Holiday Gift Ideas

Carlie Dietert and Sydney Wallace (from left) love wearing monogrammed caps. Sydney is modeling her sister Katelyn's, but maybe Santa will bring one of her own this Christmas. (Photo: Kevin Long,www.gulfcoastshots.com)

If visions of presents are dancing in your head, in not a good way, help is here. We’ve assembled a jumble of mostly local gift ideas from Buzz readers that are sure to bring a smile. It’s our gift to you. Happy holidays!

Cap It Off: Jackie Wallace’s tip for great holiday gifts is monogrammed caps from Phyllis Adels Advertising. “I was looking for something different to give,” she says. “These fit well and to be able to personalize them is key. I bought them for my daughter’s friends [high school seniors], and they love them.” Caps come in 30 pre-washed colors with leather straps in back. $25. [email protected] or 713-465-1053

Be Festive: One reader says a decorated gingerbread house was the best gift she’s ever received. “I put it on a table in my entry hall and the gingerbread smell lasted for weeks,” she says. “So holidayish. And my kids picked candy off of it constantly, so it was really fun.” She also remembers the morning she walked downstairs and noticed the chimney was missing. “My daughter had been up studying late and couldn’t stand it. She ate a huge chunk of chimney to get her through her late-nighter!” A multi-purpose gift, for sure. Williams-Sonoma.com has a range: The modest ready-to-decorate cottage is $49.95, and the “estate” is $249.95. Or order one from a local grocery, decorated or unadorned, ready to be festooned.

Max Lewis, 10, wants a new holographic $100 bill for Christmas. (Photo: www.hartphoto.com)

Make a Loan: For friends who have it all, a reader likes to give gift cards to Kiva. “It’s the gift that keeps on giving,” he says. For as little as $25, Kiva provides loans to people without access to traditional banks. The full amount goes toward loans to people; Kiva does not take a cut. The gift card recipients get to choose the borrower they want to support, and they will eventually be paid back or have the option to lend the money again. Starting at $25. Kiva.org

Be Cool: For men, Randolph Engineering sunglasses do more than just block UV rays. Battle-tested and standard military issue, the iconic sunglasses line started when the glasses were commissioned for the U.S. Air Force. The gold bayonet aviators are worn by Don Draper in the TV series Mad Men. Starting at $130. PH Design Shop, 2414 Rice Blvd., phdesignshop.com

Let Them Eat Cake: Elizabeth Vallone has a following. She’s baked the cheesecakes for Tony’s restaurant for 26 years. Caroline Jinks says, “Elizabeth’s small gift cheesecake is beautifully wrapped and delicious, a help during this busy entertaining time of year.” This season, choose from vanilla or praline, 10-inch (serves 14 to 18) or 6-inch (serves 5 to 7). 10-inch cake, $55; 6-inch cake, $25. [email protected]

Betty Hrncir, mom of grown boys Garret and Trent, loves shopping for her granddaughters, Cece, Casady and Mary Margaret. Pictured is 2-year-old Cece, delighted to see what grandma, known as "B," has in the box. (Photo: Kevin Long, www.gulfcoastshots.com)

Get Fit: “Get one of these for everyone in your family so you can make a game of it,” says a mom of two teenagers. The Fit Bit Flex is a wristband you wear all day and night that tracks steps taken, distance traveled, calories and sleep – both time and quality. It lets you set daily goals and then syncs to your smart phone or computer. The mom says she would never get 10,000 steps a day in without her Fit Bit; it’s like a game she plays daily with herself – and her family. $99. Best Buy, Sports Authority.

Snack Healthy: If you’re over the sugar-fest mentality of the holidays and want to give a healthier treat, try Green Plate Foods’ holiday gift cookies. Choose from zucchini chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin. Packaged in clear tubes with holiday labels, the cookies are nutrient-rich, made from fruit and vegetable purees. They also will do custom labels with personal or company logos for orders over 300. 10 cookies, $10; 20 cookies, $20. Greenplatefoods.com

Give Gold: When she retired after 25 years as director of student activities at Texas A&M University, Buzz resident Carolyn Adair realized she needed a new gig. She bought property in Tuscany and discovered 110 abandoned ancient olive trees there. Today, Carolyn sees to it that those trees produce olive oil that is, according to admirer Roz Cooley, “the richest, most flavorful olive oil I’ve ever tasted. Unusually good.” Carolyn travels regularly to Tuscany, where she oversees the planting, pruning, picking and pressing of her olives. Amici Extra Virgin Olive Oil is only available in Tuscany and Texas. 17-ounce bottle, $26; 6-bottle case, $156. Leibman’s Wine & Fine Foods, 14529 Memorial Dr.; Specs, three locations; Amiciitalianimports.com

