Whether you’ve been naughty or nice, tis the season for making merry, spreading cheer and, of course, giving gifts. With the latter in mind, what follows is my annual list of gift ideas for the luxury travelers in your life.

From the most practical of items to the most extravagant, there’s a little something to choose from for every budget in this guide. And, because true luxury is never about price but always about indulgence, every option is sure to bring joy and comfort in equal measure to the friends and family on your holiday gift list who just happen to spend as much time on the road as they do at home.

Now, without further ado, the list:

Mark and Graham Charger Roll Up

Traveling in modern times often means packing a lot of technology. Unfortunately, all that technology requires cables, chargers, adapters and lengths of unsightly cords. Keeping track of it all can be both cumbersome and tiresome. Enter the Mark and Graham Charger Roll Up which provides an elegant solution to the problem.

Cleverly designed and made from supple leather, this chic case features three pockets in which to store all your tech needs. Best of all, once packed, the case can simply be rolled up, secured with a leather tie and tossed into your carry on.

For an extra special touch, it can even be monogrammed. How fab is that?

$49
Mark and Graham

Ted Baker Stainless Steel Water Bottle ($42)

Hydrate…hydrate…hydrate! It is the ultimate travel mantra. Always have fresh, cool water on hand with this stylish, TSA-friendly, stainless steel water bottle featuring double-wall insulation.

$42
Ted Baker

Randolph Aviator II Sunglasses ($280)

Every seasoned traveler will tell you that a great pair of sunglasses is de rigueur. That is, at least in part, why I have a particular affinity for Randolph’s Aviator II sunglasses which are just as ideal for the fashionable road warrior as they are for America’s real-life warriors.

Originally created for the U.S. military in 1982, you might say that these sunglasses are truly battle-tested. To guarantee their durability, 50 different people cut, mold, stamp, twist, solder, plate, and polish each pair of the sunglasses by hand in a six-week process that includes more than 200 steps. Meanwhile the classic styling of the 23K gold frame delivers a look that is both polished and timeless. Better still, did I mention that each frame comes with a lifetime guarantee? Hooah!

$280
Randolph

Czech and Speake Magnetic Wash Bag

A smart toiletry bag is always a welcome addition to any luxe traveler’s collection of accessories. This 4L leather wash bag by Czech and Speake is a particular standout because of its mobile magnetic flaps and general pliability. Moreover, it is just a really great looking piece.

$420 
Czech and Speake, London

Czech and Speake Leatherbound Manicure Kit

Proper grooming makes no exception for connecting flights, time zone changes, late-night meetings or changing hotel rooms. When in the midst of a hectic travel schedule, it’s not always easy to find time for a proper manicure or pedicure. Still, there’s no reason for a man to let his hands (or feet) give the wrong first impression. The Czech and Speake Manicure Kit guarantees that such will never be an issue.

An 8-piece gentleman’s manicure set, the Czech and Speake kit features a tasteful stone and cream colored soft leather case containing: Teflon-coated slanted tweezers, safety scissors, classic nail scissors, nail clippers, toe nail clippers, a nail file, a cuticle nipper and a double-ended cuticle instrument.

$500
Czech and Speake, London

An Uber Gift Card

An Uber gift card is perhaps the most practical gift on this list, but it is also one of my personal favorites because who doesn’t love to have a black car waiting at one’s fingertips? Now, in over 630 cities worldwide, Uber has become indispensable to travelers.

Not only can this gift be conveniently delivered to multiple recipients on your holiday list via Uber’s new in-app gifting feature, it’s the perfect last-minute present for those awkward moments when you realize you’ve forgotten a favorite friend or a family member or when someone unexpectedly gives you a gift and you find yourself empty handed. Trust me, it’s more useful than a candle and classier than regifting.

Uber

Wilde Passport Cover

Smythson of Bond Street is undoubtedly one of the world’s finest purveyors of luxury leather goods and this stunning passport cover from their ultra-luxurious Wilde Collection is proof positive of the fact. Crafted from the finest alligator skin, this passport cover also features five card pockets and lambskin lining in one refined, statement-making package that recalls the glamour days of travel.

This holiday, for a showstopper of a gift that will be treasured for a lifetime, throw in a matching Wilde Large Pouch along with a pair of Mara Luggage Tags, as well. That is, if you’re feeling especially generous, of course.

