Do you have a mad cat lady (or gent) in your family? Perhaps one of your friends is completely nuts about their feline friend? To keep any young cat happy, they need plenty of toys and interesting objects to investigate. Like children, cats will get bored eventually, so you need to keep them interested with new toys all the time. This collection of cat toys will make any cat feel special!

I’ll leave you with a final thought. “Dogs have masters. Cats have slaves.”

This top 10 list of cat and kitten toys was compiled by Dan Harrison who makes his own cheap kitten toys, such as the realistic looking tomato stalk spider to entertain his own kitten.

Being eco-friendly is becoming increasingly important as we’re in serious danger of completely screwing up our wonderful planet. Global warming is not a good thing at all. Contrary to popular belief, global warming is not about warmer summers and milder winters. It’s also about the increased likelihood of torrential rain, more flooding due to high sea levels, more powerful hurricanes, and many more nasty climate changes.

This collection of gadgets will help you to do your bit for the environment, yet still satisfy a craving for any gadget lover. These eco gadgets make fantastic gifts as well as something worth treating yourself to!

This Top 10 list of Eco-Friendly Gadgets was compiled by Dan Harrison who reviews the latest eco gadgets for EnviroGadget.com, including every energy saving gadget and solar-powered gadget you can think of!

Do you know of any wannabe spies? Perhaps a friend, family member or partner? Well anyone who fancies themselves as a bit of a Bond, James Bond, will love these top spy gadgets. This list includes some very classy spy stuff, including a fully automatic (Nerf) weapon, night vision goggles, an automated digital surveillance camera, a covert multi-tool pen, and even some counter-surveillance bug detection equipment.

No doubt the Bond-wannabe will be running around the garden or park with these gadgets for hours on end!

This Top 10 list of Spy Gadgets was compiled by Dan Harrison who used to design spy gadgets for private detectives and UK police forces, and is also an expert on covert spy cameras and counter-surveillance gadgets.

“According to the CWU all of its members will walk out for 24 hours on Friday 6 and Monday 9 November.

These two strikes are likely to result in significantly more disruption than previous actions. Other walk-outs have involved relatively small sections of the workforce, while the latest round will see 121,000 unionised workers leave their posts on each of the two days.”

So will this ruin your Christmas shopping? Well from what we have observed from online shops, most of them are taking steps to avoid any strike issues affecting your precious prezzies.

Firebox have labeled Royal Mail as Royal Fail. They get around the problem by offering their customers a free upgrade to courier delivery, hence cutting out the RM.

Red Letter Days have a similar offer, reducing their next day courier service from £8.75 to £3.95.

These are just 2 examples from many. We are not saying that every online store will be as generous, but it is definitely worth checking before you panic and head back into the mad high street Christmas brawl.

10. Rubber Band Plane £3.99
9. Bag of Farm Animals £2.50
8. Kaleidoscope £2.50
7. Rainbow Spinning Top £12.99
6. Soft Babies Jingling Ball £2.99
5. Metal Spud Gun £4.99
4. Fun Snap Bangers £0.45
3. Wooden Letter Train From £1.25, £35 for the full set
2. Penguin Race Game £11.99
1. Guatamalan Worry Dolls £1.50

1. The Lost Symbol (Hardcover) by Dan Brown - £9.49

One of the top books of 2009 is bound to be the new Dan Brown thriller. This would make the perfect stocking filler gift for her (and you can read it afterwards too!)  “Caveats are pointless here; Dan Brown, comfortably the world’s most successful author, is utterly review-proof. And there’s no arguing with the fact that he has his finger on the pulse of the modern thriller reader, furnishing the mechanics of the blockbuster adventure with energy and invention. Like its predecessor, The Lost Symbol will unquestionably be–in fact, already is–a publishing phenomenon.”

