Snow guard

I have friends who buy a new pair of $300 ski goggles every year. I am not one of them. I’ve made do with my old, scratched, far-too-ventilated goggles for years, so the Fakies I skied with last winter and spring were bound to be a shade above. Whether it was fog, burly bluster or spring’s eye-wringing glare, these amber-tinted lightweights remained unscratched and never fogged up. The vented lenses worked like a charm, but be forewarned: they leave a string of dents in your cheeks that elicit snickers in the bar afterward. (Starting from $50)

Tasty travels

The first time I carted around wine outside its bottled shell was to a rock concert in the 1980s when everyone smuggled in wine skins. Those goatskin pouches may still be hip in Basque country, but here? Not so much. Now you can buy ice bags, fancy bike harnesses and bubble wrap envelopes that protect your special bottles of vino you pick up on a trip. If wine is one of those items you love to buy abroad, purchase something sturdy and reusable like a BottleWise Rollup. Easy to tuck into your suitcase, the bag seals each litre tightly in a plastic compartment that protects your precious cargo during a long journey. (Starting at US$20)

Great Gatsby lookalikes

True confessions—I love most anything that smacks of The Great Gatsby. I’m a sucker for steamer trunks, slow ships to China and sipping slings in the Palm Court of the Raffles Hotel, so I’m partial to the Col. Littleton line of leather goods that look like they belong on the arm of F. Scott Fitzgerald. Dubbed the “No. 1 Grip,” this carry-on piece is made of stiff steer hide for strength and opens wide so I could stuff it with jeans, shirts, small shoes and a toiletry bag. It was the laptop that did me in. There was room enough, but the weight caused the leather strap to chew into my shoulder. The cushy padding we’ve come to expect with laptop bags isn’t there. I love its romantic look more than its functionality. Use it as an overnight bag (without a laptop or heavy books) and you’ll stay smitten with its elegance, and the fact no one else has one. ($760)

Camera ready

The moment the ads appeared touting the simplicity factor behind the Olympus E-PL1, I signed up for a loaner. Blending the ease of a point-and-shoot with DSLR quality meant that, within minutes after unpacking it, I was shooting without having to slog through a hefty manual. It feels solid to grip, the body is coolishly retro and the iAuto mode is as versatile and clever as the best of ’em. The large red button used to start and stop the video recording is impossible to miss, and the HD movie mode comes with an auto-focus option, which is also dead easy to use. I’m a sucker for art filters, so I promptly fell in love with the grainy B&W filter and used it to shoot a 50th anniversary party that made everyone look like they swaggered out of a James Dean flick. All the usual digital camera fare is fairly intuitive, but I found it a bit clunky to change the settings on the fly, so I ended up getting lazy and using the iAuto mode. (US$500)