$1,995 – Passport Cover; $8,495 – Large Pouch; $125 – Mara Luggage Tags
Smythson of Bond Street

Marc Marmel Midi Benny Bag

When a friend first introduced me to Marc Marmel’s bags, I was immediately smitten. All these years later and I still feel the same level of awe with the debut of each and every new piece in the collection.

The Midi Benny Bag is among Marmel’s latest creations and it is yet another must-have. Featuring the line’s signature crackled leather finish, silk brocade lining and hardware finished in antique nickel, the Midi Benny is also deceptively practical. A combination mini-suitcase/carry-all, it boasts a spacious main compartment and four interior zipper pockets, two of which are detachable for jewelry and valuables. For a bag that means business and says it with uncommon panache, look no further.

$2,009
Marc Marmel

Loro Piana Baby Cashmere Travel Set

Whether you’re flying private or in First Class, travel accessories matter. This travel set in baby cashmere is not only among the most luxurious options available, it is guaranteed to make any flight seem a class apart.

Included in the set is: A sleeping mask in double baby cashmere lined in linen and edged in suede; a travel pillow in baby cashmere jersey with an inflatable lining; a suede-edged travel blanket also in baby cashmere; and travel moccasins crafted from butter soft deerskin and lined in baby cashmere. For a little extra indulgence a Plane Flat Pouch in baby cashmere is also available as an add on to the set.

$400 – Eyeshade; $1,025 – Pillow; $2,045 – Blanket; $625 – Pouch; $490 – Moccasins
Loro Piana

Tom Ford Buckley Alligator Duffel

I was first shown this bag in Las Vegas and I was so taken, that I asked to be left alone with it for a minute so that I might fully appreciate its majesty. Simple, yet exquisitely crafted, like all things Tom Ford, this capacious alligator duffle is the ideal gift for the man (or woman) who truly has everything.

$41,310
Tom Ford

A Private Cruise on the Solandge

This award-winning superyacht features more amenities than I have space to mention. That said, a few of its more notable attributes include: Seven individually designed state rooms; a full-service spa complete with massage room, hydrotherapy tub, sauna, Hammam and beauty salon; a high-tech gym with jet flow lap pool; a state of the art movie theater; a 30-person crew; and a beach club style bar with a floating Perspex dance floor that converts into a jacuzzi perfect for soaking up those legendary Mediterranean or Caribbean rays on gloriously sunny days. Enough said.

Approx. $1,187,500 per week + expenses
Solandge

A Private Island Vacation

For the ultimate escape, give the gift of a private island vacation. Private island rentals are on the rise and with them a number of resources like Private Islands Inc. whose sole aim is to help their clientele find the perfect isles for their dream getaways.

From Isla de sa Ferradura, a 14-acre resort island just off the north coast of Ibiza which boasts a six-bedroom hacienda, a 22-person staff and a massive rooftop terrace equipped with 2 bars, shady pergolas, a DJ mixing deck and a stage for private concerts to Sunset Key, a 27-acre island located 10 minutes and 500 yards by launch from Key West featuring 40 two, three and four-bedroom cottages perfect for entertaining 150 of your nearest and dearest, there is no shortage of options. Whatever your choice, have no doubt that this is a gift that won’t just make this holiday merry and bright, it will make lasting memories as well.

Isla de sa Ferradura – Approx. $300,000 – $350,000 per week
Sunset Key – Approx. $187,500 – $612,500 per night
Private Islands Inc.

Happy shopping and Happy Holidays!

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Even before entering a single rose bud vase arrangement into competition at a State Fair in Castle Rock, Washington at the tender young age of eight years-old, Jason Vorse, the Los Angeles-based, internationally recognized Lead Floral Designer of AOO Floral, had already developed a passion for flowers that would dictate the course of his future. In truth, Jason was merely continuing and building upon the interest in horticulture that his great grandmother Rose, a florist herself whose name in and of itself presaged her great grandson’s future career, had nurtured in him early on in his childhood. You might even say that Jason was born with a proverbial green thumb.

“I was that dork…I was about my only friend I guess,” Vorse says with a laugh reflecting on his early forays into floral design. “Grandma was helping me at the time [but] my interest began in my own house. I helped create 35 acres of gardens surrounding our house. I’ve always helped in the garden. I’ve always done little arrangements for different parties or whatever… from an early age. Probably from like the age of four or five that’s what me and grandma and my aunts did. A few years later, after I kept competing in the Castle Rock Fair, I went onto my first job at 15 which was working in the greenhouses where I was cultivating the varieties with different scientists.”

