Gifts:

Just a few of our favorite things

Urban jewelry

Forget the pearls – for the style-setter on your list who likes her jewelry edgy and one-of-a-kind, give her a pair of Vinyl Rocker dangly earrings (about $36) made from old records and hand-painted by Xappa, a Tempe jewelry designer. Xappa (Christina Franco uses her great-grandparents last name to celebrate her Mexican heritage) creates her Space Cadet line of jewelry using mainly recycled items. You can find her designs at local boutiques such as Swell Clothing in Tempe, Missconstrued Boutique in Glendale, The Trunk Trading Co. in Phoenix and online at spacecadetjewelry.etsy.com.

Since opening earlier this year, Chicano Style has become known for T-shirts blazing with ironic graphics (Cantinflas galore), in-your-face sayings (see the ¿y las tortillas? apron or the women’s sweatpants with nalgona stamped on the back) and Latino-pride. The walls are full of fun and the Sunday barbecue maestro will like the “I’m on the carne asada diet” T-shirt ($17.99). Available at Chicano Style in Metrocenter in Phoenix or online at www.chicanostyle.com.

This gift is strictly for the style-obsessed and those who have been very, very good this year. It’s no surprise that ASUS, a leading manufacturer of fashion-forward notebooks, featured the officially-licensed ASUS-Lamborghini VX2 at a Las Vegas fashion show. The sleek laptop features a gleaming yellow or black surface outside and a genuine leather palm rest inside. This is sure to make work seem less like drudgery and more like slipping behind the steering wheel of an Italian luxury ride ($2,999 list price).

Memory keeper

If you know a sports or music lover, here’s a gift that will help them relive memories of that last Rolling Stones concert or Sun’s playoff game – a collector’s album designed to hold ticket stubs. The 32-page archival-quality album holds up to 96 tickets and comes with either a sports or concert-themed cover.  At only $8.95 each, you could even slip in a ticket to an upcoming game or concert to complete the gift. Available online at www.ticketalbums.com.

Dog therapy

As much as we love to pamper pooches with rhinestone collars and gourmet treats, it seems everyone knows a Chihuahua who needs an attitude adjustment or a Labrador who is a little too over-eager. Before a misbehaving dog comes to visit, give their exasperated dog owners the newest book by Cesar Millan, better known as the Dog Whisperer on his popular television show on the National Geographic Channel. Millan, a native of Mexico who shared his own awe-inspiring story in his first book, shares his principles of dog psychology with practical tips, techniques and success stories from in his second-book, Be the Pack Leader: Use Cesar’s Way to Transform Your Dog . . . and Your Life (Harmony, 336 pages, $25.95 hardcover).
Eggshell Nativity

You don’t have to feel guilty about picking up a little something for yourself when you shop at Ten Thousand Villages. This nonprofit store sells jewelry, home accessories, toys and clothing made by artisans in developing countries and ensures that they receive fair payment for their work. Handmade Latin crafts are well-represented here with items from Ecuador, Guatemala and Peru. We suggest the delicate and colorful Nativity scene ornament made of real egg shells which artisans collect each morning from local bakeries in Peru. Available at Ten Thousand Villages, 20022 N. 67th Ave., Glendale or at www.tenthousandvillages.com.

Crazy for Carlos

Everybody needs a little Santana in their lives – whether it’s classics like Oye Como Va or newer hits like Smooth. Just released this fall, the Ultimate Santana CD set includes many of his top hits including three new collaborative tracks with Chad Kroeger (Into the Night is already on the charts), Tina Turner and Jennifer Lopez featuring rapper Baby Bash.

Little Mami

Preschoolers will love to play house with Hasbro’s Baby Alive Hispanic version with large brown eyes and expressive animatronic features. The doll eats, dirties her diapers, sleeps and, on top of all that, is bilingual and can say phrases in English or Spanish. She comes with enough accessories to fill a diaper bag, including two doll diapers, four packets of doll food, bottle, bowl, spoon, and bib. (Retail price $49.99, available online at www.amazon.com).

