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Life gets better when it gets a little weird, and the same is true for gift-giving. While everyone around you is busy snatching up Instant Pots and gift cards, don't just blend in with the crowd. You can stand out—in a good way—and have a little fun along the way by gifting a few of these hilariously odd but also really useful products.
From skin cream made from snail goo to bamboo kitchen towels, these strange but innovative creations not only kick the surprise factor up a notch but could also help solve problems that your friends and family didn't even know they had. Here are the 16 zaniest, most extraordinary products we love as gifts.
1. For the beauty lover: This luxurious yet icky cream made from snail ooze
The new big beauty thing? It's snails. More specifically, it's snail slime. If the thought of putting icky snail goo all over your face makes your skin crawl (or in this case, since we're talking about snails, "glide"), then you aren’t the only one. But even still, this beauty ingredient is all the rage right now because apparently, it works.
Get the Y.F.M Snail Cream on Amazon for £12.99
2. For the constant traveller: This innovative travel pillow
We're currently in the middle of testing travel pillows here at Reviewed, but if you ask me, the J-Pillow is the only one that matters. Designed by a flight attendant and named the British Invention of the Year in 2012, this pillow doesn't look anything like other travel pillows and that's part of why it's so good. It comes in a J-shape (hence the name), and the hook of J is used to support your chin and keep your head from falling forward, while the rest provides support for your head to lean against. Another perk to the J-Pillow? It's incredibly soft to the touch, too.
Get the J-Pillow and Carrying Bag on Amazon for £19.95
3. For the university student: This easy ramen cooker
Everyone lives on ramen at university, and I don't mean the fancy restaurant kind either. I'm referring to the cheap, salty, limp noodle kind that gives you heartburn after but you don't care because it's so delicious you just can't stop yourself. This little rapid cooker takes the already basic method for cooking ramen and just speeds it up, meaning your student giftee can prep ramen using just their kettle and microwave, without having to spend money they don't really have on Deliveroo.
Get the Sistema Microwave Noodle Bowl on Amazon for £4.99
4. For the fashionista: This fabric shaver that makes old sweaters cute again
I have a confession to make, and I'm not proud of it. Over the years, I've shipped scores of jumpers off to the island of misfit clothes because they got too pilly way too quickly and I thought there was no coming back from that. As it happens, a fabric defuzzer would have solved all those problems and restored those fuzzy, cosy tops to their former snuggly glory, if only I'd known better. Don't let the fashion lover in your life make my mistake—gift them this top-rated fabric shaver and I promise you, they'll be grateful if they don't already have one.
Get the Fabric Fabric Shaver on Amazon for £19.99
5. For the one who's always wearing baseball hats: This funky frame that makes them easy to wash
Does anyone reading this know if you can wash baseball hats? Spoiler alert: you can. It might seem hard, but there's a trick to doing it, and this specially-designed hat frame actually helps to make it possible. This cap washer works on the top-rack of any dishwasher and keeps hats from losing their shape. It's also safe on flat and curved hats and completely reusable, which means those dirty old hats your husband's been hanging onto and refuses to get rid of? They'll look brand new again thanks to this.
Get the Ballcap Buddy Cap Washer (Pack of 2) on Amazon for £12.90
6. For the one with too many snarls: This super-useful detangling brush
With nearly 3,000 reviews on Amazon, this top-rated detangling brush commands attention. Safe to use on wet or dry hair, this brush comes with strange, cone-shaped plastic bristles that actually work opposite from the way most other bristles do. Instead of separating strands by moving down, it works sideways (strange but true!) to gently unravel even the most stubborn snarls. Reviewers say it's gentle and good to use on children—even the most fidgety ones who absolutely can't stand getting their hair brushed.
Get the Lily England Detangling Brush on Amazon for £9.95
7. For the restless sleeper: An affordable sound machine
Know someone who struggles at bedtime to get a good night's sleep? We posit all kinds of solutions here at Reviewed: oil diffusers, weighted blankets, you name it. But the one everyone sort of forgets about—that is actually just as effective, if not more so—is a white noise machine. This one by Big Red Rooster is one of our favourites. It offers six different sounds, including rain, ocean, thunder, and more, plus comes with an optional auto-off timer, which your giftee can set for 15, 30, or 60-minute intervals.
Get the Big Red Rooster 6-Sound White Noise Machine on Amazon for £19.99
8. For the movie buff: A way to make cinema-quality popcorn
One of the main reasons most people even go to the movies anymore is the popcorn. Try as they might at home, it's just not so easy to replicate the taste and perfect delectability of popcorn made right at the cinema. Well, this gift could change that. This popcorn popper is great to gift anyone who really wants to skip the stovetop method and still get savoury kernels with each batch. At first glance, it might not be clear what this popcorn maker is actually meant for, but it's easy to use, collapses well, and looks so cute in bright red.
