2016 SBTB Gift Guide, Part 2: Comfort Through Scents, Lights, and Smiles

Ready for more gifty ideas for all the people you like best, most especially yourself? Let’s do this! (Seriously, I love doing the gift guide – thank you for being as into it as I am!)

This week: comfort and joy through things that smell good, feel good, and make you smile!

Not Soap Radio Joy Inducing Lemon Sugar BodywashAmanda would like y’all to know that this is her favorite body wash: Not Soap Radio’s Joy Inducing Lemon + Sugar bubbles for bath and shower.

She says she received “a big sample pack of all their scents and this is by far my favorite.”

And speaking of lovely smells….

I received several recommendations for this candle because of the scent AND the name.

Are you ready?

Please meet the Smell My Nuts Scented Mason Jar candle from Our Own Candle Company.

Smell My Nuts banana nut bread candle in a mason jar with a handle SERIOUSLY IT IS CALLED SMELL MY NUTS can you believe that ish

Smell My Nuts.

I can’t imagine why y’all thought I needed to know about this candle. Really. I’m baffled.

It’s a banana nut bread / toasted coconut / hazelnut scent, and I am told that the smell in fact is really incredible.

The 13 oz. mason jar candle is $10.99 from Amazon. I think if you’ve got a book club gift or a Secret Santa gift to fulfill, this might be ideal.

Mountain Lodge Yankee Candle jar candle - big dark burgundy candle in a glass carNow, I’m not the most scent-friendly person, as many artificial smells give me a monster headache. But!

RedHeadedGirl, however, reviewed a candle last year, one that she was told smelled like Chris Evans in a plaid flannel shirt: the Yankee Candle Mountain Lodge Large Jar Candle.

The small single wick candle is $15.99, and the larger I-Mean-Business-With-This-Scent jar is $25.

 

As for things that make you smile, Amanda found this ridiculously adorable bread cutter on sale for $9.98 – 67% off!

I kid you not, it turns your sandwiches into pockets with little panda faces.

The reviews are almost universally positive, and say that it works well, seals the edges, and doesn’t waste too much bread (and you can save, dry out, and pulverize the crusts in the food processor to make breadcrumbs anyway). I mean, you could buy it if you have to make lunches, but I’d be delighted to make myself panda pocket sandwiches for lunch.

And I’m told I am a “responsible adult.” At least, I have to keep signing my name on that line on these forms from the school, so it must be true, right?

If you’re often chilly while sitting at a desk or relaxing, the ChillAway Heated Wrap ($29) might be an ideal gift for you, or someone you know.

When I shared this link with Elyse, she immediately bought it for herself for work – she’s always freezing in her office.

The wrap is 25″ by 57″ (63cm x 144cm), fleece on one side and faux fur on the other, with pockets and four heat settings.

And speaking of fuzzy, heated things, I saw this on QVC and immediately sent the link to Elyse as well – the Sunbeam Renue Heat Therapeutic Wrap ($50).

If you can’t quite tell from the picture, this is a cape-like heating pad that goes over your shoulders and down your back. There’s a version with massage as well, which is a little more expensive ($60), and one that just wraps over your shoulders and upper back, without the “cape” part ($34).

While some reviewers said it had a chemical smell, Elyse hasn’t noticed any odor with hers, and she loves it: “The wrap is actually kind of soothing bc of the weight. It’s like a big warm hug.”

“It’s good for applying heat to your ‘computer muscles’ which is where I’m sore a lot –neck, shoulders, shoulder blades and upper back. It’s hard to really wrap a traditional heating pad around the shoulders.”

I can think of so many people who would adore a gift like that, and use it constantly.

And for low-tech warmth, a hot water bottle with an adorable cover, like a knit fox, would be a lovely gift. This one is $9, and there are so many other water bottles with covers, too – like, say, a very fuzzy plush green turtle! ($7.50).

That’s the kind of present I would pull out of a random grab bag, laugh about, and then use every freaking day because it’s so cute and comforting.

And if you’d prefer a comforting, fuzzy item that isn’t heated, this plush throw is 50″ x 50″, comes in a bunch of colors including a really lush purple, and it’s $16.99:

Onward with a few more comforting items? How about… adorable socks? Everyone’s more mellow when their feet are warm and happy, I think.

