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The 33 Best Gifts for Co-Workers

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Friends are the family you choose, or so the platitude goes. It follows, then, that co-workers are the family chosen for you by the mysterious forces of capitalism. After all, you spend most of your waking hours with these people, so you end up forming deep, enduring out-of-office relationships with many of them. Whether these colleagues are in-person teammates, Slack or Microsoft Teams confidants, or admirable mentor-managers, you can show them they’re more than just “work friends” with a thoughtful gesture. The gifts below will brighten any workday or workspace, and they include excellent Swedish candies , Lego flowers , and cozy slippers . Looking for more work-appropriate gifts? Check out our white elephant finds , the best ideas for people who work from home , and our favorite food gift baskets . from Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World https://ift.tt/7KVkNtp via IFTTT

The Best Packable Travel Towels

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We love a plush, thirsty bath towel , but a campsite or suitcase just isn’t the place for one — there, we want a quick-drying, packable travel towel. After putting 20 such towels through 60 hours of testing — including an intense day of sand and surf at the beach — we’ve concluded the PackTowl Personal offers the best balance of drying time, packability, and odor resistance without compromising comfort and design. A good option for nearly every towel-related scenario, it’s lightweight, extra-large, and supersoft, making it usable for both car camping and travel into the backcountry. from Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World https://ift.tt/v6fXZy3 via IFTTT

The Best Monitors

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Whether you’re buying a first or second monitor for your desktop computer or buying a big screen to use with your laptop at home, a good monitor is a wise investment. There’s no single monitor that will work best for everyone, but our monitor guides cover all different sizes, uses, and prices, from basic, 24-inch budget models to big 4K screens to high-refresh-rate gaming monitors. Here we discuss the best ones you can buy as well as what you might need them for. from Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World https://ift.tt/Ikt9R1e via IFTTT

The Best Chromebook

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Unless you spot a great sale, now isn’t a great time to buy a Chromebook. Older, less expensive models have been discontinued, and newer models have seen significant price increases . Google has also announced a new line of premium Googlebooks that will launch this fall, but the company has not yet shared which Chromebooks will be eligible to upgrade to the new operating system. But for the right price, Chromebooks can still be great budget options for students or anyone who needs a basic living room computer for browser-based tasks like email, banking, and streaming video. I’ve tested most of the Chromebooks released in the past 12 years, and the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 (CX3402CVA-WS388T-GR) offers an excellent value compared with its competitors. This model offers the best combination of price and features, including fast performance, a matte touchscreen, and just enough battery life for a full day of work or classes. from Wirecutter: Reviews for th...

The Best Kids Sleeping Bags

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Whether you’re planning a family camping trip, packing for summer camp, or prepping for a childhood’s worth of slumber parties, the right sleeping bag can help a kid sleep soundly in an unfamiliar spot. After comparing 32 kid-size bags over the past nine years, we think most children will be happy to crawl into the REI Co-op Kindercone 25 . It’s durable and warm, and it comes with a standout stuff sack. Plus, we love that this bag should last from toddlerhood all the way through the tween years. If you’re looking for a cozy bag that’s ideal for sleepovers, we recommend the Mimish Big Kid’s Sleep-N-Pack . It comes in a rainbow of color options, and kids can carry it like a backpack. from Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World https://ift.tt/NVPzn7l via IFTTT

The Best Facial Shaving Creams

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After centuries of grooming innovations, the act of shaving has barely changed. We still lather up our faces, drag sharp blades across our chins, and hope for the best, just like our grandpas (and their grandpas, and their grandpas) did. The impact that shaving has on our skin hasn’t changed either. Whether you have serious razor skills or you’re a bit of a butterfingers, shaving removes the uppermost layers of the skin, often leading to dryness and irritation . And thick, dense facial hair can be difficult to shave closely, what with all of those veins, angular planes, nooks, and crannies. But a great shaving cream can ease the process by softening beard hair, protecting the skin, and reducing razor friction. To find the best ones, I trawled online reviews, read academic papers, and interviewed dermatologists, cosmetic chemists, and a barber. After compiling a list of 42 popular shaving creams, foams, gel foams, and butters, I tested 23 of them at home. Then I se...

The Best Cooling Pet Beds, Mats, Bottles, and Other Accessories to Get Your Dogs and Cats Through Summer

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Plenty of pets love to sunbathe. My dog Dave spends hours working on his tan, no matter that he’s covered with a thin layer of black fur. Most animals regulate their heat on a warm day by moving to the shade, drinking water, or splaying out on the cool tiles of the bathroom floor. But sometimes animal friends need a little extra help to avoid overheating and risking heatstroke. “The general rule of thumb is, if it’s too hot for people, it’s too hot for animals to be outside for any extended period of time as well,” said Jerry Klein , chief veterinarian for the American Kennel Club. The best thing you can do is tune in to your pet’s behavior and try to prevent heatstroke altogether. Give them access to water and a space to cool off, and fan them or wet them down to help them regulate their temperature. You can also immerse them in water, said Emily Hall, a veterinarian and lecturer at the Royal Veterinary College UK, whose research has focused on heatstroke in pets ...