LUCY BURDETTE: Most of the gifts I'm both asking for and giving this year are books, of course! But tis also the season for companies to trot out their most expensive gift ideas. I am on a number of foodie email lists, including one sent out by Ruth Reichl, former New York Times food critic and editor of Gourmet Magazine, and another by Dorie Greenspan, of cookbook fame. They’ve both recommended products that I drooled over until I saw the price.
This frying pan looks amazing, and hand-made in the USA, but for $260? Maybe if I gotten it as a new bride I could’ve gotten my money's worth out of it.
And I adore these baking pans, especially the small square one with the gray polkadots. But at $269 for the set, my old Pyrex pans do the job just fine for now. (What I am doing is writing these into the next book. Julia gave me the idea of the Scone Sisters having their own brand of bakeware, and I am running with it!)
But here’s the gift outrageous that I truly crave. This company will make either a giant stuffed animal or a golf club cover in the replica of a beloved pet ($299 full price for the animal.) I am dying to have one made of Tonka. A big one, with those pale blue eyes.
But here’s the gift outrageous that I truly crave. This company will make either a giant stuffed animal or a golf club cover in the replica of a beloved pet ($299 full price for the animal.) I am dying to have one made of Tonka. A big one, with those pale blue eyes.
But I know what would happen: Lottie would think it was her new toy and drag it all around the house. And the whole time she'd be muttering: "This will serve that pretty boy right!"
Ok, your turn Reds, anything outrageous on your radar screen?
Books top the list here, too . . . .
ReplyDeleteI, too, have seen pans selling for outrageous prices . . . they might look nice, but I imagine they cook pretty much the same way as my tried and true cookware sitting in the cabinet.
I ran across an ad for a stuffed dinosaur [a soft sculpture, they called it] . . . it could be mine [or my dinosaur-loving grandbaby’s] for just a tad more than one thousand dollars . . . .
If that seems a bit too pricy, there’s the shape-shifting toy that only sets you back two hundred fifty dollars.
But the one that really made me laugh was the clackty alarm clock with wheels so it can jump off the nightstand and roll all around the bedroom . . . you have to chase it down to turn it off. It’s a steal at only forty-six dollars!
I would like a dino too, Joan. and one for my grandson:)
DeleteI want that clock!!!
DeleteDebRo
Where can I get that alarm clock? I want to see it "jump."
DeleteJudy, here's the link [sorry to be so late replying . . . I've been busy baking cookies all day today] . . .
Deletehttps://smile.amazon.com/dp/B001989WIS/ref=redir_mobile_desktop?_encoding=UTF8&aaxitk=052db00ed9a0bb964e7d9e8cf5656b9c&hsa_cr_id=-81820571&pd_rd_plhdr=t&pd_rd_r=21085324-42db-4685-a9c0-93dbbdd8959a&pd_rd_w=Fhq4l&pd_rd_wg=Kqc97&ref_=sbx_be_s_sparkle_mcd_asin_2_title&th=1
10 years ago when I renovated my kitchen, Mom bought me a set of green pans. You can get a whole set for less than the price of that frying pan and I'll tell you they're fabulous. They evenly distribute the heat.
DeleteNothing on mine really. We have so much stuff we already don't need. I was lusting for an air fryer and bought it for myself, love it, fifty bucks. That's all folks.
ReplyDeleteWhat brand did you get, Ann?
DeleteGourmia digital. Really like it. Easy cleanup and about a 10 x 10 footprint. Light weight.
DeleteAh, beautiful pans. We desperately need a new non-stick frying pan. Any recommendations for LESS than $260?
ReplyDeleteI thought of getting an Instant Pot, but I'm afraid I wouldn't use it. And they take up a lot of counter real estate. Or an air fryer, same worry.
I'm holding back on both of those too! But that pan does look amazing:)
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DeleteWow, those pans do look amazing!
DeleteBut in terms of less pricey non-stick pans, I use both the Green Pans and Copper Chef.
