Tuesday, December 02, 2014

14 Christmas gift ideas for the figure skater in your life

It's Chrrrrrisssssssssttmmmaaaaaaaaaaasss! Ok, well, it's December - close enough.

We skater types always love skating-themed gifts at this time of year. A new pair of Chloes, a skirt, a dress, a hoodie, a jacket, new soakers or blade guards....the possibilities are endless. But putting aside the obvious, what else could you get for the skater in your life? Here are 14 (well, more really, as some categories have a few items in them) ideas for all budgets:

1) JEWELLERY

Do you know any girl who doesn't love a new necklace or pair of earrings? There are quite a few bits of skating jewellery out there to be found if you look hard enough. Here are just some ideas.

Right are Jerry's silver-coloured and gold-coloured necklace and earring sets. I can't find what these are made from, but at £8.99 from Nice Ice Baby (a business local to my rink, and very reliable) they'd make a fab stocking filler.

There aren't many places you can have bespoke skate jewellery made, but one designer close to where I skate makes fantastic pieces, and still very affordable too. If you caught her very soon I dare
say you'd just make it in time for Christmas. The one-woman company (where everything is handmade) is Best Bejewelled, run by Val, and I love working with her to have her create exactly what I'm looking for.

This, pictured left, is one of the bracelets I've bought from her, but I know she can also do skate earrings, necklaces, keychains, mobile phone charms, etc etc. Well worth a look. She doesn't have a website at the moment, but for info, you can email her on bestbejewelled@gmail.com.



For another cheap-ish but cute necklace, check out this one from Iceventure - I personally think the blue's lovely.


2) BOOKS

Irving Brokaw's The Art of Skating

Irving Brokaw was the first American to compete in figure skating at the Olympics in 1908 (the first Olympics to include it as a sport). Including lots of illustrations and pictures, Irving Brokaw's book charts the history and
development of figure skating from its beginnings until the book was published in 1910. It also includes chapters on the moves and elements of that time, so is a fascinating read, giving the reader a glimpse into what the sport once was.

Indelible Tracings:The story of the 1961 U.S. World Figure Skating Team

This book, by Patricia Shelley Bushman takes the reader into the lives of all those killed in the 1961 tragedy, including the skaters, coaches, officials and family members and friends who were accompanying them.

Dorothy Hamill: A Skating Life; my story

Any skater will know of Dorothy Hamill. This book is her easy-to-read autobiography, in which she talks about life as a skater, some of the technical aspects of figure skating, and also her own personal life.

Ballet Secrets for Skaters

If you know a skater who is working on their finesse (who isn't??) - their graceful arms, head positions and how to hold their bodies - but who doesn't have time for a ballet class (or can't find on, like me), this book's a great idea. The author is a Russian trained dancer, choreographer and instructor who shares ballet technique in simple steps.

Welcome to My World - Johnny Weir

For a slightly more entertaining read, look no further than Weir's autobiography. Enough said.


3) SKATING JOURNAL

Most skaters I know like to keep lesson notes, and there are stacks of pretty journals out there that are perfect for the job. Here are just a few of the ones I like the look of, all £7 from Cafepress:
Skating journal. Find it here

Red streak journal - find it here

Cat figure skating journal - horizontal. Find it here

4) IPHONE/IPAD/MACBOOK CASES


There are actually loads of options for designs for these accessories out there. I love this iPhone case, left, from Nice Ice Baby UK, and at only £6.99 it's a bargain. I'm not promising anything, but I'm fairly sure Nice Ice Baby can also print your own design onto the cases. Worth an ask if there's something specific you're hoping for.

This one, right, from Zazzle, is a bit more pricey at £33.95, but very pretty.

Last but not least, I also like this iPhone 6 case, below, (though I don't have a 6....), also from Zazzle, and £41.95.


Also some good picks are this iPad Mini case, left, £35.95, from Zazzle, and this very classy Macbook Air sleeve, below, though that one's definitely not for the bank-account challenged, such as me, at just short of £50!


