It's that time of the year that causes so many of us undue stress, intense deliberations, and sleepless nights.
Ok, well perhaps the sleepless nights might be a bit of an extreme description, but buying friends and family CHRISTMAS PRESENTS is often less fun and more stressful.
With there being so many gadgets and gizmos out there, it's easy to forget about the more 'traditional' gifts that used to be the norm at this time of year.
So here, I am going to take a look at a selection of gifts, for both sexes, that could be a wise choice for loved ones at Christmas.
Smart Ass - University Games
 |
| Can you prove yourself to be a 'Smart Ass' |
This is a board game, with a difference. It encourages competitiveness while keeping that element of fun.
The basic description is that all players, barring the reader (which changes at each dice roll) has to answer either a 'Who am I?' 'What am I?' or Where am I?' question. There are 10 clues, and the beauty is that any player can shout out their 'guess' at any point. Beware though, if you guess incorrectly though, you have to sit out.
Get your question correct, and you roll the dice to move around a fairly small game-board, with the ultimate aim to reach the end, which is the 'donkey's ass'!
The more players the better, so I would say at least three. The beauty of it is even if you get the question right, land on a bad square on the board, and you could be going back three spaces. But it remains key to get the questions correct, and importantly, first!
 |
| The lovely volunteers had a fun time trying to reach the Ass! |
Also, the games don't take too long to complete, which means you can go again, and read through more of the substantial question cards again.
A couple of criticisms - it is perhaps not so visually appealing, but that is far from the most important thing. Also, there should be card holders, as they have a tendency to slide off each other, and are easy to be knocked around, etc.
All in all though, this should certainly be considered as a Christmas gift, and one that can be played straight after you've finished your turkey!
Smart Ass travel would make a fun stocking filler (RRP £9.99), stockist include Argos, Toys R Us, Amazon and Tesco.
 |
| Give the gift of good furtune this Christmas with Jura Superstition |
Jura Superstition - Jura Whisky
Jura distillery has Christmas all wrapped up this year with its award-winning Superstition whisky, which comes with a generous measure of good fortune for all lucky recipients.
Superstition, with its mysterious spirit, unique style and character, has a subtle taste of spice, honey, pine, peat and a whisper of smoke - ideal flavours to complement the festive season.
The community of Jura, known as Diurachs, regard the island as a place of myth, legend and intrigue and for thousands of years good fortune and mystery has enhanced island life.
Jura distillery manager, Willie Cochrane, said: “Superstition encapsulates the island’s mystical properties and the superstitious nature of the islanders. One particular Diurach is believed to have lived to see over a hundred Christmases on the island, so I for one like to believe Jura Superstition does bring good fortune.”
“Superstition’s lightly peated taste with hints of smoke and spice is perfect to warm up even the coldest winter’s night. Its honey and spice flavours also perfectly complement a range of Christmas dishes, working especially well with cheeses. Or for those having an alternative to turkey, it works well with meats with added tang such as gammon steak, salted pork or game.”
Jura Superstition is available to purchase online at www.isleofjura.com/shop for £36.
Barratt Sweets - Tangerine Confectionary
 |
| Go old school with this delightful sherbert-filled mug |
Tired of giving socks and umbrellas as stocking fillers? Fear not - Barratt is here to rescue Christmas, with some of its best-loved sweets in festive gift format. Christmas is the perfect time to rekindle childhood memories, which is why Barratt has introduced three nostalgic gifts for you to impress your retro-sweet loving friends and family.
For the Sherbet Fountain enthusiasts, a limited edition Sherbet Fountain mug (RRP £4.99) containing four tubes of Sherbet Fountain, is enough to make fans cheer with Christmas joy! For the liquorice purists out there, the Catherine Wheels tin (RRP £3.99), is a great pencil case sized gift, filled to the brim with Catherine Wheel treats.
Barratt’s time capsule (RRP £4.99) contains all your childhood favourite sweets, sealed into a sweetie cylinder capsule that can be used as a money box once empty – the perfect gift for big and small kids alike! The capsule contains the bestselling Barratt sweets - Black Jacks, Fruit Salads, Sherbet Fountains, Dip Dabs, Flumps, Refreshers and Nougat.
Barratt’s Christmas gifts are available from B&M, BHS, Matalan, Selfridges and a selection of independent specialist stores. To keep up to date with all the news from Barratt sweets, visit www.facebook.com/barrattsweets
The Shape Of Shit To Come (book)
The Shape of Shit To Come comes from the rather bitter minds of Steve Lowe and Alan McArthur, authors of the mega-selling, Is It Just Me Or Is Everything Shit?
They take readers on a funny and unsurprisingly sarcastic tour of a near future that is taking shape before our very own (jaded) eyes. This is a future apparently full of sex robots, hotels floating in space and children making their own pets with gene-splicing kits.