A quick study, Vorse had earned the designation Master Gardener by the age of 16 further confirming the course that had seemingly been ordained for him from birth. After high school, he continued onto the Seattle Floral Design Institute where he studied Floral Mechanics and Design Elements and it was in this period that he began to develop the “modern with a romantic edge” approach to floral design, combining sculptural and cerebral elements, that would become his calling card.

“[When] I studied horticulture and plant physiology… I got into the plant physiology …and that was when I started to see how I could pull things apart and use them in different ways and actually design with them in a different fashion than I actually saw before,” Vorse offers in explanation of his groundbreaking work. “I use the product in a different way typically. With my knowledge of plant physiology I often don’t use things in water at all. I often separate the orchids into five or six different pieces and then reconstruct them in a different fashion. So the way that I put things back together whether it’s in their natural form or after I have basically dissected them is basically what creates the difference [between what  I do and what other floral designers do].”

Vorse’s unique talent earned him not only the immediate attention of the Four Seasons in Los Angeles, whose design department he would head for five years, but also that of none other than Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II who commissioned the designer’s talents to brighten up a celebration for one of her royal descendants.

“Queen Elizabeth hired me to come down to Sandringham Castle the first time for Princess Beatrice’s 18^th birthday,” recounts Vorse. “We transformed one of the ballrooms into a discotheque which was ridiculous. We utilized what was in the ballroom…these like $50,000 crystal containers… which was scary as all get out but it was a pretty cool opportunity to be able to really go in there and change that whole space.”

Not too long after that royal appointment, the Thai royal family came calling offering the master florist the most ‘exciting’ opportunity of his career – creating a calendar promoting tourism to Thailand that gave him the rare chance to scour the jungles of Thailand along with all the local shops and products to  design a calendar utilizing the country’s natural resources. “Really jumping into the culture was probably the most exciting part for me,” he says.

A born Gemini, Vorse acknowledges that diversity is what keeps him interested in his work, saying flatly, “I get very bored if my brain is not being stroked.”  It is a fact well borne out by the variety of freelance projects the floral Jedi took on in his freelance years prior to joining AOO Floral, a division of AOO Events.

“[After the Four Seasons] I started freelancing and looking for different ways to express myself,” Vorse says of his journey to his current destination.  “I started to do more editorial and that really pushed me into different directions. That allowed me to do floral in a different way. It allowed me to build wedding dresses for photo shoots and to do jewelry lines. I actually worked with several different jewelry designers making prototypes out of real flesh floral before they were cast in silver, gold and diamonds. I did that for about seven years and worked freelance and now I’m kind of doing all of the above with AOO.”

With such a full and varied plate, one might be inclined to think that Vorse had already discovered enough boundaries to test, but that notion couldn’t be further from the truth according to the designer who also aspires to create “wearable art”.  “Most everything I do is pretty sculptural,” he expounds. “But I think [I’d like to create] some sort of livable, wearable piece for someone like Lady Gaga because it lends itself to my style. Back in the day when Gaga was first coming out Gaga Gone Green was my goal to get after. But even a Raja get up lends itself ultimately to what I want to do. I could see that happening very flawlessly.”

And quite fragrantly no doubt.

Find out more about Jason Vorse and AOO Floral at www.facebook.com/AOOEvents.

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Once safely (and royally) ensconced in my accommodations at The Goring, I set off to explore a few more of the more interesting names on my roster of Royal Warrant Holders, that grand coalition of people and companies whose products and services buttress the royal patina “By Appointment”.   At the top of my list was a bit of shopping at Fortnum & Mason, which was just recently graced by the first official joint appearance by The Queen, The Duchess of Cambridge (the former Camilla Parker-Bowles) and the Duchess of Cornwall (the former Kate Middleton). Does it really get any more royal?

Known simply as Fortnum’s to regular patrons, this emporium of high delights has supplied the Royal household with the finest wares and treats since a royal footman (Fortnum) opened the store with his friend and landlord (Mason) more than three centuries ago in 1707. From truffles, cheese and tea (specially blended of course) to jewelry, perfume and high fashion, Fortnum’s has served as the thoroughly elegant department store of choice for kings, queens and their titled flock since its inception. Still a fabulous place to be seen after all these years, Afternoon Tea at Fortnum’s remains a treat to all savvy enough to book a reservation.

