Things you need to say Poof to 2009.

Champagne? Check. Good friends? Check. Delicious little small bites? Check. What else do you need for a fun New Year's eve? We love these accoutrements from Tops Malibu, over in Eugene. First of all, these are GOOD products, not cheapo China swizzle sticks. The sparklers, for instance, burn really clean and long and bright. You can wave them around (inside or outside) and not worry about burning anything (your fingers or the house). Secondly, they are all made by hand: the owner/designer provides Oregon jobs to the developmentally disabled to make these wonderful goodies.

Aside from sparklers, we have Wish Papers (roll it into a tube on a plate, light it, make a wish, and it gently floats upwards while granting your wish {?}), little bubbles in a wee champagne bottle, and our absolute favorite, favorite party toy: the Poof Balls. The Poofs are little paper balls (dog/kid safe) that you shoot out of a Poof shooter. Sort of like spitwads, but without the yuck factor. The kids will get it right away; the fun is to give them to adults and watch them turn into goofballs. Even the most straight-laced person in the room will fall apart and have fun. Each pack has six Poof shooters and about 100 Poofs, which you can gather up and reuse. I can tell you, it's very satisfying to be able to blow one of these little balls across the room and whack your best friend in the back of the head with it. The only bad thing: you'll be discovering little paper poofs under your sofa for months. Oh well.

Also pictured, hard to see: a pair of authentic, never-been-worn spats (in original box), circa 1920s. You might not have the gumption to actually wear them, but they sure would look neat set up on your bar!

Last but not least, what girl doesn't want a lovely pair of sparkly earrings to set off her outfit on New Year's eve? Whether dressing up or putting on your most comfy jeans and fleece top (that would be me), you can turn it up a notch with these Swarovski crystal earrings... made in Paris ... very reasonably priced. Yeah, let's get rid of 2009 in style. Cheers to you!

p.s. we're open today 10:30-5:30 and tomorrow 10:30 to 4.