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Silicone medical alert bracelets

When you have replacement parts, like my two artificial hips, you can't just walk through the metal detectors in airports, museums, or government buildings. One thing that makes the process easier is to wear a medical alert bracelet that isn't metal. I discovered these customizable silicone (rubber) bracelets from the ID Band Company. On the inside, there's a label with whatever medical information you want to include: emergency contact, medications, allergies, etc. The bracelets are inexpensive enough that I have them in three different colors -- one each in black, red, and purple -- to coordinate with what I'm wearing. For travel, they're perfect, as you can wear them through any metal detector or while being wanded. And there are super bright allergy bands for kids, too. Great gifts, to show that you care.

Baggallini, the perfect travel bag

Most women spend a lifetime, and a small fortune, searching for the perfect travel pocketbook. It should be lightweight, water-resistant, filled with pockets inside and out, and easy to carry flat against your body. A great color doesn't hurt, either. Enter the Baggallini Everywhere Crossbody Bag. I love it so much that I bought two, one in red, the other in a papaya orange (and I just might need this violet one, too). This particular bag has a front pocket I use for keys, another pocket for my phone, and a large back pocket (with a zippered bottom) that slips over a suitcase handle or holds a book or maps. The crossbody strap is long enough to wear the bag at any height. There's a zip pocket inside, and a separate RFID pouch that's great for protecting sensitive items, like a passport. The large main compartment holds my wallet, sunglasses, fan, pen, iPad or Kindle, gloves, and the occasional apple. The bag is small and stylish enough to carry anywhere, without making you feel you are lugging a sack. I've road-tested this bag on one trip thus far, and I use it for everyday, too. I highly recommend it.

Words

On the day I found this on Facebook, it gave me a ladder to climb out of a deep funk. How about you?

Sticky screen cleaners

If you have a six-year-old granddaughter who thinks your phone is her personal Game Boy, you'll love these screen cleaners. One side is sticky and adheres to the back of your phone or case; the other side is a microfiber "cloth" that wipes the fingerprints right off your screen. You can buy them in many different shapes and patterns, including glitter dots and zebra prints, and in medium (tablet) and large (laptop) sizes, too. The sticky screen cleaner I keep on my phone is just over one inch square, and the first one I tried lasted almost three months. 

T-Shirt Blankets: helping people through fair wages

At a Massachusetts Innovation Nights entrepreneur showcase a few years ago, my husband Ted learned about Project Repat, an organized based in Fall River. Read their story: how two young men started a T-shirt repatriation project in Kenya, how it failed as a business back in the US, how their customers inspired them to create T-shirt blankets by paying fair wages to immigrant women in Fall River, Mass. Not only do they produce a quality product; they are helping to support local economies, to reduce the amount of fabric waste that would other end up in landfill, and to create keepsakes that are practical and beautiful. This blanket is the second one Ted made. I love that his favorite T-shirts are preserved, and that the Polartec fleece backing is also made from recycled materials. A win for the environment, and a win for the community. Check them out (a fantastic gift idea).