My Christmas List for 2008 is here. I hope that there is something amongst the list that is a great idea for someone special. It could be inspirational or just simply I want one of those for me so I will put it on my list for Santa.  Happy Shopping.

Cuddle Buddy for children is a must have, it’s become the ‘I can’t go to bed without it’ thing for the girls.  It is great for in the car travelling, on a plane and also to cuddles up to at night.  It is also used for injury rehabilitation, but really it’s just an all round great gift.

Available:www.cuddlebuddies.co.nz                                         Price:$30.00

This site has the biggest range and at good price. You may also find them at a stall in your local mall in the build up to Christmas.

Indoor/Outdoor Beanbag I just love this as a gift, I bought them for family a couple of years ago and they are fun.  The best part about them is their versatility in being able to use them inside and out.  They also have this year a new take on it as in the Kids Bean Chair.

Available: Ezibuy                                                                   Price:$59.95 Style 8QZ 32551 for the big one and $39.95 for the Kids one Style 8QZ 40053

Gingerbread House Kit this is a great way to keep the kids amused in the holidays and encourages their creativity while building it.

Available:Living & Giving

Price:$39.95  or you can choose one at Ezibuy which are $29.95  Style 8QZ 40164

Australian House and Garden Magazine Subscription as this is probably the best Home magazine on the market - you can’t go wrong with this as a gift subscription for Christmas.

Available: www.magshop.co.au                                                                         Price:$59.95 (Australian)      12 month subscription(12 issues)

Save $23.45 (Aus) + shipping which will be calculated at time of purchase

www.magshop.co.nz is a great place to buy magazines subscriptions, their titles include Next Magazine which you can save 35%, Boat which you can save 35% and many more.

There is just about every title you can think of here and when stuck for a gift, this is the gift that keeps on giving.

Available: www.magshop.co.nz

Kikki.K is one of my most favourite stores, it really appeals to me every time I make that desperate attempt to be more organised.  The products are just lovely, fantastic for helping to organise your life.   My all time best buy here would be the Family Calendar which helps us busy people to keep everyone on track with where they are supposed to be.  Anything from here is a great Xmas gift.

Available: Kikki.K stores   www.kikki-k.com.au  (they deliver worldwide) or their shops are all over Australia, in Newmarket and at Queensgate, Lower Hutt.

Mecca is another of one of my Favourite spots to shop at, located in Kirkcaldie and Stains in Wellington.  The staff there are just lovely and you wont walk away empty handed as there is 30 exclusive brands to choose a gift from.  Everything  they stock is lovely and would be a “wow, that’s a cool gift” for that someone special.

Available: Kirkcaldie and Stains

O’s Big Book of Happiness - it’s doom and gloom everywhere at the moment, so why not fly in the face of that and say no, I am going to be inspired and not depressed about my life.  O’s Big Book of Happiness is put together from the O magazine and interviews she has done with famous people.  Love her or hate her, you can’t deny there is something inspiring that makes us all want to live a great life.

The Best of the O Magazine, Wisdom, Wit, Interviews, and Inspiration

Available:  Bookstores                                           Price:$52.95

The Big Game Company has a range of games and leisure equipment. The giant size versions of games such as snakes and ladders, chess and pick up sticks are especially cool.

Available: www.thebiggamecompany.co.nz              Prices from $49.95 up

Logitech Harmony 525 Universal Remote Control is a great way to simplify your TV life. Now you can have one remote control that controls all your Audio Visual gear including SKY decoders. The big plus with the Logitech Harmony is how easy it is to set it up. You install software on your computer and plug the remote into the USB port. The computer software allows you to configure all the functions just as you want them. It is far easier than using complex combinations of buttons on the remote for programming.

Available: Dick Smith Electronics                            Price: $99.00

Seedling New Zealand is a niche market producer providing high quality, experience driven products for young people. They have a huge range of neatly packaged quality gifts for children. In a world of mass produced toys that either fail to hold the child’s interest for long or break as soon as they get them out of the packet. The Seedling gift sets provide good old-fashioned experiences for children with products such as: Homemade Paper Greeting Card Kit, Become a Sushi Shefu (Chef),  Multi Medium Collage Set, Outdoor Explorer kit, The Worm Farm Kit and many more.

Available: throughout New Zealand or www.seedling.co.nz   Price: Varies

Remote Control Drinks Cooler is an ingenious battery operated ice bucket that is capable of moving up to twelve bottles of beer. The RC Drinks Cooler features four sure-grip wheels exclusively intended to speed up the delivery of cold drinks to thirsty barbeque goers.  This is a really cool site with lots of other great ideas, so check it out.