They do NOT use those nasty Teflon chemicals and are non-stick.
https://www.greenpan.us/
https://www.copperchef.com/
Thanks, Grace!
DeleteYou're welcome, Edith.
DeleteI see that some individual Green Pans are on sale...sweet!
https://www.greenpan.us/collections?view=all-sale
Edith, just a tip. By accident I found out that Tuesday Morning and Homegoods and TJ Maxx all carry higher-end pots and pans for deep discounts. They are broken sets, and it's almost impossible to find more than two that match, but I found the world's best roasting pan for $20, and a very nice, heavy stainless omelet pan for about the same. That's also how I've gotten big, deep stockpots for canning.
DeleteWow, Karen, that's a great tip. I'm off to browse just for the fun of it.
DeleteKaren, that is a GREAT tip!
DeleteKAREN: Lucky you! Our last remaining high-end kitchenware store (Mon Cuisine) is closing on December 23. All items are 30-50% off, so I guess I will go over to browse...
DeleteEdith, my daughter got me an instant pot last year because all her young mother friends love theirs. After cooking all these years I find it hard work to use. I'm used to the timing of "regular" cooking, when to start one thing, then the next, etc. This makes my head hurt trying to figure it all out. And you have to add 10 or so minutes at the beginning and again at the end for the pressure to build and then release. So whatever timing it gives, add 20+ minutes.
DeleteI did use it successfully weekend before last to make carnitas, a la Cleo Coyle.
I keep trying to use it since she spent the money, but...
Someone gave my sister-in-law an Instant pot last year for Christmas. It went into a charity box after one use.
DeleteHmmm, more than 15 out my 22 bookcases are those cheap IKEA Billy bookcases. The ones I bought in the 1980s used sturdier materials than the ones I bought in 2015.
ReplyDeleteSo, if I could get anything, I wish for a customized, floor-to-ceiling solid wood bookcases to cover all my walls in my dedicated library room, and part of my living room. I would need at least 16 bookcases so that my double/triple stacked books can be organized and seen.
Something like this, with adjustable shelves, and in pine
Deletehttps://www.artisanbuiltins.com/custom-floor-to-ceiling-bookshelves.html
Nice, Grace! You must own your apartment?
DeleteKAREN: No, I still rent my 2-bedroom apartment. It's an older 1960s low-rise brick building, so the "library" room is large enough for 13 bookcases on 3 walls. Eight bookcases are in my living room and my out-of-control triple-stacked TBR bookcase is in the bedroom.
DeleteGRACE: Built-in bookcases are so great...until you have to leave them behind in a move!
DeleteAMANDA: Yes, realistically, I would only get custom-made floor-to-ceiling bookcases in my "forever" home. I have lived in this apartment for 8 years but I know I will eventually move (if I can afford it)!
DeleteA friend gave me a lovely bone china mug from Roy Kirkham with a black standard poodle that bears a well-groomed resemblance to our late, great Toby. I see it every time I open the cupboard door. Check their website for a Tonka mug.
ReplyDeleteGolf club covers? I'm having a tough time wrapping my brain around that one! A replica of Tonka would be super popular. So stinking adorable.
ReplyDeleteCommercial cookware is SO expensive, but I guess it is built to hold up to being slung around and subjected to high temps for hours a day. Overkill for most of us, anyway. Like my friend's Viking six-burner gas range. It's fantastic, but at $15,000 or more, and needing special ducting and heat-resistance built into its surrounding, it's way over most of our budgets.
Yikes, $15K for a Viking gas range?!
DeleteThose big commercial ranges are outrageous.
DeleteHuh, well that is another advantage of renting an apartment.
DeleteI LOVE my GE induction cooktop stove/oven.
If it (or the fridge) stopped working, the landlord would replace it.
I'm not at all lusting for any of those pricey pans or much of anything else, truth be told.