From Fortnum’s I made my way to Piccadilly and the Princes Arcade to sample the sweet confections of Prestat, which I can only describe as the ultimate sugar rush wrapped up in ribbons of fantasy and stamped with the Royal seal of approval. At more than one hundred years old, this esteemed chocolatier has not only been awarded Royal Warrants by both Her Majesty the Queen and the late Queen Mother, but was also notably a favorite of Charlie & The Chocolate Factory author, Roald Dahl.

Small in area but outsized in whimsy and magic, all manner of chocolate commingles with everything from nuts, caramel and tropical fruit to Champagne, Pink Himalayan Sea Salt and gin in this fantastical little shop where brightly colored packaging embossed with the symbol of the Royal Warrant fills every corner of the space. Meanwhile, the counters are chock full of delicate creations, including a variety of truffles, which the family of Prestat’s original owner, Antoine Dufour, is credited with having created. That’s right…, the very first truffle was the creation of the Dufour family (and perhaps of Antoine himself).  And it was said to be so intoxicatingly delicious that it led Roald Dahl to formally express his predilection for the Dufour’s recipe by declaring “I also adore so-called truffels as Prestat makes them.” With such high praise, is it any wonder then that the Royal court has maintained such a longstanding affection for this precious chocolate shop?

The final stop on my Royal Warrant tour was in the Burlington Arcade at the Victorian era perfumer, Penhaligon’s which like Prestat also holds two Royal warrants from two generations of Royals – one from Prince Phillip and the other from Prince Charles. Venturing through the store is like taking a trip down through the history of scent, particularly as many of Penhaligon’s signature fragrances were created as much as (or more than) a century ago and as such reflect the sensibilities of a different time. If you have a hankering to smell the noblesse oblige of 1902, you need only pick up a bottle of the popular Blenheim Bouquet which made its debut in that year.  Or flash forward a few years and try 1910’s crisp, clean English Fern.

What makes the Penhaligon’s experience special is the uniqueness of the fragrances which stand apart in the world of cookie cutter scents that populate the market today. Anything but ordinary, a Penhaligon’s scent reeks of privilege and good taste and the wearers thereof feel a part of an exclusive club, membership to which can only be achieved by royal appointment, of course.

So again, I ask, ‘Who needs a tiara to live like a royal?”. As a commoner with no lineage to speak of I managed to sleep, eat, shop and even smell like a royal in a single day. And they say, you can’t turn a sow’s ear into a silk purse. Clearly the believers of that old wives tale are most unfamiliar with my favorite new saying ‘When in London, do as the Royals do.”

To find out more about Royal Warrant Holders, visit www.royalwarrant.org.

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Sold in a trio and wrapped whimsically, TokyoMilk  soaps begin to tell a story through their packaging long before their scents even come to play  There is for instance, French Lessons No. 15, where a trio of vintage French primer images are paired with the sweet-smelling scents of  Mandarin, Tuberose, Gardenia and Vetiver.

Or there’s Botanica No. 3 where a trio of vintage botanical images are but a prelude to a floral flight of fancy filled with the scent of Fresh Greens, Cassis, White Iris and Bronzed Musk.

And for the sweetest of all, there is Just Desserts No. 4 a collection of vintage petit fours images that foretell an impossibly fruity range of scents made of  Crisp Apples, Peaches, Violets and Roses.

Time to draw yourself a bath don’t you think?

These and other TokyoMilk products are available at the über chic e-tailer Paula & Chlo, which is fast becoming a LivingWells Lifestyle favorite.

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Drive past the bustling intersection at the corner of Fountain Avenue and Sunset Boulevard in Silverlake and you might easily miss the recent arrival of Spruce, the Los Angeles edition of one of New York City’s most celebrated and awarded flower boutiques. It is not because it is particularly demure or due to any particular design flaw that Spruce might so easily escape immediate recognition, but instead because the space is so unlike any other floral emporium in the City of Angels. In fact, it is in this very quality of singularity that Gaige Clark, the owner, mastermind and floral artist behind Spruce’s visionary approach to floral design, revels.

