To follow along with my post yesterday, I decided to help take the guesswork out of shopping for a lot of men, and list some neat gift ideas for women.  The key to buying a gift for a woman, is to understand who she is, and what she likes to do.  Purchase something meaningful, or something that will help make her life easier - however blenders and vacuums are not appropriate gifts.

Here are some of my top gift ideas:

• Spa gift certificate for a massage.  Almost every woman likes to be pampered, and if she doesn’t want a massage, she can exchange the certificate for a variety of other services.
• First class travel kit.  If the woman you love is always on the road, pick her up a luxury travel kit with a travel pillow, eye-mask, and hydrating skin care products.
• Beautiful laptop bag.  There are so many great options for this product, you are sure to find one that matches her personality.
• Flip Ultra USB Camcorder.  A fun gift that can be taken anywhere to record the good times together.
• Jewelry.  This gift is hard to get wrong, unless you are in a new relationship, or you don’t know the woman you are shopping for’s taste.  Either way, the key here is to pick out something special and unique.  It doesn’t have to be the most expensive piece in the store.
• iRobot Roomba Discovery Robotic Vacuum.  Ok, I know I said no vacuums, but this one doesn’t count.  It is a self-cleaning vacuum.  You set it on a timer, and it will clean your entire house.  I love mine!

The above ideas are great, and easy to buy for almost any woman, but here are a few of my not-so-generic ideas:

• Experiential Gift.  Take her on a hot air balloon ride, or up in a prop plane.  Do something exciting and new she has never done before.
• Wine Chiller Cabinet/Fridge.  If the woman you love loves wine, this could be a wonderful gift.  To up the wow factor, stock the fridge with a few bottles of her favorite wine or champagne to show her how much you love her.
• Gourmet Cooking Accessories. Rare spices, bamboo cutting boards, gourmet cooking pans, cookbook holder stands, induction burners - any of these are great ideas if your woman is a cullinare.

I hope these gift ideas helped.  Rememeber, the key to picking out any gift, is to do so with love, and thoughts of the person you are buying for.  The cards I recieve also mean a lot.  Pick out a card that is  and fits the woman you are giving it to.  It really is the thought that counts!

ry year I get stumped when trying to purchase gifts for my dad, brother and fiance.  To help gain a better understanding of the male psyche, I polled my twitter audience, asking for advice on the top gifts to get a man this holiday season.  The results were a little surprising, the varied quite a bit, and I even wanted a few of the gifts for myself.  Here are some of my favorite ideas:

• Portable DVD Player
• The new MacBook Pro Laptop (this was one of the favorites - over 60% recommended this gift)
•  Any Guitar Hero video game  (another favorite)
• 3G iphone
• 300 piece Poker set
• Laptop Bag
• Espresso Machine and a years supply of gourmet espresso (I would love this one for myself!)
• Racecar driving school
• Luxury bathrobe (slightly surprising how many men asked for this gift)

These were a few of my favorites.  What are some of your favorite gifts to receive?

One of my favorite holiday traditions is decorating the Christmas tree with my family.  We make the entire evening into an event.  We turn down the lights, light candles, play holiday music, and eat Christmas cookies while decorating.  Over the years, I have learned a few helpful tips to make tree decorating run a little smoother…

• Pick a tree that fits your home.  This sounds like a no-brainer, but I have seen many people purchase a gigantic tree, only to have to squish it into their living space.  You can have a beautiful tree that fits your home - size is not the most important factor.
• Choose the height of your tree by measuring the height of your ceiling. If the tree is too tall, you won’t be able to fit a star or an angel on it, or you may have to trim the top.

Find more tips here...

Even though we live in a world where you can find almost any gift you would want to give via the internet, I still find the most value in giving personalized holiday presents gifts. One of my favorites to give is Christmas Potpourri, because it is so easy to make, and you can customize the scent for each of your friends and family members.

The instructions below are for making a beautiful citrus blend, perfect for the holidays, and the salt you add to the mixture helps the scent last for weeks. The scent comes out best when the potpourri is kept in a warn dry location.

What you will need:
1 Quart of fir needles
1 Cup dried citrus peels (grapefruit, lemon, lime, orange, etc)
1 Cup whole rosemary
½ Cup dried whole basil
2 to 4 Whole bay leaves (coarsely crumbled)
2 Cups coarse (not iodized) salt

Feel free to add any other fun holiday decorations to the mix, like pinecones, ribbons, glitter, etc.

What to do:

First, prepare the citrus peels by removing the membrane. Then, cut them into strips, and leave to dry in a warm place till very crisp and brittle. Once dry, break the peels into small pieces and store in plastic bags tightly sealed. Super easy!

Another variation is to slice the citrus into thin circles, and then let them dry. This adds a new tropical look to the mix.

For a fun spin, mix all ingredients together and use to stuff fabric tree ornaments, or place the mix in beautiful decorated lace bags, and give to your friends and family.