Awesome Living

A versatile writing instrument that not only offers awesome styling and ergonomics, but packs a bright LED flashlight and a removable tip that functions as a glass breaker and self-defense tool. Made from black coated aviation-grade aluminum.

A beautiful handcrafted Japanese cutting tool from blacksmith Yoshihiko Akitomo. It comes wrapped in paracord which does double duty as a grip and survival equipment. Created from Shirogami 2 Gou (White Steel No. 2), with a 4.72″ blade and 10.03″ overall length.

Keep your facial hair tamed and tidy with miniFab’s Swiss Army-like grooming tool. It packs fine and wide-toothed combs as well as a dull blade for scooping their organic beard balm. Available in paduak, maple, walnut, or bamboo, all with bamboo blades.

Skate or Design creates vibrant and functional home accessories and furniture from reclaimed skateboard decks. The highlight of their collection is this 40″ wide coffee table covered in colorful wood decks. A hidden steel frame underneath provides structure and rigidity.

Our pals at Everyday Carry present a selection of great notebooks for keeping yourself organized in the new year. While we love our gadgets as much as the next guy, sometimes it’s nice to just have things in writing. Our fave? The gridded Hobonichi Techo Planner.

Designed for teaching kids about proper knife handling and safety, this snap-together plastic knife model is also a neat plaything for your desk or as a conversation starter. Available in a wide variety of colors, so you can mix and match components.

Keep a water bottle with you all the time without taking up the space. This convenient and portable container scrunches down to fit in your pocket, then pops open to hold 500ml (~16 oz) of liquid. Made from BPA-free materials. Also available in 1000ml (~32 oz) size.

For those of us incapable of keeping house plants alive, there’s always the trusty cactus. But if you can’t even handle that, there’s always these coasters that look like a cactus, but require no care and feeding. Includes 6 cork coasters, a slotted lid, and a terracotta pot.

Find out what you’re really breathing in with this high-tech indoor air monitor that can analyze and track chemicals, dust, CO2, humidity, and temperature. Its companion mobile app then makes recommendations, and can even control other smart devices to help improve air quality.

Electronics maker Eton teamed up with the American Red Cross to create radios designed to work in any situation. The FRX3 can be charged up with its hand crank or solar power, plays AM/FM and NOAA weather bands, and doubles as a flashlight and smartphone charger.

ThinkGeek’s zinc alloy Millennium Falcon multitool kit works as an adjustable wrench, holds a variety of hex keys and screwdrivers, and is the only EDC that can do the Kessel Run in 12 parsecs. Be sure to grab the R2-D2 tape measure while you’re at it.

The latest fragrant candle from our beer-loving pals at Swag Brewery offers up the warm and delectable aroma of maple syrup, waffles, cinnamon, coffee, and hand-poured into a recycled beer bottle. Burns for 45+ hours so you can enjoy that breakfast scent all day long.

What sets this retro-style record player apart from others is its ability to stand as a piece of furniture all on its own. It has a pair of full-range speakers built in, plays vinyl at 33-1/3 and 45 RPM speeds, and has an AUX input for other music sources.

Owen & Fred’s stainless steel shot glasses each hold 2oz of your favorite spirit, and are die stamped with an appropriate cheer of “Bottoms Up” in the bottom that you can read as you prepare to gulp down your drink.

This simple countdown timer automatically can count down a pre-set amount of time. Simply place the time you want to count face up, and its alarm will go off when time’s up. Available in 5/15/30/60 minute, 1/5/10/15 minute, and 1/3/5/7 minute versions.

Snack cakes in ice cream form with the help of Nestle. There’s CupCakes: chocolate ice cream, chocolate cake, cream frosting; Twinkies: buttercream ice cream, sponge cake, vanilla frosting; and Sno Balls: marshmallow ice cream, chocolate cake, coconut swirl. Coming soon.

A cross between a resume and a personal website. It has a very convenient drag-and-drop interface and clean templates to choose from, and automatically adjusts for print, desktop and mobile viewing. It’s free to use; pay $10 to access more templates. Sorry, no actual cake.

Ensizen Design’s absolutely stunning handmade friction-folding knife has a VG10 damascus steel blade, sandwiched between Titanium 6AL4V scales which almost look like concrete, along with a micarta backspacer. Includes a handmade Horween Dublin sleeve.

The latest reusable and scannable notebook from Rocketbook can be reused up to 1,000 times, compared to up to 20 times for its predecessor. It still works with Pilot FriXion pens, but now all you need to wipe it clean is a moist towel.

An aromatic, slightly sweet spin on Crown’s spicy spirit, blending Madagascar bourbon vanilla with Canadian whiskey. It’s perfect with coffee and cream, in a mule, or in an Old Fashioned minus the sugar. Try a 50/50 mix of Crown Deluxe and Crown Vanilla for a treat.

Bring an alien invasion into your bathroom or kitchen with one of these fun soap pumps from designer Duncan Shotton. Each one features a tiny U.F.O. that uses its tractor beam to slurp up an innocent human, piggy, or cow from your countertop.

Sweet, smoky and effortlessly drinkable, Tres Papalote Mezcal is distilled from the wild cupreata agave plant found in a remote Mexican mountainside using a family recipe. Also, if it’s good enough for brand ambassador Cheech Marin, then it’s good enough for us.

This pen truly is mightier than the sword, especially since it’s built into the casing of a real bullet. Made from an actual H&H .375 caliber magnum shell, this pen doesn’t just look cool, it writes upside-down or even when wet, thanks to its Fisher Space Pen cartridge.