HOME FOR THE HOLIDAYS
Wednesday, November 21, 2018
East Oregonian
Page 7C
Give the gift of slowing down
Use the slow lane
when choosing
holiday gifts
By LEANNE ITALIE
Associated Press
N
EW YORK — The
world is fast and furi-
ous. Why not slow it
down for the holidays?
Ways to achieve that lofty
goal are plentiful. Some
ideas on how to give the gift
of slow living:
THE SLOW HOME
PODCAST: The podcast
is hosted by the Australian
Brook McAlary, a mother
of two. She’s a 30-some-
thing writer from the Blue
Mountains near Sydney
who suffered severe post-
natal depression in 2011.
That’s when she decided to
embrace minimalism and
simplicity in her life.
In addition to the podcast,
she has written two books:
“SLOW: Simple Living for
a Frantic World” and “Des-
tination Simple: Everyday
Rituals for a Slower Life.”
THE ART OF SLOW
GROWING: For loved
ones with a green thumb,
and those who aspire, set
them up with seeds and
everything else they need
to get their hands in soil and
plant.
The shop SmartSeed-
sEmporium on Etsy offers a
way to grow a living sculp-
ture, the Queen Victoria
agave plant . With a spi-
ral of deep green leaves, it
grows slowly and can reach
a foot tall and wide. Mature
plants, considered hardy and
drought tolerant, can cost up
to $1,000. For $4.99, gift 20
seeds.
Queen Victorias can live
for several decades and spike
reddish-purple blooms. This
Etsy seller offers a variety of
rare, exotic seeds from the
around the world as well,
but the queen seeds hail
from the United States.
WALKING STICKS:
For people who aspire to
walk more, appreciate the
woods, get out to the local
park trails or get just an
hour outside to get the blood
flowing, do it in style with a
walking stick or cane.
In addition to specialty
%
makers and hiking stores,
bigger chains are in on the
idea. Bed, Bath & Beyond
carries a 48-inch twisted
oak walking stick in red for
$55.99. It has others along
the same lines in different
wood and color schemes.
A site called Fashionable-
canes.com is full of options,
including a hazel walking
stick handcrafted in Ireland
. $53.99.
Antique canes and sticks
are all over eBay if your gift
recipient likes retro.
WRAP UP MY CALM
BLANKET: Do you know
somebody who feels they’re
failing at sleep? The folks at
MyCalmBlanket have bor-
rowed a tool used to soothe
anxiety and other sleep
disrupters — a weighted
blanket.
The cotton inner blanket
uses glass beads to provide
mild pressure based on body
weight. The blanket, which
measures 48 inches by 72
inches, should weigh 7 to 12
percent of the sleeper. For
a person who weighs 80 to
100 pounds, for example, a
10-pound blanket would do.
An outer duvet, in a gray
square quilted design, is
made of minky, a soft poly-
ester velour.
The creators caution that
the blanket should not be
used by anyone who likely
would not be able to remove
it on their own. Buying the
right weight is key oth-
erwise. It comes in four
weights, from 10 pounds to
25 pounds.
Search around because
many other weighted blan-
kets are available. This
one, intended for use year-
round by one person at a
time, costs $169.99 for the
10-, 15- and 20-pound ver-
sions, and $199.99 for the
25-pound blanket.
BUDDHA
BOARDS
& SAND GARDENS: A
token gift or actually pretty
Zen? Your gift recipient may
get a tickle out of one of
these either way.
Buddha Boards come in
a range of styles and sizes
now. They provide a surface
for creating fleeting designs
with water, a bamboo brush,
a bowl and a stand to catch
drips included.
Mini Zen sand gardens
SmartSeedsEmporium via AP
AP Photo/Sourcebooks
A mature Queen Victoria Agave plant grown from
seeds sold by the Etsy shop SmartSeedsEmporium.
With a spiral of deep green leaves, the plant grows
slowly and can reach a foot tall and wide.
“SLOW: Simple Living for a Frantic World” by Brooke
McAlary.
My Calm Blanket via AP
My Calm Blanket, a weighted blanket intended to pro-
mote high quality sleep.
are a world onto themselves,
with little tools, bridges,
rocks, trees and Buddha stat-
ues available. One company,
Zen Life, offers a set of eight
sand stamps in floral, spiral
and polygon shapes. $17.95
on Amazon.
DEFY THE INSTANT
POT: The multi-use pres-
sure cooker has been all the
rage. Slow it on down with a
simple, single-function slow
cooker.
Consider a stoneware
insert, make sure the lid is
tight fitting and look for
easy, intuitive controls.
Also, it would be nice if the
STORE CLOSING SALE!
70 OFF ALL MERCHANDISE
*not on consignment •
handles stayed cool.
The idea is to make it
easy but more importantly
slow, providing the best
aromatherapy of all: Eight
hours of pot roast wafting
through the house.
Buddha Board via AP
A water-art Buddha Board.
AP Photo/Fashionablecanes.com
A walking cane in hazelwood that was handcrafted
and harvested in Ireland.
Looking for the
Perfect Holiday Gift?
Purchase a 1-year subscription to
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May Your Holidays be
Merry &
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