I put this magic product in my mom and sister’s stockings one year, and now they get mad if I don’t do it every year. A perfect lip balm that also works great on dry skin, and to tame flyaways, and a million other uses.
Rosebud Salve, $5.59 at Drugstore.com and drugstores everywhere
Tweezerman Mini
Tread carefully or you risk of sending a “wow, your eyebrows are super bushy!” message with this one. But if you know she plucks already, you can’t beat the gold standard of tweezers.
Tweezerman Mini, $10-$12 at Ulta, Sephora and elsewhere
Fancy Hair Minis
My sister once got me a bunch of travel-sized bottles of fancy hair products I would have been too chicken to try myself. GREAT gift. Recommended: Ojon dry shampoo (pictured); Fekkai products.
Ojon travel-sized dry shampoo, $10 at Sephora
Laura Mercier Hand Cream
Everyone needs hand cream at this time of year. This is way nicer than the stuff she buys herself. It goes on smooth, absorbs quickly, and smells divine. (I recommend the Almond Coconut scent.)
Hand Cream, $15 at Bloomingdales and at department stores
There’s one in every family- the person who has hard-to-predict taste, who already has everything, the one who is just impossible to shop for. If you can’t give them something that will make their life complete, you can at least try to make them smile.
Gin & Titonic Ice Cube Trays
Hah! Gin and Titonic! Get it? TiTONIC? Hilarious! (Jokes aside, these ice cubes are pretty cute. And if the family gathering gets a little stressful, you can put them right to work.)
Ice Cube Trays, $6 at Perpetual Kid
Presto Cheese Slicer
Elegant, useful design is ALWAYS a welcome gift. Perfect for cheese lovers, design-lovers, and those who will feel gratified that you thought they’d appreciate a gift that’s also featured in the permanent collection at MOMA. Bonus: many, many opportunities for “who cut the cheese” jokes. Presto!
Cheese slicer, $5 at MOMA Store
Please Please Me (Remastered)
The newly digitally-remastered versions of all the Beatles albums really do sound different- clearer and crisper- than the original cd releases. Start someone off on collecting the new versions with the great 1st album- or pick what you think might be their favorite. Who can object to the Beatles? No one, that’s who.
Remastered Beatles Albums, $12.99 on Amazon
Dog Costume
Does your impossible-to-buy-for someone happen to have a small dog? Will you please buy them this? Please? And then send me pictures? Thank you.
Dog Rudolph Costume, $10 on etsy
Hibiscus Flowers in Syrup
These are so unexpected and so, so lovely. Put one in the bottom of a glass of champagne for an elegant, delicious daytime cocktail. Unusual items like this are perfect for hard-to-shop-for folks. Plus, they’re tasty.
Hibiscus Flowers, $11 at Wildhibiscus.com
Hopefully, next year, these people will give us some suggestions or a wish list or something. This is exhausting.
Someone in your life home for the holidays? Give them something that will make them the hit of the dorm when they go back for second semester.
Spilt Milk Cereal Bowl
This adorable bowl looks like it has milk spilling over the sides. But it’s not just clever- is nice and deep, perfect for late night bowls of cereal or microwaved macaroni and cheese. Plus, it’s silicone, so it’s easy to clean and won’t break when its thrown in a box for storage over the summer.
Silicone cereal bowl, $13.99 at Perpetual Kid
Pick your nose paper cups
What’s better than cheap beer in your dorm room with friends? Cheap beer consumed out of ridiculous paper cups with hilarious noses! I call dibs on one with a mustache!
Pick your nose cups, $10.75 at Amazon
Red Vines Tub
I ate an unholy amount of these in college. A tub of these in your room = instant visitors. Probably best reserved for those traveling back to campus by car, so as to avoid overweight bag fees.
Red Vines 4-lb Tub, $10.66 on Amazon
Wood Grain Magnet Strips
Those quilted flower-fabric bulletin boards are SO 1990s. Try something sleeker and more modern for hanging those embarrassing pictures of her Saturday-night antics.
Magnetic Strips with 6 super-strong magnets, $8 at Velocity Art and Design
Caladium Bowl
This lovely bowl is just made for sitting on a dresser. Perfect for storing rings, hair bands, or quarters for the laundry.
Caladium Bowl, $7.95 (on sale from $16) at Anthropologie
Aw, teenager. You’re so sullen. Cheer up! Here are some presents!
We Love Colors Tights
Would you have wanted it in the 80s? Do the pictures of you wearing it in the old days mortify you now? Perfect. That’s what she wants. These tights come in 51 amazing colors, including neons. Get a couple, secure your “cool aunt” status.
Tights, $8 each, at We Love Colors
Mixtape Headphone Winder
Use this little gadget to keep those pesky headphone cords at bay. Sure, he never owned a cassette tape, but that doesn’t mean he can’t appreciate irony.
Headphone Winder, $8 at Fred Flare
Acoustic Amplifier
This super-cool contraption amplifies the sound from your iPhone just by the shape of the plastic, using good old-fashioned physics. Excellent as a speaker for carrying with you in a backpack, or for those who are battery-phobic. (Via Maggie)
Griffin Acoustic Amplifier, $14.99 at Amazon
Sharpie Mini Marker Set
Allows her to doodle her initials with those of her crush in many delicious colors. Everyone loves new art supplies.
Sharpie Mini Markers, $11.73 at Amazon
DIY Duct Tape Wallet Kit
Imagine how cool she’ll feel when someone inquires after her badass wallet and she can say nonchalantly “oh, this old thing? I made it.”
Duct Tape Wallet Kit, $9.99 at Amazon
They ARE difficult- to shop for, to relate to, to endure- but we do love them, don’t we?