2. Cupcake Kit – £11.95

The cupcake Kit is such a hit with the ladies that it frequently goes out of stock! Beautifully packaged and with a very decent price tag this Cupcake Kit is bound to be a real favourite this year! “Nigella Lawson. And we also love one of the delicious treats that she’s always on about: the mighty cupcake. No longer is the cupcake the dry and dusty long-life confection of old: it’s been reborn into an iced wonder-sponge with a world of flavoursome possibilities. Now you can tap into the trend that’s as easy on the tum as it is the eye, with a brilliant new kit that gets your baking your own fancy treats in a trice.”

3. Goody Bag of the Season – £18.00

Chocolate. The failsafe gift to buy the ladies. But there is so much choice! How do you know you will get the right one? Well it would be very hard to go wrong with the Goody Bag of the Season. Wrapped in a handbag style packaging and full of some of the best chocolate around this is a sure fire winner this Christmas. “Fashions may come and go but our chocolate is one thing that will always look good on the arm. Just delve in and discover the gorgeous chocolate goodies inside! Contents: 6 Praline Chocolates, raspberry ripple Lick, Cookie Crème Milk 100g slab, Bag of Caramel Mini Truffles.”

4. Engraved Personalised Teddy Bear – £19.99

Personalised gifts are always well received. And this cute teddy bear is surely the best of the bunch. The teddy even comes in its own stylish tin, so no need to worry about wrapping it up!
“Warning: this adorable teddy personalised with your engraved message may induce watery eyes, a lump in the throat or a general ‘welling-up’!

• 18 cm tall (sitting). Quality CE-approved
• Steel heart-shaped tag for your engraved message
• Message engraved by computerised engraving machine
• Generous 72 character message allowance
• Message tag hangs from ribbon around bear’s neck
• Delivered in embossed presentation tin ~ no need to wrap!”

5. Wii Sports Resort (includes Wii MotionPlus) – £34.73 (normally £49.99)

This has to be the coolest gift item around this year (It even won “Cool Toy of the Year” in the recent Stuff awards”). “Wii Sports Resort takes sporting action on the Wii to a whole new level, introducing a fantastic new set of entertaining and physically immersive activities. With the deep control enhancements of Wii MotionPlus, veteran Wii users and newcomers alike can enjoy unprecedented gaming precision as they cruise on a water scooter, duel with swords, toss flying discs and much more.”

6. Adopt a penguin  – £36

If the person you are buying for already has everything then why not get them to adopt a penguin? Price start at £36, and you can choose from a variety of different animals. Below are some of the reasons you might want to adopt a penguin for someone…

“Adélie penguins nest and feed on the Antarctic sea ice. But the ice is melting. Help us protect the penguins and their habitats. How you are helping the penguins

• Improving the management of Antarctica’s resources and safeguarding its wildlife
• Establishing a network of marine protected areas covering at least 10% of the 20 million km² Southern Ocean
• Reducing illegal and unsustainable fishing practices
• Raising awareness of the threats of climate change we all face”

7. Cosy Slanket Combo – £39.95

The slanket was huge last year! It allows you to snuggle up on the sofa, read a book and keep your whole body warm! Combine that with some nice soft slippers that you heat in the microwave and your cold winter nights will now be complete. “Each Cosy Combo Pack comprises one Slanket and one pair of Microwavable Cosy Boots that are colour co-ordinated and will ensure an all over feeling of snugness. The Cosy Combo pack really does make a great gift for anyone who doesn’t like the cold, and saving 15% will make sure you are always smug and snug.”

8. Sushi Making Experience from Red Letter Days – £49

The gift of experience is a great one to give. A really nice alternative to the normal adrenaline rushes is to give a Sushi Making Experience. This has proved to be extremely popular at the moment and is sure to go down a treat with any loved one. “Sushi is fresh, healthy, tasty and trendy. But hardly anyone tries to make it at home - because surely something which looks and tastes so beautiful must really be difficult to create? Not so. With this experience you’ll learn a lot - all about the different types of sushi, fish, rice and vegetable ingredients, as well as tips on how to make it yourself at home. It’s run by the experts at YO! Sushi, who enjoy what they do and help make your experience great fun. Your class will start off with a talk on the history of sushi before watching a demonstration by a top YO! chef.”

