Nevermind that this moose’s nose looks like a pig’s. How cute is this kids’s Moose Hat from Columbia? This 100 percent fleece hat comes in three color schemes and features a double layer ear band to keep the hat snug and comfortable during cold winter weather. ‘Cause it’s all about dressing them up in funny outfits before they get old enough to catch on to your little game…

Here’s a cute stocking stuffer for traveling iPod users: the iTravel Mini for iPod Video, available at Kaehler World Traveler. In white or black, this compact shell features plug-n-play stero speakers for bringing your audio and visual iPod content with you when you’re away from home, as well as a digital alarm clock. The book-like shape lets you prop this little techie travel gadget up when you want to and stow it away when you don’t. Plus, it protects your iPod and includes a headphone jack. Cost: $79.95

The new Hobo Tote from TravelSmith is two handbags in one. Pack wallets, digital cameras, cell phones in the mini-purse, and you’ll be able to access those items you use most frequently when you’re dealing at the airport or huffing it on your morning commute. The roomy main tote has organizer pockets and plenty of space for carry-on essentials like books, magazines, water bottles and personal media players. Once you reach your destination, the mini-purse easily detaches from the main bag to become a shoulder bag. Great when you want to leave half your belongings in the hotel and just explore the sites with essentials in hand. And because the straps are detachable, you can use the mini-purse as a casual evening clutch.

The bubble-texture rubber exterior in go-with-anything black makes this bag versatile, as well as durable against the wear and tear, scuff marks and dirt that often mar handbags subjected to frequent travel. Cost: $95.

If there’s one thing in a frequent traveler’s life that is of utmost importance, it’s having a great duffel bag for schlepping your belongings hither and thither. And a great duffel always does two things: a) hold your stuff in a more secure, organized fashion than the average duffel and b) stand up to the traumas of long-haul air travel. The Weathershed Duffel by Patagonia does both. A winner of a 2006 Gear of the Year Award from Outside magazine, the medium-sized roller bag offers the following perks for your gear:

- A extra wide opening so you don’t have to jam belongings in

- A separate compartment for shoes and dirty or wet items you’d like to keep separate

- A divider panel inside the bag that allows you to pack gear in one or two sections

- Reflective lining that makes it easier to see bag contents in dim lighting

And for added durability:

- Welded seams at common stress points on bag’s exterior

- Water repellent finish

- High ground clearance wheels

- A bottom made of ABS impact-resistant foam and plastic

- Strap-free (and snag free) handles

But, friends, here’s the best part: Right now Patagonia is offering the Weathershed Duffel in Sultan Red for $160, down from $325. This would make an eggscellent gift for your favorite travel addict (even if that just happens to be yourself).

Insider It Gear 11.21.07

Pack It Up, Pack It In

Now here’s one good-looking (imagine Derek Zoolander saying that two-word phrase, and it’s a lot funnier) travel case. The Excursion Gadget Organizer from Red Envelope aims to tame the raging mess of cords and adapters and handheld devices swimming in the bottom of carry-ons and handbags. But unlike many similar options, this one says, yeah, I organized my cords and I can pull off a Burberry scarf. Or something like that. Available in brown leather, the case features a tan canvas interior with two zippered pockets and an outside plaque that can be monogrammed. Cost: $45.

Slopes, Camera, Action

Show all those pansies back at the ski lodge how the hardcore do a little thing called shredding with the Oregon Scientific ATC-2k Waterproof Action Camera from Sharper Image. The hands-free video camera mounts on helmets, handlebars and other strategic spots and records up to 90 minutes using an SD media card (gotta buy that baby separately). Edit your footage on either a Mac or PC, upload to YouTube and just wait for the ladies to start knocking at your door. Cost: $129.95

Get a Grip on Those Drips

Move over juice box, there’s a new sheriff in town. Perfect for traveling parents with babes in arms, WaddaJuice comes in this nifty spill-proof bottle designed to keep kids from dribbling all over creation. And this ain’t no shady “juice product.” It’s 100 percent juice and filtered water. So keeping your kid clean doesn’t have to involve pumping him with extra sugar and preservatives. Flavors include apple, cranberry, grape, fruit punch and wild berry. Cost: $12.99 for 12

Proper Identification

Well, you can’t make jokes anywhere else in the airport these days, so you might as well make them on your luggage. Here’s how: Pick up a pack of Funny Luggage Tags from Pulchritude’s etsy shop at a bargain basement price. Tie one onto your bag. Let the games begin. Even better – there are 12 tags in each order. Great as little stocking stuffers or replacements when yours gets mangled by angry baggage handlers. Cost: $3

Insider It Gear 11.15.07

In Da ‘Hood

Recently tapped with a 2008 Gear of Year Award from Outside magazine, the Arc’Teryx Hercules Hoody is one high-performing soft shell that comes with a heavy dose of style. The form-fitting shape, articulated elbows and strategically placed pockets cut a body-hugging silhouette that any outdoor gal can appreciate (don’t get jealous guys, they make ‘em for you, too). After all, just ‘cause you’re giving it your all on the hill or trail doesn’t mean you have to look like a squishy rumple bum. Thanks to its Polartec Power Shield construction, this machine washable fleece alternative repels rain and snow while keeping you warm. What’s more, the nylon surface means no-pilling, which is the downfall of any fleece jacket. An adjustable hood with laminated brim keeps you prepared for sudden shifts in weather. Oh, and did we mention that this jacket just looks good? Cost: $325