ReplyDeleteBut a couple years ago I bought a life-size stuffed golden retriever for my grandson. He liked it but it freaked everyone else out. His dog, also a golden retriever, ignored it completely.
I love Emma Bridgewater Pottery: gorgeous flower, fruit and vegetable patterns (https://us.emmabridgewater.com/)
ReplyDeleteI love high-end pencils from Blackwing (https://blackwing602.com/) and lovely notebooks from Moleskine (https://www.moleskine.com/).
I need none of these items, but I do enjoy a good on-line browse through their sites. That's as far I'm going these days with purchases!
EMMA BRIDGEWATER POTTERY! I love the bird mugs. I'm sipping coffee from a HOOPOE right now. I've also got a Great Crested Grebe. Neither one is still in stock.
DeleteNice pottery. And the prices of the bowls are reasonable: $35-45 US
DeleteHallie: I'm delighted that EBP is in your cupboard. yay!
DeleteGrace: It's the taxes and the exchange rate and the shipping that do me in :(
All of my pots are well "seasoned," shall we say, especially my cast iron frying pans that can take decades of abuse (and have). Confession: Every time I go to Marshalls I *graze* the home goods section for must-have bargains, and over the years I've picked up items that have stood the test of time. Any gadget from OXO Good Grips is sensibly designed and built to last. Also pans and gadgets turn up at yard sales (remembere those?)... my daughter paid a pittance for a set of blue enamel-covered cast iron pots and pans that go for 500-1000 this year. She uses them every day and has for the last 10 years.
ReplyDeleteThose stuffed *portrait* dogs - sorry, but creepy. Unless you're going to put one in the window to scare off would-be robbers.
I just bought a seasoned cast iron frying pan and many other coveted items this morning from Ma Cuisine, our local high-end kitchenware store which is closing after 40 years in business. I wish I could have inherited my mom's well-used cast iron pan but my dad just threw it (and many other kitchen items) in the garbage when she passed away.
DeleteOH, so agree about OXO, Hallie. I have an apple corer that is genius. What do I want? Oh, nothing really...in fact, during these past %^%$###!!! years, I have used some of the things I didn't in the before times. So I am shopping in my own cupboards! (Those items DO look tempting, though, Lucy!)
ReplyDeleteI have three pieces of cast iron, two skillets and a Dutch oven. All older than me and they are just fine. I did purchase, for myself, new cookware last year. The previous set was non-stick, and all scratched from 10+ years of use. My new set was on sale.
ReplyDeleteOutrageous gift giving was not something we would not go for in my family. Window shopping has always been the most outrageous. Comments would generally be "if only", 'must be nice', "its name on it", or the ultimate: "I just don't love myself enough to spend that kind of money". My nephew, when he was a cute little kid, told his grandmother that she could look but she didn't have to buy.
Too funny Deana!
DeleteAll I want is health, common decency and universal sanity for the whole world.
ReplyDeleteToo much?
that would be so perfect Susan! sigh...
DeleteSusan: That would be lovely (sigh).
DeleteI’m with you Susan D.
DeleteWhen I was growing up, we of course (Dallas!) got the Neiman-Marcus Christmas catalog every year and had a great time looking at all the outrageously expensive gifts. Never bought anything. We've never been ones for really expensive gifts, although this year Rick got a generator (worried about more winter storms and power failures here) and we called it his Christmas present.
ReplyDeleteLucy, so funny about the pan. I got a set of All Clad non-stick skillets a few months ago, 8 inch and 10 inch, and really wanted to replace my 12 inch with the matching one. But the price--eek!! $200! I think I'll use my old one a little bit longer.
Oh, and Homegoods is great for deals on Le Creuset cast iron cookware, especially before Christmas, but it's very much catch as catch can.
Remember the Le Creuset lifetime guarantee, no receipt necessary! Send them your beat-up pot and they'll send you a brand new one!
DeleteI have added to my Spode Christmas tree collection at Homegoods over the years, but haven't seen any in a long time. Great idea about Le Creuset.