Available: www.iwantthat.co.nz                        Price: $189.95

When you have to buy for a person who has everything a great idea is to buy them an experience. The Waiheke Wine Festival is held each year at Waitangi weekend and combines great wine and good music to form the perfect day out. Buying tickets for a specific event is better than an experience vouchers because they are more likely to be used as the date has been set.

Available: www.ticketek.co.nz                         Price: $65.00 Adult, under 13 Free

For those that are serious about the Weather, this is the ultimate Weather Station. It has a wireless connection between the outdoor measurement device and the touch screen display inside. Plug it in to the USB port on your computer to download the data so you can display graphs over time of rain fall, wind speed, temperature etc.  Its not cheap but it is packed with features.

Available: www.ferrit.co.nz               Price: $449.00

  For those of you that are avid fitness fanatics and for all the rest of us who just pretend to be, help is at hand.   The first edition of Women’s Health magazine has hit the stands in October, here in New Zealand.  Women’s Health has been around in Australia for years and has always been a great source of information on anything from fitness to health.  It has sections on leading a healthy lifestyle, relationship advice, product tips on the best buys and so much more.

Their aim is simply this to inspire us all with innovative and interesting stories, advice from a great panel of New Zealand experts like Sara Chatwin -Psychologist,  Sharon Carey - Weight Loss and Dr Jodie O’Sullivan - Health, just to name a few.

They are keen for us to have a work life balance, not to think life begins and ends with the treadmill at the local gym.  The October issue had an interview with ex-Shortland Street star Claire Chitham and how she lives with Crohn’s disease.  One of my favourites was the product test on a variety of running shoes and the comments back from all of the testers were really interesting.  It certainly helped me in choosing my next pair of running shoes, maybe that will also inspire me to get back out there and pound the pavement.

There are great exercise tips and if you are ready for your big comeback to exercise, what and how should you expect to feel.

I could go on and on about this magazine so judge for yourself… but as always I am saving the best hot tip for last, the really exiting part about this magazine is the special deal price out now as they are launching into New Zealand.  For only $39.95 you get, wait for it, 8 issues if you subscribe now, that’s  fantastic value for such a quality magazine.  You are saving 33% and it effectively gives you 2 issues for free, or you can go the whole hog and get two friends to subscribe as well and you get four free issues.

To get this great deal go to www.subscribetoday.co.nz/whnz/4015 and remember to quote when asked the number 4015 to receive the special discount price, or simply call 0800 630 112.

If you are feeling really adventurous you could always offer to become one of their panelists for product testing which would be alot of fun. 

Available:  all magazine shops nationwide

Price:  $7.50 per issue 

  I feel I need to start today with an apology because lately all I seem to do is find fault with a lot of our magazines currently on sale in NZ.  But in my defence some of them at the moment are just plain rubbish.   Magazines are my thing, I can’t help but buy them.  I love to look at the pictures, see what’s new, they are so much easier to just pick up and put down than a book when you are busy.

So I was really pleased to see that on sale this weekend is the May issue of NZ House and Garden magazine and splashed across the front cover is ‘Our fresh new look’.  Yes is all I can say.  I have been complaining about this magazine for such a long time, they have been ’so last year’ for ages.  As you can imagine I was very excited, someone there has heard my complaining, they have finally decided to have a change.

Damn they have got it wrong again.  Really, is this as good as it gets? If so, then it’s definitely time for a change at the top.   Michal McKay is the Editorial Director of the magazine and she couldn’t be more out of touch with New Zealanders if she tried.  After seeing her own uninspiring home a few issues back, I fast realised we were fighting a loosing battle with her and she needs to go.

Ok so what’s wrong with it, well where do I start.  I found that there are too many sections and they seem to just merge into each other.  Each section should start on a right hand page when there is this much information, it makes it easier for us to follow.  What I did find was the advertising, advertising, some advertising and more advertising.  They must be making so much money out of the advertising, that the magazine should be free.  Half the time I thought the ad belonged to an article.

The homes they have in this issue are not overly inspirational and are definitely more unusual than inspiring.  It’s more of a showcase of how different New Zealand is than helpful.  The sections they have aren’t exactly exciting either, they are what’s instore, art deco, focus (still not sure what this is) and architectural icon, just to name a few.

They also have a page on ‘my favourite room’ - this month is James Griffin and all I see is a big mess with a guy standing there without all of his shirt tucked in??  I don’t get why we need to see this.

As you can see I am annoyed and very disappointed and could go on for ages.  So to sum up, this is definitely not a reference for you to use for your home and really this mag would, in my eyes, now fall into the arty type publication more than anything else these days.

What a pity, it has been such an icon for home design for many years.  Try out their website, it’s much more useful and free.

Available: supermarkets, dairies, booksellers etc                          Price:$8.90

  As a women who has a black-belt in shopping, it’s comforting to know I keep good company.