5) TOUCH SCREEN GLOVES and IPHONE/IPOD ARMBAND

If you know a skater who either a) likes to use their phone/iPad to film themselves/others skating, b) likes to listen to music on their iPhone/iPod while skating, or c) is one of those people who just can't bear to be separated from their phone, this combo is a great idea.

You don't need me to point you in the direction of either of these things; they're available everywhere, but as an example, here are some touchscreen gloves from Next, at £7, and I recently bought myself an armband for when I jog from Primarni Primark and it set me back the grand sum of about £1.50.

6) MUGS

Who doesn't love a good mug?? Or is that just me with my massive obsession?

Anyway, it's the easiest thing in the world to find a variety of fabulous skatey mugs out there on the World Wide Web.

Even better - dress it up by adding some hot chocolate-making
accessories into it and wrapping in pretty cellophane.


There are about a thousand skating mugs  here on Cafepress (one of my favourite websites, as I'm sure you can tell!)

Or if you want matching bits and pieces as stocking fillers, you can get the mug to match the iPhone case from Nice Ice Baby UK here.


7) PJS

What can I say? I'm including this category because I really, really want these. They can be found on Cafepress here.


8) SKATING MOVIES



Even as adults, we all love those cheesy skating movies. Yes, we sit and pick out the flaws, cringe at all the mentions of double Salchows and know how unrealistic most of the ridiculous moves are... but we love 'em anyway.

There's a great list of figure skating movies already put together here.



9) FOR THE MEN - Clothes, cufflinks, ties etc. 

There aren't enough male skaters out there, but we need to show the ones there are that they're valued.

I'm guessing the men rarely get skating-related gifts, but there are a few options out there, including these cufflinks and this slightly different hoodie



10) A VARIETY OF STOCKING FILLERS

These skate bookmarks are cute - you could even get one to accompany one of the books mentioned above. There's no direct link to the items, so they're about halfway down this page.

Equally cute are these furry skate keychains, right, £5 from Nice Ice Baby.

For the skater who drives, how about a car window decal? This one's just £4.50 from loveiceskating.co.uk.



I also like the many "arty" accessories that are available, such as this mouse mat, left, £11.95, and this cushion, both from Zazzle - though you'd have to really want the cushion for £42.95!



Or how about customising a compact mirror for touch-ups on the go? This one, right, comes in four different shapes and is £13.95.





11) THINGS TO ASSIST THEM IN THEIR TRAINING

A spinner, Champion Cords, or an ankle buzzer would probably all go down well with the skater in your life. Get your thinking cap on about what would help them.

12) FOR THE COACH

Ok, we all know coaches are particularly hard to buy for. Possibly not so much for those of you lucky enough to have a female coach. All women love some smellies or wine, right? But when it comes to the male coaches - yeah, good luck with that. I'm struggling this year I'll admit.

My best advice here would be to pay attention to them (as you should be anyway!!). They'll probably talk about their likes and dislikes at some point throughout the year.

Maybe some little ideas could be a bottle of the alcoholic kind (work out what they like), choccies, or a gift card for the coach who comes in every morning with a Starbucks wouldn't go amiss I'm sure.

13) SOMETHING FOR THOSE HARD-WORKING SKATING FEET

This category could also work for the coach in your life as well as the skater. It's not rocket science - skaters' feet work hard! Some buffers, lotions, soaks or even a Lush foot mask (think face mask, but for the tootsies) would probably go down a treat after a long day at the rink.

14) DIY GIFTS

Failing all else, get crafting - make something funky yourself, if you're handy with a sewing machine. Even if you're not that handy, you could probably still knock together the odd thing.

I managed to make myself and a friend this tote bag, left, following an online
tutorial, these matching soakers, right, and last year, I gave friends handmade bracelets with little skate charms hanging from them. So it can be done - have faith!!


Enjoy your Christmas shopping!



2 comments:

  1. Great ideas! Other practical gifts include packs of travel tissues with lip balm, stretchy "magic" gloves, leg warmers or even skating rags (for cleaning off your blades after a practice).

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    Replies
    1. Thanks Eva. Also great ideas! I go through SO many little packs of tissues. The slightest hint of cold or warm and my nose completely over-reacts! Haha!

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