Better than a Bread Box

Sexy, not at all. But smart travel doesn’t always involve the hottest, coolest gadgets. Sometimes, practicality trumps the cool factor. Case in point: the Sandwich Stay Fresh Container from the Container Store. Perhaps not a great gift idea, it is one travel accessory I’d like to have. While airplane food continues to die a slow, painful death and airports struggle to stock enough healthy, fairly-priced grab and go options, I find myself carrying food on flights more and more often. Unfortunately, that often means eating a pancake of a sandwich with soggy bread half-way through the flight. With this snazzy little container, your sammy retains its shape – and you can even stash lettuce and tomatoes in a Ziploc bag and stow it inside for assembly just before you nosh. Now as you read this, you may be asking the following completely legitimate question: why not just take a sandwich in any ‘ole plastic container? Well, you certainly could do that. But then you wouldn’t have a container that’s shaped like a sandwich. Cost: $2.99

Getting Carded

Cut make-up bag mayhem the next time you travel with Cargo ColorCards from Sephora. Each set includes 28 eye shadow cards that you can stash in your purse, overnight bag or even your pocket. Take just one or travel with the entire tin – options, options, options. Shades in jewel tones range from neutral Yukon to flashy Green Bay. Each card is supposed to be good for a single use, but we think you can stretch that a bit – unless, of course, your plans call for slathering it on. When you’re done, just chuck the card in the trash (sorry Earth!). If this kind of thing spins your wheels, Sephora also carries Cargo DailyGloss, a similar product for lip gloss. Cost: $24

The Games People Play

Leave it to Diddy to pack shot glasses, a deck of cards, five die and a flask into a leather travel case that looks more like a jewel box hiding serious bling than a way to continue pursuing life’s little vices while you’re away from home. But yes, the Sean John Bar and Game Travel Set has everything you need to get drunk and start losing at cards before you even get to Vegas. The only thing I want to know is why there isn’t room in here for my homies. Cost: $60 (currently on sale at Macy’s for $45.99)

Insider It Gear 11.08.07

Too Cool for Ski School

Looking for a snowboard helmet with as much style as the rest of your gear? The R.E.D. Revolt Snowboard Helmet in the Doze Green Art design is one of the latest items to hit Burton’s online store. This sleek brain-saver comes with removable earpads, a two-position detachable goggle clip and hidden rider-controlled vents to keep your noggin’ at the right temperature. Plus, it looks a helluva lot cooler than your average helmet.

Cost: $90

Leaving on a Jet Plane

Okay, maybe it’s not the sexiest travel book in the world, but travelers who want to geek-out with oodles of practical information will certainly find it within this volume’s pages. The 200t edition of the Airport Transit Guide includes practical information for getting to and from 460 airports around the world. You’ll find current information for each airport’s different ground transportation and public transit options and their corresponding fares, schedules, routes and contact information. Perfect gift for any traveler hitting multiple cities during an extended trip.

Cost: $9.95

Little Red Lifeline

Attention MacGyver wannabes: the candy apple red Portable Power Generator, new from the National Geographic online store, just might knock your burliest hiking socks off. It’s the sort of device that is truly useful for hardcore outdoors folk, but promises just as much fun for gear nerds of all kinds – no matter how far out in the wilderness they actually travel. Check out this unit’s bevy of features:

- 200-watt generator
- 5-LED flashlight
- Fluorescent lantern
- Emergency siren
- 12-volt sealed battery
- AC/DC adapters
- 120-volt AC outlet
- 12-Kelvin DC output
- 7-band AM/FM/NOAA radio
- 250-psi air compressor with hose, gauge and needle
- Thermometer
- Compass
- Clock

Basically, this little machine could seriously save your arse in quite a few sticky situations.

Cost: $119.95

Attention Not-Starving Artists

The Signat Medium Attache A4 DLX from Samsonite Black Label not only has a really long name, but it also has a stand-out design and hipster-friendly features sure to make any jetsetter feel a surge of envy. Outside, the ABS shell with aluminum frame comes in five punchy colors and fits into a woven leather sleeve outfitted with a shoulder strap for easier carrying. Inside, the 1960s-inspired pop-art print lining graces separate cell phone and PDA pockets, as well as a removable, matching portfolio folder, pencil case and internal divider panel. The bottom line: She ain’t cheap, but she sho’ is pretty.

Cost: $360

Insider It Gear 10.30.07

Getting Fleeced

Oh the cold winds are starting to blow, but that doesn’t mean we have to suffer the chilly temperatures in silence. Brookstone’s new ActiVHeat Jacket features a rechargeable internal heating system to keep you warm for up to five hours per charge. With its clean, simple design and non-bulky fit, the jacket means you can leave that extra sweater or layer you’re always carrying at home. A control panel fits into the pocket and starts warming action with the touch of a button. Three zones of ultra-thin, carbon fiber webbing concentrate heat on the chest and upper back, while a laminated layer of microfleece blocks wind from the outside. And because you can turn the jacket on or off at will, you’re free to add heat when you need it and do away with it when you don’t. The jacket is available in black for $179.95. The vest version costs $149.95. Sizes are unisex.