So when the latest issue of Simply You comes out, I get really excited. On sale now is Winter 2008 and for $10 you can spend hours pouring over one of my favourite magazines.  Started originally by fashion guru Paula Ryan, Simply You is published every March and September and is now overseen by her daughter Bridget Hope.  Simply You is useful for keeping you in touch on what is hip, cool and groovy for winter.

It’s 320 pages full of new seasons clothes, accessories and helpful tips on how to make the most of your wardrobe for the upcoming season.  You will find a comprehensive list of stockist’s and great photos of outfits they have put together.  They tell you what’s hot in terms of new season directions, including the latest in beauty products, who stocks what and so much more useful information.

But there is a down side to all of this and that is you need to have won lotto in the last few weeks or not want to eat for most of June, July and August so you can afford to buy what they suggest.  I have to say when they first started producing this magazine it wasn’t always targeted at the higher end, but it appears that it is now.   Their belief is that we should only buy investment pieces (translated means expensive) to build a timeless wardrobe.  My only problem with this theory,  is that it doesn’t work for me as I get bored with my wardrobe and like to add pieces regularly not just a couple of times a year.  So If I was to buy a $1200 coat for example  and didn’t like it next season it wasn’t much of an investment then was it.

So my advise to you is this, buy the magazine if for nothing else other than to get some great ideas and to help you build your own winter wardrobe.  You may also find those few special pieces that jump out at you, but will also still have to go and find your usual basics and the odd bargain like you do every season.

Also for the latest fashion information you can go to their website  www.simplyyou.co.nz 

Available: all major stationery stores                      Price:$10.00

                                                                                                                    

   I was in the supermarket yesterday and picked up a new magazine aptly named “Mind Food” It has just been launched on the NZ market complete with web site. It is supposed to be a “multi-media” publication with both printed and online content. It claims to cover all of the things in our everyday life.

It has a section on wellness, the environment, society, culture, food and travel, just to name a few. On the surface it appears to be very retro and cool, a new way of delivering product and other information to us. But all it has succeeded in doing is frustrate me.

When I buy a magazine I buy it for specific reasons. I buy a fashion magazine to see the latest trends in fashion for the winter. When I buy House & Garden it is for ideas for my home. Mind Food appears as if it is trying to be all things to all people. In doing so it just does not hit the mark on anything. I guess this is only issue one but it’s hard to see how it will ever develop a personality. It just has too much disconnected content.

Maybe there are really sophisticated readers out there who have such a diverse range of interests that they desperately want to read about biodynamic wines , whaling and Sandra Slater’s Pilgrimage to Santiago. I’m guessing the same person will be really interested in the article on obsessive compulsive disorder. What they need is an article on schizophrenia as I can’t help feel like I need multiple personalities just to be able to enjoy the magazine.

Frankly it drives me nuts and makes me wonder why you ever buy the magazine when you can go to the website.   As a near forty something woman who isn’t concerned about how much she pays for magazines, if I’m not interested in this who on earth is their target audience, clearly it’s not me.

Availability: Supermarkets and Magazine shops

Price: $9.90, Subscription $85 saving 28% of cover price. Included is a free Jo Malone scented Tea candle.

  A magazine subscription is always a great gift for anyone and especially for those who have everything! As with most magazine subscriptions there are fortnightly or monthly options and you can buy six months or a one year subscription - so it’s the gift that keeps on giving.

I have been an avid buyer for years of magazines and books about your home, interior design or anything related to how we live. I have taken to buying the Australian House and Garden Magazine due to the lack of good magazines here.

I recently picked up a copy of Your Home and Garden Magazine and was very impressed. I know they have been going through a re-vamp over the last year or so and I can say that it has paid off.

The layout is great, the articles are easy to read and the houses they are now profiling seem to be of a much better quality than in previous years. There is a reference section at the back of the magazine on ‘where to buy it’ so if you see something you like you know where to get it! The food section is done by Julie Biuso, with easy to follow recipes and lots of other really helpful information on gardening, planning that perfect Christmas day and much more.

Now is a very good time to buy subscriptions as they are offering really good deals before Christmas - offer ends December 21, 2007.

The December issue is particularly good with a Christmas theme. It has recipes, great gift ideas, not to mention you get to see some really beautiful homes all decorated for Christmas. I have given this 3.5 stars because I still don’t think it’s as good as the Australian House and Garden Magazine, but is still worth reading.

Hot tip: A gift subscription is really a great gift but only if the magazine suits the person you are giving it too.

Product: Your Home and Garden Magazine

Price: Christmas special $44.00(12issues) Save 50%

Available: www.magshop.co.nz or 0800 624 746 and quote M712YHGX