8 fanciful gifts for the offbeat one you fancy
Published 12:00 pm Sunday, February 12, 2017
- Valentines Day
Just sayin’, there’s no sidestepping Valentine’s Day, no matter how hard you try. If you have a special someone in your life – or someone you hope could be even specialer – the time to act is now. Procrastination will lead to panic, panic will lead to desperation, and you really don’t want to settle for a teddy bear and a box chocolates when the object of your affection is so massively awesome, do you?
We thought not. Check out these out-of-this-world for your super nerdy valentine:
For the center of your universe: The Solar Orbit necklace depicts our solar system in polished ornamental stones: the sun, all 8 planets, dwarf planet Pluto plus the earth’s moon and the asteroid belt. The heavenly bodies are strung on nickel ($39.99) or sterling silver ($79.99) chains. Thinkgeek.com.
Thank you, Mario! Back in the day, mushrooms that popped up in Super Mario Bros. gave the lucky player added life to jump higher and bust through walls. Recapture the thrill with the Ravanello Radish Shaper ($12). Twirl a radish on the red plastic shaper to make the white stem then use the pointy edge to create the polka-dot pattern on top. AnimicaUSA.
Even more Mario: Treat your gamer valentine to the new Super Mario Run
for iPhone ($9.99), due out for Android in March. Nintendo.
‘Stop that! My hands are dirty!’ Because love means never having to say goodbye to Princess Leia or Star Wars. The set of white hand towels ($24.99) star the silhouetted heads of Leia (“I Love You”) and Han (“I Know”), from the iconic moment at the end of ‘The Empire Strikes Back.’ Thinkgeek.com.
Even better than sea monkeys: Just give a gentle swirl to these glass spheres and bioluminescent plankton called dinoflaggelates light up in your hands. Powered by light, water and nutrients, the microscopic sea life will become active within a day or two after you set them up in the 4-inch diameter ($59.95) or 6-inch glass sphere ($120). Uncommongods.com.
Represent! Awww. It’s a terrarium ($85). With your choice of a tiny little male person, or female person, inside – in your choice of skin tone – holding up a sign that says “I heart you.” Sigh. Uncommongoods.
Do weird stuff in the kitchen: Among other things, this Molecular Gastronomy Kit ($49 – $65) can teach you how to transform liquids, like honey, into jelly-like cubes, chopped produce into tasty beads and chocolate into spaghetti-like strands. Uncommongoods.
Dream on: Let your valentine’s imagination run amok – and then print it out. The da Vinci mini 3-D printer ($289.95), voted best for beginners by Popular Mechanics, connects wirelessly to a home network. Download a free 3D model or dream up your own, and print it out in eco-friendly plastic derived from cornstarch. XYZprinting.
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