Shop without leaving home
Use our online gift guide to find hundreds of "wow!" ideas –
and still have time to enjoy the season
For the kids
Avoid toy-store madness this year and find something that's so much cooler than
the latest video games on these handy sites.
www.cheekymonkey.ca
Moms will love the handmade baby gifts from this London, Ont.-based site. Shopping-cart
covers ($48) keep germs off small hands, and baby knee pads ($28) save tender
skin. While you're here, find a personal gift for the new mom (such as the Kecci
Shanghai designer diaper bag, $90).
www.mastermind.ca
This toy store offers an instant-messaging helpline, free gift-wrapping before
delivery and personalized tags. Find gifts that encourage imagination, such
as a wooden puppet theatre ($50). You can even gross out that eight-year-old
boy on your list with a plush-toy version of the microbe that causes athlete's
foot ($8)!
www.grandrivertoys.com
What wee one wouldn't love her own set of kid-size bagpipes ($90)? Or a Make
Your Own Gummie Bears kit ($15)? Grand River Toys also encourages Mom and Dad
to join in: the Karaoke Station ($200) or Coinstruction London Bridge ($40)
will keep the whole family entertained.
www.justkidsclothes.com
Kids might toss these gifts aside, but Mom will be pleased with any of the picks
from this Vancouver-based company: a chlorine-resistant infant sunsuit ($49),
dinosaur rain boots ($35) or a flowered bucket hat ($12). Also look for smart
accessories such as stick-on UV alert patches.
www.klutz.com
Boasting a gazillion gifts from the artistic to scientific, Klutz specializes
in hands-on books about everything from decorating a cellphone to juggling to
math. The latest kid-friendly offerings include Capsters: Make Bottle Caps Into
Great Works of Coolness! ($15) and Utterly Elegant Tea Parties ($13), full of
theme-party ideas and recipes for no-bake treats.
www.bearst.com/canada
From pastel duckies to Winnie the Pooh to quirky lobsters, Bear St. is the home
of all things Gund. You'll satisfy both the toddler and the collector by shopping
here. Care instructions are listed for each plush pal, and prices range from
a $13 Sesame Street Martian to a $527 Limited Edition polar bear.
www.shop.canadiangeographic.com/cge/kids.asp
Nurture the budding young explorer with planetary picks from Canadian Geographic's
online store. Kids can learn about nature with an Ant Hill Making Kit ($10)
– ants not included! – or about their own country with Canada-opoly
($38).
Lisa Weaver
Shop without leaving home
Use our online gift guide to find hundreds of "wow!" ideas –
and still have time to enjoy the season
How we picked them
Where in the world wide web do you begin your search for the best online shopping
destinations? Our team started with a few key criteria: delivery within Canada,
an online payment option, and selection, selection, selection. After choosing
the best sites we turned to InStore Focus, a retail and web auditing company.
It rated each site for factors such as security, quality and delivery services,
and we only included the ones that made the grade. (Note: prices are subject
to change.) Happy shopping!