| Extravagant, offbeat gift ideas |
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Your movie-loving friends will sing your praises if
you spring for a double feature: tickets to a Broadway show that
features their favorite actor, plus an overnight stay in the Big
Apple, says White. Consult the upcoming cast lists at playbill.com
to find out which Hollywood stars plan to tackle Broadway roles.
Bright idea
For the traveler, grandparent, stay-at-home parent or anyone who
could use some extra protection when alone, surefire.com
sells personal flashlights that shine so brightly they momentarily
blind any attacker. The FBI, U.S. Air Marshals and many police departments
routinely issue SureFire's weapon flashlights. For $75 or $95, one
small personal flashlight lasts for 10 years and at 3.1 ounces,
fits in a suit pocket or purse. What's more, these tiny self-defense
weapons double as regular flashlights, which you can't say about
a can of Mace.
Pampered pooches
For people with pets, a great gift might just go to the dogs. Consider
purchasing a dog bed in a color that matches the color scheme of
their home, Deyette says. You can get one that looks and feels extra
lush for about $100 to $200. For an extra treat, pile up great chew
toys on top, a huge bag of healthy treats and a few cans of Fido's
favorite dog food, if you know what brand to buy.
For someone with a small dog, consider
buying a dog outfit for little Fido. Fetch those
hard-to-find items such as snow jackets at designer
dogwear sites. Elegant
Paws is one. Of course, a matching collar and
leash make good gifts, too. These can be found at
wagwear.com,
another chichi dogwear line.
Gifts that rock ... and pop
From lessons to sheet music to vintage posters, there's plenty to
choose from when buying for a musician or music lover. It all depends
on the person -- and how extreme you want your gift to be.
You can spend thousands on rare vintage posters and
fine art prints of performers such as Jimi Hendrix, Metallica and
The Who at Wolfgang's Vault,
a rock-n-roll memorabilia warehouse that houses the remaining archive
of Bill Graham Presents, a major rock concert promoter during the
'60s. The Vault features more than 15,000 different items, ranging
from vintage tickets and backstage passes and T-shirts to vintage
posters, art prints and miscellaneous memorabilia.
Vintage tickets represent "a facsimile of the
original posters for that venue," says Matt Lundberg, vice
president. "These look great framed together with the matching
poster."
Promotional posters or original posters
that advertised upcoming venues for that artist
or group range in price from $15 to $20,000. Cost
of one rare Jimi Hendrix poster from 1969: $8,585.
Most of the really extraordinary items or one-of-a-kind
artwork are sold through an online auction so gratification
may be slightly delayed.
If a poster doesn't appeal as a gift, find some apparel
once touched by the stars inside the aptly titled Bill's Closet.
We found one eerie famous prop: a Marilyn Manson straightjacket
from the 1997 Warfield Theatre venue. Complete with leather straps,
the dark gray jacket is one of the most expensive items in Bill's
Closet. Cost of a straightjacket: $866.
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