I’ve found some of my favorite gifts scrolling through my own Facebook and Instagram feeds. It makes sense because social platforms are a natural extension of how we find the latest trends, learn about new ideas, and share all the things we’re totally obsessing over anyway. Not-so-humble brag here: Several of my top picks from my social media shopping spree last year ended up on Oprah’s top list this year. So I doubled down and did all over again this year.
Here are this year’s top tips for shopping your own social media feeds, followed by the juicy gems I uncovered for this year’s second annual SOCIAL MEDIA SHOPPING SPREE:
INSIDER TIPS:
Number 1. FOLLOW-LA-LA-LA-LA-LA-LA-LA
Following Pages and Profiles of stores and brands you like is the easiest way to find out about exclusive sales and great gift-spiration. It sounds simple, but it can make all the difference in finding that special gift on sale and you can always unfollow after the holidays.
Number 2. SHARE YOUR GIFT LIST
No more white elephant’s – let your friends and family know what gifts you want by saving posts from your News Feed into a “Collection.” Then share that collection with people – and they can even add to them. For example, your brother or sister could create a collection called ‘gift ideas for mom and dad’ and then add siblings and rest of the family who can chime in too.
Number 3. DECK YOUR ADS PREFERENCES
Use ads to your advantage. Go to Ads Preferences and adjust the settings to make sure you’re only seeing ads that are relevant and remove anything that doesn’t fit your specific “I love this” bullseye.
If at any time, you see ads you don’t like, click on the right-hand corner of the ad, and hide it, or stop seeing ads from that advertiser altogether.
And don’t forget to follow Hashtag #giftideas and me at #JennJolly.
CHECK OUT MY HAUL!
(Note: If you click on the link in the price to buy most of these, Techish will get a *very small* percentage of the sale — which never, in any way, shape, or form — influences our picks.)
1. Custom Face (or Pet) Socks: Last year was all about this Bombas, this year, it’s all about THESE…Because they are just too cute not to own this year. $14.99
2. TheraGun G2Pro – sports-recovery tool. If it’s good enough for Ashley Graham, it should do just fine for me! $599
3. 23andMe Health and Ancestry kit: $139 until December 25, then $199 – one of my all-time favorite to gift other people.
4. Aura Smart Photo Frame, $249 – My go-to gift for weddings, baby showers, and family. One of my top picks two years before Oprah put it on her list (not-so-humble brag).
5. HiMirror Mini, $119 Can you handle the truth, about your skin? This connected smart-mirror is here to help!
6. Away Luggage, $245: This is from the start-up luggage brand that’s a cult favorite among frequent fliers. As someone who goes back and forth across the country a few times every month, I bought The Bigger Carry-On ($245) and it’s paid for itself about five times over already. I call it my clown-car suitcase because I fit about ten times more clothes and tech-gadgets into it than the 23-inch case should be able to hold.
7. RBG Action Figure – $20 Because, RBG y’all. RBG.
8. Anki Vector, Normally $249, but $199 via Amazon Prime as I write this: an adorable little robot with potential for big smarts.
9. Birkenstock Giza Sandals, Metallic Copper $139. Still totally in style, and dang-it, these are so much cuter than the ones I wore in college.
10. Alice and Olivia’s new AiO Jeans: (Style No. CD110SPKSOL) high-rise slim girlfriend jean $264 Okay, I rarely talk about clothes – but OMG, these are my new favorite jeans. I wear them all the time and have gotten more compliments on these than anything else I’ve ever worn. Ever. Like in my life. I LOVE them!
11. Lenovo Yoga C930: 2-in-1 ultrabook stretches next-gen laptop design with 360-degree rotating Dolby Atmos soundbar and Vision HDR display. It’s a tablet when you want it, laptop when you need it, and full 4K HDR entertainment center when you crave it. Starts at $1,049
12. Speaqua Barnacle $70 The Barnacle + is a waterproof, floatable speaker with 4GB of built-in memory. You can now store 1,000 songs directly onto your speaker while leaving your phone behind and saving its battery life.
13. Outdoor Voices fitness clothes. (Prices vary) I wouldn’t know about this brand if it weren’t for Instagram. They launched and developed a massive following for their laid-back, just-right running and workout tights and tops. I love this stuff. Pretty much addicted to wearing it and following it all over social.
14. Dyson Supersonic $399. A blow dryer on my Instagram shopping haul and best gadgets list? You better believe it! The Supersonic is downright amazing. It’s drys my hair in half the time it normally takes and keeps the temperature of the air at just the right level by measuring it 20 times every second, so that it dries it, but doesn’t fry it. A suite of magnetic attachments let me customize the experience depending on what look I’m shooting for, and it’s so quiet I can get camera-ready in the wee hours without waking up the whole house.
15. Huawei Fitness Watches: 3e and 3ePro $70: Egads, I know tech-maker Huawei is all over the news right now, and not in a good way, but dang-it if these little fitness watches (phone-free) aren’t just the bees-knees. They bring the exact right amount of phone-free tracking, accountability, and affordability to anyone wanting to do everything from a little more walking to running a marathon. They track sleep, heart rate and various types of exercise including walking, running, cycling, swimming and strength training. These are perfect for any of your friends or family who want to up their workouts without getting too overly techy. And seriously, the price is right!
16. Sephora’s top “Pineapple of my Eye” Tarte Collectors Palette $82 Because even tech reviewers have to wear makeup. Lots of it. And this palette brings all the good sparkle without any of the tres-trendy crazy that’s going to be so last year by like, next year. Which is in a few weeks.
16. (Yep, I messed up making that graphic, there really are two 16’s…) Hyperice Vyper 2, $199 This next-gen foam roller feels like it will rattle your fillings loose, but holy-crow, it’s another amazing fitness and recovery tool that I don’t know how I ever lived without!
17. Facebook Portal and Portal Plus, $199, $299 (both models are -$50 off via Amazon Prime as of this moment). I wrote about it extensively in one of my latest columns – read that here. One of the most controversial new gadgets (because…Facebook) is also the best video-calling machine ever invented.
18. GoPro HERO7 Black $399. This is a big secret of a lot of the best Instagramers: The Hero7 is reimagined with steady-cam gimble-guts for the most stable and easy camera-shooting available on the planet. It’s also waterproof, super rugged, and has a 2-inch touchscreen so you can see what you’re shooting and control the camera. You can also talk to them using voice commands, like “GoPro, take a photo” or “GoPro, start recording.” The cameras understand 15 languages and dialects, which of course, is 14 more than most people I know. It also has WiFi built in, so you can connect to your mobile devices through the GoPro app to instantly access and share photos and videos them on Facebook, Instagram, etc.
19. Flyte Lyfe Levitating Planter, $231 This is another pick that I saw and splurged on, because it’s just really cool. I put a little airplant in it, and I’m hoping that it’s one plant I can actually keep alive. #Magic.
20. Google Home Hub, $149 This is one of my all-time favorite gadgets of the whole entire year. I’m obsessed with the way it does away with a camera entirely but still delivers a ton of info on its smaller, 7-inch display. It handles voice calls like a champ and when you’re not using it for scheduling, setting notifications, as an intercom system to call your kids downstairs for dinner, it’s a gorgeous digital photo frame, worth buying for that feature alone.
21. QBracelet $149: This is a pretty bracelet with a smart secret. It charges your phone! Q stays charged for up to 30 days and can charge an iPhone up to 50% on the go. It comes in two different sizes and five different finishes, including Rose Gold and Polished Silver. Stainless steel, micro-USB charging cable included.