For the last 15 years, the originality of Clark’s floral arrangements has been setting the global design community ablaze while simultaneously setting the scene for television shows like Ugly Betty, Ellen, Law & Order and Damages, as well as a who’s who of clients that includes a mix of celebrities, socialites and royals. With two stores in New York and now one in Los Angeles, Clark has, with her unique approach and in her own inimitable way, evolved the art of floral design and the essence of floral boutiques one elegant stem at a time.

“I hate when people say, ‘I’m an artist’, but I feel like I am a creative director and what I do is I create spaces, and then when I create the spaces I put flowers into them,” Clark explained over a glass of Spruce juice, the refreshing signature concoction that welcomes customers into her minimalist chic vision of the world. “This is the most modern store I’ve built and the aesthetic of this store is based on the Getty and homes that I visited in Palm Springs. What I wanted to create was a flower laboratory. I wanted to deconstruct flowers to their essence…like no one’s ever done before.” Check.

There is something absolutely post-modern about Spruce. The white walls of the store are lined with shelves showcasing individual blooms in architectural vases, flowers and leaves submerged in jars and wooden crates packed with perfectly upright, neatly lined rows of roses unfettered by a shred of embellishment. In its sleekness, Spruce represents, in short, the antithesis of the traditional flower franchise and the penultimate in modern. No wonder then that Clark counts among her greatest compliments the words of the writer who after visiting her Silverlake outpost wrote, “…If there was a flower shop in Stanley Kubrick’s A Clockwork Orange it would be Spruce,” a description that is admittedly so fitting it would be difficult to best.

As if revolutionizing the very idea of floral design vis-à-vis her three stores weren’t enough, Clark now has her sights set on so much more. On the horizon is the imminent launch of a Spruce product line that will include bath salts, body lotion, hand soap and an antibacterial countertop spray, in store classes in floral arranging, and a book that will, among other things, explore Clark’s experience of growing up gender queer. There’s also the leather store in Provincetown she hopes to buy and bubbling under plans for Spruce stores in Paris and Japan. Needless to say, Clark is as long on ambition as she is on creativity.

Asked about the source of here seemingly boundless drive, Clark credits her upbringing.  “I have two very charismatic parents,” she explains.  “My mother really, really drove me and my father does standup comedy. He’s so funny. So I think I got humor from him and the ability to be able to look beyond the tragedy in our lives. The key to it I think is laughing at things. That’s why I’ve always been able to say, ‘What’s next?’ You know …you lift yourself up you dust yourself off and accept.”

And then bloom…clearly.

Find out more about Spruce at www.sprucela.com.

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Clarisonic Mia 2
Clarisonic has been a ground-breaking brand when it comes to sonic skin care for some time, but now with the Mia 2 it has created a fantastic way to take sonic skin care on the road. The Mia 2 is basically an extension of the popular Mia family of Clarisonic products that offers all the benefits of sonic cleansing in a compact, easy-to-use style. Mia 2 features two speeds, a one-minute pulsing T-Timer® and a protective travel case for on-the-go sonic cleansing. Not only does the Mia 2 offer deeper cleansing, which is invaluable after hours of airports, planes, trains and automobiles, it leaves your skin feeling rejuvenated and perfectly prepped to absorb other skin care products designed to restore balance and glow to the skin. Best of all, it literally only takes one minute to use. Just one minute. Now if that’s not efficiency I don’t know what is.

Clarisonic Opal Sonic Infusion System
The eyes are always a dead giveaway. In fact, you need look no further than a traveler’s eyes to figure out just how weary they might be, and that is one of the reasons I rave about the Clarisonic Opal Sonic Infuser. It minimizes the effects of exhaustion. This palm-sized sonic infusion device dispenses Clarisonic’s signature Anti-Aging Sea Serum in such a way that it maximizes absorption of the product. In fact, just gently tapping the skin around your eyes with the Opal generates 125 sonic movements per second, which far exceeds anything that could be achieved by merely using your fingers alone. The end result is an intense reduction in puffiness and dark circles around the eyes. Better yet, over time, the Opal sonic infuser helps to reduce fine lines and is specially designed to help build skin’s resilience and prevent future damage around the eyes. And again, it takes barely a minute to use.

