A pearl revealed in each and every trip
Are your documents protected in case your laptop is stolen? As a preventative measure, consider investing in Lojack For Laptops
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One of the greatest pleasures for many travelers is shopping. It’s fun to see the different products that are available in each destination and to compare prices on items that we can also get at home. I also like looking at the names of products. In a store window was “Man’s No Fall More” hair loss prevention product, a name that didn’t translate quite correctly in English.
In Hong Kong, Starbucks coffee was priced much higher than in the U.S., but McDonald’s super value meals were at a really super price compared to home (about $2 US for a Big Mac meal). Cashmere was priced great, while Coach bags were higher. It definitely pays to do the research before buying to see what your visiting country’s specialties are (and have a calculator!).
Some of my Top Travel Shopping Tips are: Read more of this article »
Wearing jewelry is a great way to have a different look each day during your travels. When interchanging outfits to create a different look from clothes worn earlier on your trip, adding a colorful necklace or dangly earrings can make you look and feel like the outfit is all brand new.
But isn’t it maddening to open your jewelry pouch and find the necklaces have become a tangled mess in transit? Even worse, after untangling them once, they get all tangled again on the return trip home. The necklaces might still be sitting on top of your dresser right now waiting to be unraveled. Then you can finally put them away in their proper place.
Here are a few suggestions to keep your jewelry tangle-free, so you can wear it without frustration as well as keep it in place both away and when heading back home:
Read more of this article »
I had the great pleasure of meeting the team of Lo & Sons Bags — Helen Lo and her sons Derek and Jan when I was at the Travel Goods Show in Chicago. Lo & Sons offer women stylish travel totes with lots of practical details. Numerous pockets offer options to keep your valuables secure and protected, while also allowing easy access to your boarding pass, book, etc. Whether you travel or not, these bags are very functional.
I wish I had the Lo & Sons’ OG bag when Read more of this article »
The 2011 Travel Goods Association (TGA) Show held in Chicago is over, but the products I want to show you keep on going! I recently talked about several of the products from the TGA show that I thought would be of interest to travelers: More Cool Products from the Travel Goods Show, Travelpro’s New Walkabout Lite 4 and SCOTTEVEST – Love this Coat for Travel!
This week I showcase an additional five products. There were so many great products that I separated them into a few videos.
Take a look at this items, great for travelers and non-travelers alike:
Read more of this article »
While at the Travel Goods Show in Chicago, I met with Scott Applebee, Vice President of Marketing for Travelpro. Scott provided a preview for SmartWomenTravelers.com on the brand new Walkabout Lite 4 series 21″ spinner being introduced in June. This rollaboard weighs in at only 7 ½ pounds and has lots of practical benefits for the frequent traveler, including a light colored inside fabric to make it easy to see all that you’ve packed. With 8 well-built wheels, it’ll be easy to push this bag through the airport (and maneuver into the small airport bathroom stalls!).
So if you’re thinking of adding a new bag to your collection this summer, watch for Travelpro’s Walkabout Lite 4 series.
My motto is: One can never have too many bags!
It’s not often I get excited about a coat – how about never! That is until this week.
While at the Travel Goods Show in Chicago, I met Scott from SCOTTEVEST. He had samples of lots of jackets and vests on hand. I just had to try on the red women’s coat and was amazed at all of the pockets!
In addition to oodles of pockets in various shapes and sizes, the jacket has a built-in, patented wire management system. This can easily manage my headphone wires, which usually get tangled up in my hair.
I visited the ScotteVest booth each of the 3 days of the show and finally, on the last hours of the last day, I was able to buy the red Scottevest coat. It’s now hanging in my closet awaiting my next cold weather trip. Heck, I may wear it even in warm weather just to see how much stuff I can get through TSA security in the coat pockets — pockets big enough to even hold a pair of shoes!
The annual Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas is always a great source for new cutting edge travel products. This year the 2011 show did not disappoint.
Wireless technology is only getting better. Much more communication is coming between computers and smartphones/cameras/tablets. Added this year is wireless connectivity between appliances and cellphones but really, do you want to know that your refrigerator door is open when you are a thousand miles away from home?
Very big news is the exciting 4G technology for cellphones. Verizon had an impressive demonstration of just how blazing fast it can be. Well, in optimal circumstances, of course. But even in general usage, 4G promises significantly improved reliability. Hands-on at the show, 4G will give us flawless access to websites. The demos for live TV were flicker-free and fresh.
Some women collect shoes … some women collect purses. I collect lots of laptop bags. I’ve got several from Franklin Covey (from when they had a local store where I could touch and feel a bag before I bought it), Briggs & Riley, Coach and others. I’ve got red bags, pink bags, black bags and white bags (I sound like a Dr. Suess title!), small bags, large bags, shoulder bags, wheeled bags. You name it, I’ve tried it. Only my friend Tamara is worse! I’ll use a bag for several weeks or months before boredom sets in; Tamara rotates to a different bag on a weekly basis. I’ve got bags that are best for short travels, other bags for long international trips because they hold more ‘stuff’.
When you’re at the mall and walking by a travel or luggage store, do you leave your shopping mates behind and run in for a peak at the newest travel gadgets? I do! I can’t pass up a luggage store without just taking a quick look. You never know if some new-fangled product came out that’s a must-have!
Even though I have enough luggage to bring along a family of six, there just may be a color or size I don’t have yet, with the perfect interior to fit everything in its place. And laptop totes — my friend Tamara will tell you that we never pass up any store with laptop totes because we’re forever in search of the perfect bag. And there are always new travel doodads to investigate. Travel-size umbrellas keep getting smaller after all, and I’m all about carrying the least amount of weight possible. Oops, I just added a few ounces with my cashmere pashmina, but the extra weight will be so worth it!
If you ever get to Houston, a visit to Luggage and Leather is a must! Bring a luggage-sized credit card when you go! Their stores are amazing- very spacious (unlike the cramped quarters of typical mall luggage stores) and full of laptop totes, gadgets, gift items, travel clothes and of course every kind of luggage. They’re also online at Luggage and Leather.com if you want to let your fingers to the shopping.
I just ‘happened’ to be driving by one of the Luggage and Leather stores this evening and picked up a new Travel Neck Pillow. This will be perfect for my long journey to Hong Kong (did I tell you I’ll be back in Coach?). I’ve tried the u-shaped pillows, the blow-up pillows and no pillow – not really liking any of these solutions. The Travel Neck Pillow made by Anywhere Comfort is memory foam that will mold to my neck. And it rolls up to a fraction of its size so it’ll easily go in my carry-on bag. I’ll post a review of this item on Smart Women Travelers after this weekend’s journey.
Most non-travelers could never relate to a fixation with travel products and the quick veer into a luggage store. How many times have you been asked “just how much luggage do you have?” Travel goods go into the same list of favorite shopping items along with shoes, clothes, jewelry and wine (wow, that’s quite a list!).
Post a note in the Smart Women Travelers community and share your stories of clandestine luggage store visits, stockpiling of bags and collections of travel gear.
I remember dealing with left-hander issues back in kindergarten. I am sensitive to whether an item was made left-handed or right-handed. I lived with years of ink on the side of my hand, bumping elbows with dinner partners and ladling soup out of the ‘wrong’ side of a ladle. I’ve gotten very adept at adjusting to a right-hand world but really struggle finding the perfect luggage that is left-handed. Read more of this article »