Sweet scents

That first bottle of perfume is a gift any young girl looks forward to (remember how long that bottle of gold-colored Charlie sat on your dresser?) and here’s a new sweet-scented perfume for your favorite niece. Mirroring its name, Florecita comes in a flower-shaped bottle. The fragrance was created with the advice of young Latina actress Shelbie Bruce, who is best known for her role in the movie Spanglish. The clean, sweet fragrance is both flowery and fruity with hints of blackberry, bergamot, pear, red currant, dewberry and jasmine, plus notes of vanilla, sandalwood and musk. ($5 (5 ml), $12.50 (30 ml) and $19.50 (50 ml) available at Claire’s, the trendy accessories store inside malls everywhere).

Spoiling baby

If you have a new or expectant mom on your list, the perfect shopping spot is the new Luna Blue baby boutique in Gilbert. Childhood friends Stephanie Ruiz and Shannon Woodruff have filled their sweet store with the latest trends for baby and mom, including gorgeous crib linens, many which can be customized to match any nursery. To help mommy-baby bonding we suggest the shop’s most popular item – Peanut Shell baby carriers so mom can keep her little one ( up to 35 pounds) close to her heart. It comes in fashionable patterns such as the “Mojito” which reverses from a stylish lime green on chocolate print to a solid chocolate ($74.50 for reversible patterns, $54.50 for non-reversible at Luna Blue, 2530 S. Val Vista Drive, Gilbert).

Perez Hilton groupies

For that spa-loving, celebrity-watching person in your life, we found an online shopping destination. Genevieve Villegas has turned her love of following celebrity trends into business. She runs High Maintenance Boutique from her Peoria home and stalks Los Angeles and Las Vegas fashion trade shows to find celebrity-inspired looks for less. One of the most popular items right now is the whispery-thin, artsy skull-and-crossbones t-shirt in soft red or green ($19.99 at www.highmtnc.com).

Easy tamalera

Let’s face it, most of us don’t have the time or the skills to make tamales from scratch like Nana used to. Here’s an easier option: the Original Tamale Party Kit from Sylvia’s La Canasta Mexican Restaurants. The kits include everything needed to make three dozen tamales, including prepared masa and beef chili, husks, wrappers, olives, gloves and a photo-illustrated instruction booklet ($39 available online at www.sylviascanasta.com or by pre-order at Sylvia’s Fresh Mexican Food Products in Phoenix, call 602-246-2769).

Authentic décor

Skip the crowded superstores and malls, instead, hit those little-known museum shops for authentic gifts and unexpected treasures. We found beautiful one-of-a-kind Zapotec woven rugs at the Heard Museum shop that would make striking wall hangings in anyone’s home. (A hint from staff members is to hang the 2-by-3-feet rugs on a wall by using double-stick Velcro). Native American weavers from Mexico use sheep wool to make the rugs, which are also available as pillows, and feature numerous colors and patterns ranging in price from $60 to $200 (available at the Heard Museum shops in Phoenix and Surprise).

Surprise the art lovers in your life with a one-of-a-kind monoprint from local Latino artist Martin Moreno. Moreno, a muralist and sculptor, creates the monoprints (printed paintings that are only run through the press once), with socially relevant and often politically-charged themes that draw on his Latino background. Moreno’s work is currently featured at the new Cuervo Studio and Gallery, 1505 E. Thomas Rd., Phoenix. (Monoprints are about $400 to $600; call Moreno at 602-237-9333 for a gallery appointment).

For Mexican art lovers who are fearless enough to cover their walls in bright colors and bold art work, here’s an arresting piece that is sure to become a focal point and conversation starter. Along with a wall of less-expensive ($13.99) masks made of coconut shells, Sueños Latin American Imports store also features a line of large elaborate masks created in Guerrero, Mexico of heavy pieces of wood. One features a deer head mounted atop the main mask with a looping bright red tongue and serpents weaving throughout (about $300 each available at Sueños Latin American Imports, 6035 N. 7th St., Phoenix).