mini holiday shopping guide

o.k. even though i'm a bah-humbug! kinda guy when it comes to x-mas, i do throw a great holiday party. i actually believe you should be buying gifts for friends, family and self ALL YEAR ROUND, but here is my very concise holiday gift guide with a focus on the practical:

the takumi 10 key calculator is a bit of an anomaly in that it's modeled on an old apple computer extended keyboard aesthetic yet the usb functionality only works on a PC! even without the usb functionality, it is a smart looking calculator with a great touch-and-feel. my book-keeper can not say enough good things about it for using with excel and our various accounting software! also, idea japan is a company i consider a friend of nooka as they sell us in their brick and motor stores in tokyo and through-out japan – but you don't have to go all that way to buy this little gem as they now have a U.S. online shop! $58. get it here.

another idea product, yuento music mug is the perfect gift for the music geeks in your life. i have tried every possible way to simply get music into every room and i find this product to do the best job for 2 applications: music in the bathroom and for ambient music in small spaces. the yuento doesn't require any batteries so you don't have to worry about electrocuting yourself or having to find tiny batteries to get music from your ipod. i like to use this to have ambient music in the bedroom during parties that won't compete with music in the living room – a nice touch when people get their coats and bags. buy it here for $48.

popptags is the creation of my former business partner anya [go anya!]. it's the perfect gift to keep handy at home to add value to anytime you want to gift [or re-gift] a bottle of wine. 3 for $9.95 here. buy some for your friends too!

and of course, my suggestion for the best nooka gift is the revamped gold ip zirc. simply gorgeous if i do say so myself. buy yours on nooka.com or at the many fine nooka retailers worldwide. $350.



one last thing: want a magazine that is well-designed and an intelligent read from cover to cover? then the answer is monocle magazine. i LOVE monocle magazine even though nooka has yet to be featured there. a subscription to their magazine is the perfect gift that keeps on giving all year round [i know i'd appreciate one]! place your subscription order online here. £75 and up. then tell them how odd it is that the zon hasn't been featured yet:)