Get the Housewares Solutions Microwave Popcorn Maker on Amazon for £12.99
9. For the one who hates laundry: These time-saving wool dryer balls
The bigger a family gets, the more laundry there is to do. Pro-tip though: these wool dryer balls can help cut down on the drying time and save money since they're good for up to a thousand loads. These chemical- and synthetic-free wool dryer balls are gentle on sensitive skin and made from filler-free premium New Zealand wool, plus they're incredible eco-friendly to boot.
Get the Kin Tor Wool Dryer Balls on Amazon for £10.99
10. For the one who's always dropping their phone: The best phone holder on the market
Some people are just waiting for true love to stroll through the door and change their lives. Me? Turns out I was just waiting for a PopSocket actually. I cannot begin to stress how much my life changed for the better once I started using one, and I don't even care if it sounds too effusive to be true, because I mean every word. Before PopSockets came into my life, I was dropping phones left and right, constantly running up huge screen repair bills in the process and trapped in an all-consuming cycle of smartphone-related self-loathing and despair, and then suddenly, there it was: the solution.
PopSockets are equal parts fidget spinner and phone holder, but they're also cute and easy to accessorize with your smartphone case or outfit. Whether you're shopping for stocking stuffers or just an extra gift to offer someone special, you can't go wrong with one.
Get the PopGrip PopSocket for £11.98
11. For the one who's working from home: These comfortable earplugs
Earplugs aren't just for concerts. For anyone who does cycling or just needs a quiet working environment, they can be the difference between reaching your goals or completely losing all your focus. A pack comes with three different silicone ear tips, so you can adjust them to fit your ear. They also come with a handy carrying case that can fit right in your palm or pocket, so they're extremely portable too.
Get the Vibes Hi-Fidelity earplugs at Amazon for £21.95
12. For the one who wants mermaid’s hair: This unique styler
It's the eternal struggle: folks with curly hair wish they could wear it straight and those with naturally straight hair wish they could rock it loose and wavy like they just came home from the beach. This deep waver by Toni & Guy can help transform those super-sleek straight strands into flowy waves, and according to reviewers, does it very quickly.
Get the Toni & Guy Deep Barrel Hair Waver on Amazon for £29.40
13. For the one who just wants to do better: These paper towels that are actually reusable
Paper towels are extremely wasteful and bad for the environment, but they're so ever-present that it can be hard for some to break the addiction to them. These reusable paper towels are made from bamboo and are completely washable and ultra-absorbent. If you're shopping for someone who really cares about sustainability, these paper towels might not be on their radar yet but could make an amazing little surprise option for them.
Get the Bambaw Reusable Paper Towel on Amazon for £8.27
14. For the bride-to-be: This wacky but useful underskirt
This might be the craziest gift you ever give, but It might be one of the most thoughtful too. This wedding gown underskirt is designed to, well, you know. It can help preserve the dress on the big day, which is crucial but also help the bride visit the loo when needed, too. While it's a little off-kilter as a gift, chances are this product isn’t on the bride's radar yet. You can give her a big surprise, in a good way, and be the hero of her wedding day without even really doing much extra.
Get the Bride Hero on Amazon for £39.83
15. For the bacon lover: This quick-and-easy bacon cooker you can use in the microwave
Now before you immediately cringe over the thought of cooking bacon in a microwave, allow me to make a case for it. Bacon, by default, is savoury yet also greasy, which is what makes it so bad for you. Cooking it in a microwave—I know how it sounds—might seem sacrosanct, but reviewers say that the bacon that comes out of this cooker really is just as good. If you prep it with the right amount of time, you can actually get crispy bacon with up to 35% less fat than usual, and it only takes a minute in the microwave to cook each slice.
Get the Makin Bacon Microwave Bacon Cooker on Amazon for £14.95
16. For the one who hates going to a nail salon (but loves having soft feet): This dry foot file
Sandal season is long gone, and now most of us have the feet to show for it. From dry skin to toughened calluses, feet take a beating over the summer months, but you can help your giftee get smooth, touchable feet easily with this electric foot file, which has over 3,000 reviews on Amazon and a dedicated fan base.
Get the Scholl Velvet Smooth Pedi Electric Foot File on Amazon for £14.19
Prices were accurate at the time this article was published but may change over time.
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