9. Swan Automatic Teasmade STM100 – £63.99

The Teasmade is making a comeback this year. It sounds like a dream to be woken up with a hot cup of tea in bed in the morning… Well now that dream can be made a reality for someone you know! The new and improved Teasmade is currently available at ElectricShopping. Be quick though, as this product is sure to sell well this Christmas.

“What better way to start the morning off, than with a freshly made cuppa of piping hot tea ready at your bedside when you wake up. Well, iconic domestic electrical appliance brand, Swan has just the ticket with an all-new 21st century version of its classic signature product the Swan electric automatic Teasmade model STM100.

This latest incarnation of the Teasmaid has been totally redesigned utilising modern state-of-the-art technology to ensure the experience is even better than ever.”

10. Cool-er Ebook reader Pink – £189.95

Ebooks? Sounds like a strange choice for the ladies… Well not with the new pink edition! Store hundreds on books in one stylish electronic reader! “Read any good books lately? We have, yet our shelves are completely bereft of the papery, space-thieving blighters. And that’s because we’ve been perusing the hottest fiction, romance, fantasy, horror and more using the incredible COOL-ER eBook Reader. Set to become the iPod of eReaders, this wafer thin gizmo will revolutionise the way you read and buy books. Because let’s face it, much as we love good ol’ paper and ink, the relentless march of technology waits for no one – after all, you’re reading from a screen right now.”

Image credit: Rodrigo Moraes

So after weeks of careful deliberation we have come up with out top 10 gifts for guys this Christmas. We aimed to keep the list interesting (i.e. not just the iphones of this world) and we have a varying range of prices to suit all your gift buying needs.

So in ascending order, please welcome in the best Christmas presents a man could receive (in 2009).

1. Retro Sweets - £5.99

Available at Firebox these are the perfect stocking filler for any guy who has ever played a Nintendo or Pac Man game (a very high percentage!). Allow them to relive collecting Magic Mushrooms and invincibility inducing stars through the joy of candy.

2. The Defence of the Realm: The Authorized History of MI5 (Hardcover) - £14.99 (normally £30)

The must buy book for any guy this Christmas. “To mark the centenary of its foundation, the British Security Service, MI5, has opened its archives to an independent historian, the first time any of the world’s leading intelligence or security services has taken such a step.” Who isn’t interesting in finding out all about the MI5?

3. Star Trek XI (1-Disc Edition) [DVD] - £9.98 (normally £19.99)

The must buy DVD of the year comes out on the 16th of November. This is Star Trek as you have never seen it before! “J.J. Abrams’ 2009 feature film was billed as “not your father’s Star Trek,” but your father will probably love it anyway. And what’s not to love? It has enough action, emotional impact, humor, and sheer fun for any moviegoer, and Trekkers will enjoy plenty of insider references and a cast that seems ideally suited to portray the characters we know they’ll become later.”

4. Hipstery.com – Home of the Mystery Shirt - €17.00

Looking for something a little different this year? Well why not try Hipstery.com? The site takes the difficult decision making process out of your hands via their unique and amusing questionnaire. Just answer the questions and let the t-shirt scientists do the rest. “Science has discovered it. You can benefit from it! Hipstery’s style technology is secret but involves a rigorous t-shirt screening system with maps, charts, mathematics and optimism – combined with vital data you provide us (we’ll ask you questions during the checkout process) and ensures you receive a t-shirt that you’ll want to wear forever, or at least until people refuse to sit next to you on bus.”

5. X-Mini II Capsule Speaker - £19.99 (normally £24.99)

Standard speaker look about as interesting as a Labour Party conference when placed next to the X-Mini II. “Ever since the X-Mini Capsule Speaker appeared in 2008, we have been completely blown away by the absolutely astounding sound quality and volume that these little gems produce! The X-Mini Capsule Speaker regularly stops customers in their tracks at our retail store, people cannot believe that what they are hearing is eminating from these handy pocket sized units.”