DeleteYIKES! That might be as articulate as I am capable of being right now. Those prices are over the moon! The 8" skillet looks very much like my Calaphon. I had been thinking of replacing it - now I'm thinking I'll have it bronzed and be done with it. Deb, I love Le Creuset, they have a factory sale once a year with some great bargains.
ReplyDeleteNothing extravagant on the gift front this year. Just little necessary items for each of us and the critters. Happy Saturday to all!
Bakeware--loved to shop estate sales for well-loved and used items--good quality ones--like glass measuring cups, rolling pins, cookie sheets. And TJMaxx for homegoods--who cares if you can't get a matching set? I'm usually on the lookout for specific items--right now, a good nonstick pan and a larger Dutch oven.
ReplyDeleteSomethings are ridiculously overpriced, but sometimes worth a chuckle.
Love my rolling pin - yard sale find- it's made from a single piece of wood and feels like it was designed by a Shaker (sleek, simple)
DeleteMy wooden rolling pin is over 40 years old, and I love it, too.
DeleteI don't have any gotta haves right now or even needs. My husband buys whatever tickles his fancy that he "needs" so I usually wind up buying him a book or two. I have no clue what to get our son. Ack! I admit I love to peruse the kitchen wares at Tuesday Morning and Marshall's whenever I go, but that isn't often. Is Neiman-Marcus still doing their Christmas catalog? They used to have an outrageous his-and-hers gift each year that usually made the news.
ReplyDeleteSorry to chime in so late - I've spent the morning (finally) getting the outdoor Christmas lights up, hanging the wreaths, and I'm hauling in totes of firewood before I have to tarp up the woodpile. We're getting up to eight inches of snow overnight, so it was now or never!
ReplyDeleteWhich leads to MY dream present: a gift certificate to a "handy husband" or landscaping business. We couldn't keep up with everything when I HAD a husband; now I'm constantly three days late and five dollars short. Hmm, maybe if I advertise stacking wood in the wood room as an organic, all-natural form of exercise?
very clever Julia! I am kind of envious of your 8 inches of snow though, as least for a few days!
DeleteJULIA: We are getting the snow from the same storm as you but they just lowered the forecast amount to less than 2 in (4 cm). Our sidewalks are bare on December 18 in Ottawa...climate change anyone?
DeleteSome people LOVE chopping and stacking wood, Julia. Give the ad a try!
DeleteIt started snowing here an hour ago, but it's very light and a bit too warm to accumulate. Stay safe!
My husband bought me (at my request) a new T-Fal skillet for Christmas. We will use it almost daily and replace them every couple of years. But I wish I'd read this first, I would have gone to Bed and Bath and bought a Copper Chef one for just a bit more. I love my Tools of the Trade dutch oven but I checked and it isn't available any more.
ReplyDeleteLUCY, I had a gift of a little extra money last year, and with the pandemic, I decided to invest in some cookware. All I had prior to that was some Lodge cast iron, which is great and useful but I wanted some lighter options and to fill in gaps -- I literally didn't have anything else. I got a bunch of the stainless from Madein and have been VERY happy with it, especially the carbon steel wok (I have a bigger wok but wanted a smaller one, also in case I ever wanted to make more than one Chinese dish at a time). I get a lot of use out of the saucier, sauté pan and stock pot also. They have great sales (which is usually when I got stuff from them. I have my eye on the larger saucier for the next time they have them). I haven't tried the bakeware because I don't bake, but FYI, all the other sets of it are on sale right now for $189 -- same sets, just not the Nancy Silverton patterns.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I could have gotten cheaper stuff and who knows how long I have to use it? (do any of us?) but it's made my whole cooking adventure a lot more fun. :)
Lisa (Brackmann)
After six years, I am finally getting a new phone. I am terrified. LOL.
ReplyDeleteMy Android Pixel phone updated yesterday - and everything has changed. I HATE it!
Delete