Here’s a list of our favourite gadgets and novelty items. Any of them will make a great birthday or housewarming gift, and all of them will leave your friends talking.

1) The All in One

Back to Basics Egg & Muffin 2 Slice Toaster, TEM500 ($34.00)

If you have any friends who are particularly uncoordinated in the kitchen, this all-in-one contraption is literally the perfect gift. Breakfast will become a no-brainer, since it serves up golden brown toast and poached eggs in one foul swoop and with no maintenance required. The wide slot toasting compartment can accommodate bagels and croissants so you aren’t limited to slice width and its removable crumb trey is a clean-up godsend.

2) Voice Printing Grocery List

SmartShopper Deluxe Grocery List Organizer ($99.95)

Making a “To-Do” list is a pain the YOU KNOW WHAT! The Smartshopper Deluxe Grocery List Organizer runs on speech command to record and alphabetize your household needs. It has 2500 preloaded items, and a customizable library for whichever commands it might not recognize and a built in printer so you can grab-and-go when you’re headed on a grocery run.

3) Knife Sets and Voodoo Dolls?

Raffaele Lannello’s The Ex ($95.00)

Knife sets are a great gift, be it for housewarmings or for friends who enjoy cooking; finding one with personality is the trick. In addition to five gourmet knives (8-inch chef’s knife, 8-inch bread knife, 8-inch carver, 5-inch utility, 3 ½ inch paper) this set comes with a human-figurine holster and transparent protective sleeves out the backside. We sort of look at is as a modern-day voodoo doll, only less witchcraft and more comedy.

4) Ice Cubes for Ice Haters

Andrew Hellman’s Whiskey Stones ($19.95)

Filling the ice trey is a little bit of a fuss, and having any drink on the rocks will inevitably become diluted. Andrew Hellman’s soapstone cubes were designed to keep beverages cool, and sip-worthy, without jeopardizing the liqueur experience. Soapstone, by the way, is too soft to scuff, so don’t think you’ll have to use Pyrex products or a mouth-guard to drink with these in-glass.

5) Steak Brand and Board Set

William Sonoma’s Monogrammed Steak Brand & Carving Board ($69.95)

Yesterday we talked about a monogrammed cutting boards so today we’re upping the ante monogrammed Steak Brand. For any barbecue master this set is the ultimate. It comes with a monogrammed cutting board and a wall-mount, so when it isn’t being put to use it will be on display as a rustic ornament in the kitchen décor.