This book is the ideal antidote to the age of calorie-counting, Health and Safety and parental control. Mysterious designer PK Munroe, the originator of the current stickering craze, has created hundreds of hilarious, subversive and just plain silly stickers to help you hit back at the bossy, finger-wagging experts who think they are in charge.
Juvenile, irresponsible, and completely pointless, You Can Stick It is the sticky, stress-busting self-help book for our times.
A bit of History about Nicholson's pubs
BEST OF BRITISH – NICHOLSON’S PUBS
Setting a precedent for hospitality in good food and drink, J&W Nicholson & Co was originally a London based gin maker which began its empire during the gin craze of the 1700s. The father and son team of James and William Nicholson produced Lamplighter Gin whilst running several gin palaces in Central London.
Gin palaces were originally small ‘dram’ shops where people could order a quick shot.
However, these grew into larger sites when legislation called for them to be licensed and also sell wine and ale. Their design hugely influenced all aspects of design for later Victorian pubs including the shop counter of the gin palace, designed for swift service and ideal for attaching beer pumps - a now welcomed sight at Nicholson’s.
The company moved its production of Lamplighter Gin to Three Mills site in Clerkenwell in 1872. In 1941 the company ceased gin production due to rationing based shortages during World War II. Instead it decided to focus on hospitality through good food and drink, namely ale served through their traditional taverns. Each pub has its own charm and still in its original and historical locations, with many stories to tell about their area and their famous neighbours.
Whilst becoming a popular retreat for its locals across the UK and growing into a successful empire, J&W Nicholson and Co. was also making history in sports world, particularly the international cricket scene.
As an avid amateur cricketer, William Nicholson was mainly associated with Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and in 1866 the MCC purchased the freehold of Lord’s Ground. The money was advanced to them by club member, William Nicholson which saved the club’s future.
William Nicholson continued to loan the Club substantial amounts of money for numerous projects over the next 30 years and was President of the MCC in 1879. As a way of thanking William for his support, the MCC decided to adopt the red and gold of the Nicholson’s gin company. Today these colours are amongst the most distinctive in the sporting world.
Nicholson’s Pubs is where you’ll find craftsmanship, eccentricity and charm in a sensitive, relaxing and welcoming atmosphere. Today there are over 80 Nicholson’s Pubs across the country (over 40 in London), each offering a high quality retreat from busy city life.
To find out more about Nicholson’s Pubs or each local pub history please visit www.nicholsonspubs.co.uk
Christmas Presents continued.....
JOIN THE SEARCH FORWHERE’S WALLY?® THIS CHRISTMAS!
Searching for unique and challenging presents and accessories this Christmas? Then look no further than the iconic and much loved gifts fromWhere’s Wally? Perfect as stocking-fillers or gifts, there is something for the whole family from the young to the young at heart! Join the search for Wally with hours of fun this Christmas.
 |
| Advent Calendar |
Where’s Wally? Advent Calendar
RRP £2.99
Available exclusively at Marks & Spencer.
During the cold days of December, theWhere’s Wally? Advent Calendar will keep the whole family occupied searching for the elusive red and white striped traveller amongst Santas galore, the biggest ever Christmas pudding and racing sleighs. Be warned, you will need to have a keen eye or a good pair of glasses to find Wally in the crowd.
Where’s Wally? 87 Piece Art Set
RRP £6.99
Available from Puffin Book Cluband all good independent retailers.
Children will love the ultimateWhere’s Wally? art set, full of fantastic art materials including felt tips, paints and crayons – everything a budding artist will need to put their imaginations to work to create their very ownWhere’s Wally? scenes.
Where’s Wally? Boxer Shorts
RRP £12
 |
| The Where's Wally boxer shorts |
Stocking-fillers
Father Christmas and his elves will have no problem filling stockings with Where’s Wally? sketch pads that come with 6 colouring pencils, theWhere’s Wally? sneaky sticker sheets and a set of kitsch Where’s Wally? Badges.
Where’s Wally? Sketch Pads
RRP £3.99
Available from The Book People and The Works
Where’s Wally? Sneaky Sticker Sheets
RRP £3.00 Pack of 8
Available from Party Pieces, Party Delights
and independent retailers
Where’s Wally? Assorted Pin Badges
RRP £4.00 Pack of 9
Available from Amazon, Talking Tables and
independent retailers
Costumes and Cake
With the mince pies eaten and the presents put away in aWhere’s Wally? storage box, it’s time to celebrate Christmas and New Year with aWhere’s Wally? party. Stand out from the crowd in a Wally costume, available in children and adult sizes and a hilariousWhere’s Wally? face mask to fully complete the look! Then, serve up the Where’s Wally? cake that not only serves 16 hungry party goers, but the packaging can also be used to play hide ‘n’ seek around the house.