Here are a few supremely cute options, all featuring books and/or cats, and all under $15:

    
Or, for $17, you can purchase a set of chenille socks with little grippers on the sole – toasty warm and absurd levels of cute:

(Can you tell I’m a little chilly right now?)

Over at Kit.com, I’ve also put together some collections of items, like my recommended and indispensable desk necessities, and items for romance self care.

I’ll leave you with my favorite item from those collections:

DRAGON GOBLET! And it’s only $10!

I’ll be posting new Smart Bitches Gift Guides every Wednesday, so if you have ideas, suggestions, or requests, please email me or comment below! Happy holiday shopping!

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  1. C. Rainwater says:

    I love the gift guide! Thanks so much for doing this; I’ve already added things from your last guide to my formerly almost-empty list. Also, commenters, I love reading your suggestions in the comments section; where does everyone find these things???

  2. SB Sarah says:

    I’m so happy it’s useful for you! It is a truth universally acknowledged that the Bitchery pretty much knows everything.

  3. Misty says:

    Haha! I buy the Smell My Nuts Candle often, the name might be cheesy but when it’s burning the smell is quite lovely! It makes a room/rooms smell like fresh baked banana bread.

  4. Lolagranola says:

    This is AMAZING. Thanks for putting this together – perfection!

  5. chacha1 says:

    The Smell My Nuts candle is hilarious. I may have to get one just because. 🙂

    Re: gifts, I just ordered a jar of maple butter from Parker Maple, for my husband. Odds are good he will eat it with a spoon.

  6. denise says:

    ooh, love the socks, and the plush throw… I saw the heated massage thing on QVC and almost bought it.

    The “smell my nuts” candle, I have three boys. I can only imagine the places on social media they would post that.

  7. Brenda says:

    ooo good ideas! My “home run” gift suggestion is a little off the wall, (and kinda pricey – even on sale at $75 each) but fun and SUPER interesting. We bought dna test kits from ancestry.com. Warn your people though to have patience…sometimes in took 6 weeks to get the results!

  8. Crystal says:

    I just bought the Smell My Nuts candle for my sister for Christmas.

  9. Lora says:

    Okay, I LOVE your gift guide. That panda sandwich thing is going to happen because I use cookie cutters on my five year old’s pbj every day and they waste too much bread, plus also there is panda cuteness.
    The sunbeam heat wrap thing will be gifted to several relatives too. Thank you!

  10. Lora says:

    ALso snort-laughed through entire RHG candle review post and the brilliant brilliant comments. I had a sh*t day and those comments made it noticeably better.

  11. M & M says:

    I love gift guides! I have already started my holiday shopping and wanted to share something I came across, an online bookshop called wordery.com.

    They have the clothbound classics by Penguin (as the name suggests, these are classic books, such as pride and prejudice,bound in really pretty, cloth covers). They are quite reasonably priced and they do free worldwide delivery.
    https://wordery.com/search?term=Clothbound+Classics

    They also have the cakemoji recipe book, for that person who loves to use emojis and bake! This would make a cute gift. https://wordery.com/cakemoji-jennie-powell-9781849497909

    They also have the “I like big books and I cannot lie” tote bags (I kind of want this for myself). Because you can never have too many tote bags. (Especially now that we get charged for shopping bags here in the UK). https://wordery.com/i-like-big-books-and-i-cannot-lie-tote-9781423635444

    And this, which I definitely want: a photographic book about Cats in Sweaters!
    https://wordery.com/cats-in-sweaters-jonah-stern-9781631062322

    Also, I thought this might be a good gift if you are doing a secret Santa thing with your friends, family or work colleagues: Comic, Curious and Quirky News stories from Centuries Past. https://wordery.com/comic-curious-and-quirky-rona-f-levin-9780712356596

    I need to stop browsing now lol!

  12. ClaireC says:

    If you ARE into scented things, I highly recommend Frostbeard Studio on Etsy! They make literary/nerdy themed candles with both traditional and weird scents. I feel like their Trashy Romance Novel candle has been featured here before? They also have Sassenach, Sexy Librarian and Pemberley Gardens. Personally I like Oxford Study (smells like a freshly washed Sherlock!) and just got Book Cellar (musty basement with a hint of spice) and Wizardy Buttery Drink (yum!).

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