Being True Transforming Mineral Mist
If your skin is dehydrated, the answer is to rehydrate it, and few products I have discovered do that better than the Transforming Mineral Mist by Being True. I advocate taking this mist on planes with you, in your briefcase and basically everywhere you go on the road. Loaded with tons of antioxidants, the Being True Transforming Mineral Mist hydrates and refreshes the skin with a blend of ylang-ylang, lavender, orange and other essential oils. Perfect for those moments when you land and don’t even have time to change or wash your face before your first meeting or in between engagements when the weight of the day has dulled your complexion, this product does exactly what its name suggests—it transforms your appearance and gives you a healthy glow all day long.

Sure, travel can sometimes get the best of us, but there’s absolutely no reason to look like it has. With these three great products, you can not only beat back the negative effects of life on the road, you can erase them altogether.

Until next time…be well…live Wells!

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The Bellroy Travel Wallet

Keeping track of all your important documents while making your way through airports, TSA security checkpoints, customs and the like can be cumbersome. Where do put your ticket for the second leg of your flight? Did you remember to a pen for that customs form you’ll need to complete before landing in your final destination? How do you keep track of your passport?

All of those problems and more are resolved by the Bellroy Travel Wallet, which is absolutely genius. Designed with all of your travel documents in mind, the leather Bellroy Travel Wallet has a designated passport sleeve, a place for your tickets and boarding passes that will allow them to fold without creasing, a total of six slots for credit cards and other forms of identification (four of which are quick access), a micro travel pen with refills and a section that is suitable for currency from just about any part of the world. Best of all, the design of the wallet is slim and sleek, making it not only functional but fashionable as well.

See how it works in this video.

Forget your old-fashioned wallet. The Bellroy Travel Wallet is the best new accessory you knew you needed but didn’t know was available. Find out more about this wallet by clicking here or visiting us.bellroy.com.

 
Hotel Tonight

If you’ve ever had an unfortunate layover, last-minute trip extension, arrived at a hotel that was not up to snuff or otherwise found yourself in need of accommodations at the spur of the moment, you know how difficult it can be to find a good hotel at the last minute at a great price. Well, enter HotelTonight to save the day. HotelTonight is an app that allows travelers to make same-day hotel reservations at significantly more competitive rates than on most popular travel sites. Follow it and you’ll find some pretty spectacular deals and rates, sometimes as much as 50 percent lower than published rates. And it’s easy to use. Download it just in case. After all, you never know when you might need a hotel room, right?

Find out more at hoteltonight.com.

Waze

Okay, so you love your GPS, right? I get it. But does your GPS give you real-time information from other drivers on the road or let you know where there might be a police presence? I doubt it. Which is why Waze is such a great addition to the lives of those of us who have to spend a significant amount of time behind the wheel.

Essentially, Waze is a community-based GPS traffic and navigation app that allows you to join forces with other drivers in your area to improve your commute by avoiding traffic snafus.

Put in your destination and watch Waze direct you to where you’re trying to go, in the process automatically re-routing you when road conditions change based on input from your fellow drivers. It’s really pretty brilliant.

Believe me when I tell you that Waze is smarter than your average GPS. Try it and you’ll be amazed.

Find out more about Waze at waze.com.

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A little over a year ago, I was visiting Stockholm and had the chance to spend an afternoon and evening with Christopher Makos and Paul Solberg (aka the Hilton Brothers). For those not familiar with this dynamic duo, Christopher Makosis, an internationally renowned photographer and visual artist, not only collaborated with Andy Warhol but also showed Warhol how to use his first camera and introduced him to the work of both Jean-Michel Basquiat and Keith Haring. Meanwhile, Paul Solberg, Makos’ creative partner, is an author and independent filmmaker who worked with Stephen Kinsella on the American indie classic Double Parked.So to say I was in good company that day would be a classic understatement.As it happens, I was there to research a feature on Stockholm fashion and design, and the Hilton Brothers were there shooting images for a new book inspired by Stieg Larsson’s magnificently popular Girl with the Dragon Tattoo novels. At some point our itineraries converged, and I ended up in cahoots with Makos and Solberg on a madcap adventure through Stockholm for a few of the most interesting and unexpected hours of that visit. In retrospect, I can say that it was a moment in which my job seemed infinitely easier than theirs. While they ran around setting up one stunning photograph after another, I sat quietly with my tablet and my smartphone documenting all that I needed for my story. I could always go back and research what I needed for my feature. I could send an email or revisit a place online and still get the words right to convey what I needed to convey, but they had no such luxury. Their work was in the moment. Each shot had to be the shot. It was all quite fascinating and humbling to behold. Over dinner, as Christopher and Paul shared images from their visit up until that point, the phrase “a picture says a thousand words” never rang more true. Even then I sensed that in their work they were capturing something extraordinarily special about Sweden, a country I have grown to love more and more with each passing year. So it came as no surprise to me that Publisher’s Weekly recently named the fruits of their visit one of the top 10 travel books of 2012. The stunning new coffee table book from Glitterati Inc, Tattoos Hornets Fire, The Millennium Swedencaptures the Sweden that Stieg Larrson wrote about with such vivid detail in his books. From the people and communities to the culture, lifestyle and countryside of Sweden, Tattoos Hornets Fire, The Millennium Sweden offers a more authentic experience of Sweden than any travel guide could ever hope to deliver. For those who don’t know Sweden, this book will be a sweepingly beautiful introduction. And for those like myself, who already know and love Sweden, it is like taking a trip back and curling up in your favorite corners of a destination that grows more interesting with the passage of time. Enter to win a copy of the book or a trip to Sweden at pinstockholm.com.