Where’s Wally? Cake Where’s Wally? Costumes Where’s Wally? Storage Box
RRP £8.99 RRP from £17.99 RRP £9.99
 |
| Storage box |
independent retailers independent retailers
AboutWhere’s Wally?
Created by Martin Handford and first published in 1987,Where's Wally? is one of the most recognizable characters in the world and a pop-culture icon. A global publishing phenomenon with 50+ million books sold worldwide, the successful series is published in more than 38 countries and has been translated into more than 30 languages. JOIN THE SEARCH! as the ultimate world traveller embarks on A Fantastic Journey to celebrate his 25th Anniversary in 2012. Online, in-store, or at events–who knows whereWally will be spotted next? Keep your eyes open. You won’t be the only one searching. whereswaldo.com
Bluebeards revenge men's grooming products
Bluebeards revenge men's grooming products
The Bluebeards Revengehave just launched a range of new products, including a smaller version (100ml) of their beard reducing shaving cream, a post shave balm, a pre shave oil, and an anti-perspirant deodorant, all can be seen at http://www.bluebeards-revenge.co.uk/shop/
The stand out product from our range is a paraben free, premium quality shaving cream with added ingredients such as Decelerine to specifically combat tough stubble and reduce hair growth, as well as tackle common shaving problems like razor rash, burn, ingrowing hairs and bump.
Make the daily grind a gourmet experience
What’s your favourite coffee? And I don’t mean which brand of freeze dried granules, or generic ‘fresh’ option which tells you little more than what country it’s from. Is it a heart-thumping Indonesian number or perhaps an earthy African brew?
Like wine, coffee has a characteristic taste and aroma depending on where it’s grown, by who, and how it’s roasted. There’s a world of irresistible coffee out there yet many of us don’t know about it, relying on the limited (and often poor) choice of the supermarket or coffee house chain.
But not any more. Inspiring the coffee-crazy* nation on how to best discover the sensuous secrets of its second favourite hot drink is Kopi - delivering gourmet coffee directly through your letter box every month.
Launched October 2011, this perky new concept in coffee drinking offers subscribers a convenient way to try a different ‘posh’ roast every month, broadening their foodie horizons from the bog standard supermarket blend.
Kopi’s coffee:
- Chosen by experts from world-class estates– collectively the Kopi team has over 150 years’ expertise
- Discover one new top-notch coffee every month
- Ultimate in convenience - delivered through your letterbox
- Single-origin coffee – the best beans from just one region; no blends
- Coffee you just can’t get in a supermarket
Kopi’s coffee arrives ground - or for real connoisseurs - as whole beans; you choose. And in a chic, cleverly designed box that slips easily through your letterbox. Inside, the freshly roasted coffee is foil-wrapped for freshness in a nifty re-sealable bag that stands up by itself. Alongside the coffee is a beautiful booklet featuring fun, fuss-free knowledge on its unique characteristics and provenance.
Members also have access to an exclusive area on Kopi.co.uk, which provides brimfuls of fresh knowledge about each month’s specially selected coffee; from fascinating facts about where it grows and how it gets its unique taste to handy hints on how to serve the perfect cup.
This isn’t the domain of the jargon-spouting coffee geek however/ Kopi wants the nation to enjoy a genuinely better cup of coffee, with information presented in simple language and visuals that everyone can understand and be inspired by.
Elevate the breakfast buzz to a taste bud sensation, wow at parties with your sophisticated after dinner drinks and knowledge, or provide the perfect gift to anyone who cares about the quality of their beverage.
Subscriptions start from just £7 a month. Orders are now being accepted at www.kopi.co.uk/join1, with the first October batch of corking coffee limited to a few hundred people.
A life-changing Christmas gift idea for just £15
Forget the socks and chocs this Christmas, how about a stocking filler that could change your life forever?
A new book, Change Inspiration by Damian Hughes, is out in time for Christmas and promises to change your life around in a few easy-to-read chapters.
Maybe you want to help your child do better at school. Maybe you want your team to act more responsibly at work. Maybe you want to get your family to improve their health and wellbeing. In short, any change you want to see happen. Whether you want to transform yourself, another person or even the world, all change has something in common: for anything to change, someone has to start acting differently.
In Change Inspiration, Damian Hughes takes the lid of one of the great mysteries of life: how can you get people to start behaving in a new way? Looking at the way our brain works, he reveals through compelling analysis and entertaining anecdotes, precisely how our brain absorbs information - and how you can start to inspire others.
The book is just £15 and available to buy now from Amazon and all good book shops.
No comments:
Post a Comment