6. Uncharted 2: Among Thieves (PS3) - £49.99

This year the game for guys has to be Uncharted 2. “

Nathan Drake is back, as gaming’s most charismatic hero tries to solve the mystery of Marco Polo’s last voyage (and earn himself a fortune in treasure at the same time). The original was one of the first games to really prove the power of the PS3, but this sequel is another huge leap forward.

The first game already mixed intense gunplay with precarious platform action, but this adds in new stealth elements and more flexible parkour style climbing controls. Your enemies have been upgraded as well, with state-of-the-art artificial intelligence that makes them just as agile and resourceful as you.”

7. Adopt an Animal - £36

Who doesnt want to help save the planet? Well now you (or at least the person you buy this gift for) can help save the world one endangered animal at a time. Our personal favorite is the orang-utan. But you can choose from a whole host of animals. “Within the last decade alone, orang-utan numbers have fallen by between 30 and 50%. Help us protect these gentle giants and their forest habitat.”

8.Two For One Indoor Skydiving - £49

People often say that life is all about experiences. Well why not try this great offering from Red Letter Days. “Wind tunnels have been used for years to test the aerodynamics of cars. Then some bright spark came up with the idea of flipping one upright and jumping into the airflow - and body flying was born. The wind tunnel is a 120mph wall of air, easily strong enough to support your weight, so that you can experience freefall without the need to jump out of a plane. You’ll both start off with a safety briefing from your instructor before being kitted out with your specialist flight suit. Then step into the wind tunnel with your instructor, where you’ll be lifted into the air for two incredible 60 second sessions of body flying.”

9. Creative Zen 8gb X-Fi2 - £99.99

Whilst there is no denying that the iphone is the king of MP3 players we thought it would be much more interesting to feature (in our opinion) their closest rival. The best thing about this piece of kit is the price tag, one of the few decent players you can get for less than £100. “The ZEN X-Fi gave you the sound of perfection. Now we’ve gone ahead and made it better. No buttons involved, simply let your fingers work their magic across the 3″ TFT LCD screen and access all the player’s features instantly.”

10. PS3 Slim - £249.99

Playstation have finally done the decent thing and lowered the price of the Playstation 3. Not only that, but they have come up with a redesign. The Playstation is now housed in a much slimmer and sleeker housing and you get a 120GB hard drive. At the time of writing you can also get a free game from Amazon when you order your PS3. “As DVD playback made the PlayStation 2 more than just a game machine, hefty multi-media features make the PlayStation 3 Slim an even more versatile home entertainment machine. 32% smaller, 36% lighter and consuming 34% less power than the originals, this latest edition of the PlayStation 3 has been completely redesigned for a much more streamlined feel. Features such as video chat, internet access, digital photo viewing, and digital audio and video will likely make it the central component of your media set-up. Still, it is first and foremost a powerful gaming console.”

Image credit: semihundido

Buy them here

The Wine Journal not only collates people’s experiences of the great wine they have enjoyed but also has the following additions and advantages:

* 30 Wine Label Removers that allow the user to quickly remove the label from favourite wines without messy soaking.
* A detailed review of the main grape varieties together with their origins and characteristics.
* A step to step account of the wine making process.
* An interesting glossary of wine terminology
* The Aroma Wheel, known throughout the trade, enhancing the user’s ability to identify and describe the complexities of wine.
* 52 double pages of tasting records.
* All presented in a beautiful quality, heavy weight, double gate cover with The Wine Journal debossed on the cover.
* Two colour options (red and black) and all individually packed in their own protective outer robust enough to cope with our postal system!

The price is currently set at £17.00 incl. free P&P, but is due to rise to £19.95 on the first of November. The people over at the Wine Journal have been kind enough to offer readers of Top 10 Christmas Gifts with a great little voucher code that will keep the price at £17.00. Just add the code: vino

Get your Wine Journal Here

This great gift idea was found courtesy of Unusual Gifts.