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Nowadays, traveling for pleasure is in and of itself becoming something of a luxury, but the fact remains that a great many folks are still setting off for destinations far and wide, and when they do, they often want to do it in grand style. So beyond giving the gift of travel this holiday season, the question becomes what gift to give the luxury traveler that they might not necessarily think of for themselves.  With that in mind, I have put together a little luxury guide for the holiday season with some extraordinary gift ideas for the luxury travelers on your shopping list this year.

Koss Striva Tap In-Ear Wireless Headphones
In my experience, a little music always makes life on the road more pleasurable. In fact, I like to think of the music that I listen to while traveling as the soundtrack to my trip. This season, Koss Striva Tap In-Ear Wireless Headphones offer the best and most portable way to enjoy music both in transit and at rest. No cords, no wires and, best of all, no bulky strap over your head. With built-in Wi-Fi receivers, these in-ear headphones give you three ways to listen to music. First, anywhere you have Wi-Fi access, you can stream thousands of free, high-quality internet stations from the internet directly to your Striva Tap headphones. Next, plug the included Content Access Point (CAP) into any smartphone, tablet, or MP3 player stereo output, and it will transmit the audio right to the headphones—wirelessly.  All that, and you can still use these handy dandy creations like standard headphones by plugging them into any stereo device using the included audio cable. $500; koss.com

Taschen 4 Cities
Even the most seasoned traveler can learn a thing or two about some of the most well-travelled destinations in the world and giving the gift of Taschen’s 4 Cities series guarantees that they will. This stylish, pocket-sized box set includes 12 volumes loaded with insider tips about the best hotels, restaurants and shops that Paris, New York, London and Berlin have to offer. $59.99; taschen.com

Goyard Passport Cover
It may be true that all passports are made equal, but the same cannot be said of the way in which we carry them. A passport cover from the centuries-old house of Goyard not only says that its owner is a luxury traveler, but it reveals them to be a classically stylish one as well. $645; goyard.com

Kudocase iPad Solar Charger
It’s green and it’s useful—that alone makes it a luxury. But the fact that the Kudocase iPad Solar Charger uses photovoltaic ink technology to convert indoor and outdoor light into usable energy that can charge your iPad for up to an average of 10 days is the real selling point. That you might need one less converter for a device when you’re on the road makes this super cool innovation worth its price and then some. $129.95; kudocase.com

Jumpjet Membership
Give the gift of an Upper Club Jumpjet membership this holiday season, and the recipient of your largesse will surely beam from ear to ear. And they should, because this is a membership that certainly has its fair share of privileges. Upper Club members can make up to 10 round-trip flights per year on a private jet, with a party of up to eight people. (Additional charges apply for additional passengers.) And what’s even better, members fly to and from small, executive terminals throughout the United States, so there’s no hassle with long waits in security lines, airport traffic during busy season or pesky delays.  $550 for the membership plus a $2,350 monthly fee; jumpjet.com

For more luxe gift ideas, visit my Springpad holiday notebooks: Gifts for the Luxury Travel Enthusiast and 2012 Holiday Gift Guide: My Grown-Up Christmas Wish List.

Until next time…be well…live Wells. Happy Holidays!

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