Gift Guide 1: Things we totally want but keep forgetting.

Sometimes there are things that are so expensive and yet so awesome that I have to remind myself, "Oh yeah, I want that someday." But then payday comes around and instead I'm buying more eyeshadow or yarn or something like that, and I still can't justify dropping $250 on something, even if I've been wanting it for a while. So here are some cool things that I would totally buy, and absolutely appreciate, if I could only remind myself when I have the money. And then justify it.

Also, I confirmed this with Kati: these are things we totally don't think about, but would be thrilled to receive. Well, except for maybe the last one. That may just be me.

The first is the no!no! hair removal device from Sephora. I hate shaving my legs. I just hate it. I griped about this a little in June when I reviewed two scrubs. So letting a little machine do it? Heck yeah. And if it comes in pink? You bet I want it! And with a charm point of "you know if it's working if you can smell burnt hair", how can you resist? It's smaller than my cell phone and kind of looks like an iPod had a baby with a spring and a comb. This has been on my wishlist since they announced it was coming out and I keep forgetting about it. $250 at Sephora.

Second is the Clarisonic Skin Care Brush. I've got a Sonicare toothbrush, which is the same sort of thing. But apparently this brush is supposed to be awesome for cleaning out your pores and exfoliating and it massages your face and I think you can probably take it into the shower with you if you're someone who washes your face in the shower. If you've got more sensitive skin, it also comes with a gentle brush attachment. I think that pairing this with Bliss' Clog-Dissolving Milk (which is excellent, by the way -- I know I'm fickle when it comes to face washes, as I've been like "BEST FACE WASH EVER" on this blog about four or five times now, but seriously now, it's really good, no lies) would be a good match. $195 at Sephora.

Third up are Bose Noise Cancelling headphones. I am not someone who walks around with my iPod earbuds in, hanging like the status symbol that they are. For one thing, I hate things that go in my ears. For another thing, I like to actually listen to what's going on around me, just in case something important happens. I take the train a lot; I like to be able to hear when the train is coming, what stations we're going by, and important things like "we're running late", "the train ahead of us is broken", and "we're now a rescue train!" (This has happened.) But when I go on an airplane, or on a long car trip, I do pull out the iPod and listen to it. And so noise-cancelling headphones, particularly high-quality ones from Bose, would be a great investment for someone who does a lot of traveling. These are the QuietComfort 2 and are $299 at Bose.com (siiiigh).

Finally, and this is totally random, TAIYAKI MAKER. If you haven't tried taiyaki, they are little fish-shaped pastries (tai being the Japanese name for snapper) that are filled with sweet bean paste, custard, chocolate, etc., and they are delicious, especially when they're fresh and hot. I have no idea how to use this pan, but I would assume it's like a waffle iron except you have to heat it up on the stove or something. Still, being able to have taiyaki at any time of the day would be awesome. It is always a good time for taiyaki. $26.40 at Amazon.com. This is probably just me. Don't buy this for someone who does not know what taiyaki is, because otherwise they will be very confused.

Now I really, really want to eat fresh taiyaki, and the closest fresh taiyaki is too far away. Curses.

images from sephora.com, bose.com, and amazon.com