Make It Personal: Rachel Boehler likes to give personalized wine tags and gift tags from Molasses Candy Designs, because, she says, “Carrie [Vallone, the owner] is a true perfectionist in all her work.” The wine tags fit over the neck of a wine bottle or a bottle of olive oil, making a hostess gift or any gift a little more personal. Both the gift and wine tags are custom. She says the website has ideas, but Carrie will design “pretty much anything” you want. Wine tags, 10 for $20; Gift tags, 12 for $12. Molassescandy.com

Inspire Creativity: Stacy Anderson recently bought an artmixkit from Jacqueline Kenneally’s art school artmix. The kit is a bag stuffed with everything a child needs to create a project – pipe cleaners, pompoms, glitter. “I brought the little neighbor girl a bracelet kit,” Stacy says. “She loved it so much she made the bracelet and brought it down to my daughter as a birthday gift. It was a great icebreaker and helped us connect with our neighbors.” Kits are seasonal; look for Christmas now. Like the classes at artmix, each art project is inspired by a famous artist’s style. Bags, $10; boxes $20. artmix, 3701 W. Alabama, St. 250, artmixlearning.com

Mom Dinah: monogrammed PJs. Dad Will: Big Green Egg smoker. Grant, 5: BB gun, moon chair. Lucy, 8: American Girl Caroline, who comes with a boat. Hank, 9: GoPro camera (featured on 60 Minutes). (Photo: Kevin Long,www.gulfcoastshots.com)

Say Thanks: The “Thanks with Frosting on Top” cake from Nothing Bundt Cakes is made especially for teachers, with a mini chalkboard that can be used to personalize or write a note, and a smiley-face button. Other ideas for anyone who helps you and your family throughout the year – teachers, service-providers, employees: movie passes, concert tickets, a hotel package in Galveston or Austin, a Whole Foods gift card (these sport cute quips like, “thyme to celebrate”).  “My favorite teacher gifts are movie cards,” says a mom of four. “Some of my kids’ teachers are in their 20s, and some are three times that, but it doesn’t matter. They can go or regift to a nephew, but it will definitely get used. And all the good movies come out over the holidays!” 8-inch cake, $29.50; 10-inch cake, $39.50. Nothingbundtcakes.com

Find a Gem: Janet Sher likes to give ornaments as teacher gifts. She also likes giving French-milled soaps or lavender in monogrammed linen bags. But she especially is a sucker for Tyler Laundry Scents (specifically in “Diva”), which Janet says has caused strangers on the street to stop her and ask about her great-smelling clothes. For all of these things, Janet says her “go-to store” is Magpies. “Every time I go in, even if I’m not looking for anything, I leave with something,” she says. Tyler Laundry Scents, 32-ounce jug, $28.50; one-gallon jug, $90. Magpies Gifts, 5000 Bellaire Blvd., magpiesgifts.com

Make Friends: The Rainbow Loom may have been the hottest gift for girls for 2013, but the colorful rubber band bracelets spawned by that loom pale in comparison to the embroidery floss friendship bracelets girls can make with the Loopdedoo Spinning Loom Kit. Using brightly colored embroidery floss, girls can create bracelets, necklaces, key chains, even headbands, changing the thickness, loop styles and colors. Speaking as a mom who sometimes gets pulled in to these projects, this one is addicting. $36. Fundamentally Toys, 2401 Rice Blvd., fundamentallytoys.com

Make a Boy Smile: Twelve-year-old Max Herz says the best things for boys (besides the expected Lego sets, team jerseys and video games) are gift passes to around-town activities. His favorites: Combat Houston paint ball, Sky High trampoline center and Speedy’s go-carts.

Combat Houston paint ball entry, $20; 500 rounds, $15; vest rental, $5. Combat Houston, 6111 Richmond, combathouston.com

Sky High trampoline center, $11 per hour; $70 for 10 hours. Sky High Sports, 10510 Westview, jumpskyhigh.com

Speedy’s go-carts, 1-hour arm band, $25. Speedy’s Fast Track, 11440 Hempstead Rd., houstonfasttrack.com

More for Boys: Max Lewis, 10, presented this idea to his grandmother: Wrap up one of the newly issued $100 bills, which look 3-D with changing colors and images. While the graphics were designed to deter counterfitters and increase security, they just look really cool to kids. Max’s request included having the bill wrapped in several boxes of successive sizes, so he’d have to unwrap box after box to get to his prize. Buy one at your favorite bank.

Run In Style: All the kids (and maybe the grown-ups) want to go online and custom-design their very own tennis shoes, choosing everything from the color of the soles to the color of the laces. Nike ID gift cards can be given for the full amount of a pair of shoes, or you can give an amount to go toward a pair (say, $50). Prices vary. Google Nike ID gift cards.

Groom Well: It’s an understatement that some men are hard to buy for. The Boardroom Salon for Men has for-men-only shave and spa services in a clubby environment (think wood paneling and pool tables). Choose from hot lather shaves to very masculine hand or foot groomings (a.k.a. mani/pedi) to massage, or give it all with gift certificates for unlimited services for a year.  Shaves start at $15. The Boardroom Salon for Men, 2526 Rice Blvd., theboardroomsalon.com