Slippers on the Go

When it comes to packing light, bulky slippers aren’t likely to make the cut. But when you’re away from home, it can be even more desirable to wrap your feet in warmth and protect your precious peds from whatever may be lurking in the fibers of your hotel room’s carpet. Luckily for those of us with slipper separation anxiety, Land’s End has just come out with a solution: Fleece Travel Slippers in their own little fleece bag. The streamlined, ballet-style (Sorry boys! These are clearly for the ladies) shape means they take up little space in your bag, while the suede sole give you traction on hardwood floors. Another perk? They’re machine washable. Cost: $25.

Crash Course

While we hope they never happen to any TravelPost.com Insider readers, we know that the vast majority of drivers have fender-benders sometime during their driving careers. The Collision.kit from Wishing Fish won’t prevent an accident or repair vehicular ailments that ensue, but it can help you remember to collect the right information when you’re totally stressed out and in crisis mode. The zippered kit includes pre-formatted pages for recording key information from drivers involved in the accident and the police responding to it, as well as a pen, clipboard and disposable flash camera to snap pics of damage on the scene. Stow it in the glove box, and all you have to do is remember to pull it out when road mishaps strike. If you can stand the oh brother eye-rolling, this would make a nice little gift for those cross-country road-tripping college kids in your life. Cost: $14.95

Surfin’ Safari

For the diehard surfers in your life, the Surf the World Board Game makes a fun gift that just might keep ‘em busy through cold, rainy weather. Think of it like Trivial Pursuit for surf bums or wannabes seeking a little solace until the weather turns. The game ushers players through eight of the world’s best surf spots and through trial and tribulations like couch crashing, lost boards, groin stitches (ouch!) and infected foot cuts. But play well and you might just get to hang ten, dude.

TravelPost.com Insider It Gear Report

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

Enjoy the irony of rolling Orla Kiely’s Big Car Print Wheelie Bag in green through an airport or train terminal this fall. At $408, this roll-aboard bag is pricey, no doubt about it. But at least your worldly goods will be cruising into the overhead compartment in style.

Kids on the Streets

Here’s one way to battle childhood obesity through travel: the new City Walks with Kids series from Chronicle Books. Editions for San Francisco and New York ($14.95) are out now and include 50 adventures parents and kids can enjoy together. Each “book” is actually a boxed set of sturdy cards.

For each walk, there’s a corresponding card printed with an illustrated map on one side and a description of the key sights, contact information and helpful hints (like where bathrooms are for pit stops along the way). Instead of toting a whole book with you, just take a pocket-sized card.

Ruff Stuff

Traveling with a pet often means carrying bulky bowls and food containers or opting for flimsy portable vessels. But with Dog Like Nature’s Travel-Trainer, you get two bowls and one plastic storage container in one nice package for $14.95. The blue plastic food and water bowls attach to each end of the clear storage container, while a handle snaps in to make this little accessory easy to carry. Each bowl holds a quart of liquid, and, in the storage container, there’s enough room for at least a weekend’s worth of food for most pets.

Total Flake Fest

Anyone who skis or snowboards knows how cumbersome boots and helmets and goggles (oh my!) become the minute you disembark from the slopes and sidle into apres ski mode. And while I normally hesitate to buy winter gear in the fall (when prices are usually highest), the Snow Country Ski Luggage, Alpine Boot Bag at L.L. Bean is a steal at $39 (and shipping is free right now, too). The bag has separate zippered sections for each boot, a main compartment that can fit a helmet and other gear and mesh outer pockets for snow-soaked hats and gloves.

Insider It Gear is a regular series from TravelPost.com that showcases new travel gear, products and accessories that today’s active traveler simply can’t live without. Okay, maybe you can, but we’re having a hard time. Got ideas for an upcoming edition of Insider It Gear? Contact Us. We won’t bite. Often.

Welcome to the TravelPost.com Insider It Gear Report

Show ‘Em What You Got

Aren’t dopp kits usually like the most boring travel accessories in the world? Well, not this one. The X-Posed XRay Dopp Case by Fred is one way to bring the fun back to an experience many frequent travelers have come to loathe. Okay, okay. Schlepping this through airport security may not actually be any more fun than carrying an undecorated alternative, but we think it’s cute. So there. Oh and thanks, Fred. Whoever you are. Cost: $12.

Hide Those Hooters

Lest you think we’ve become a wee bit obsessed with hooters lately, let me point out that Bebe au Lait’s new breastfeeding coverlet is actually called the Original Hooter Hider Nursing Cover. We’re not making that up. Designed by Claire Ekelund, this travel accessory for nursing moms comes in European silks, as well as organic and cotton fabrics and features a structured neck that allows mom (and only mom) to see baby nursing. No more slipping blankies and angry, anti-nursing-in-public airline attendants. Cost: $35.

Dude, Where’s My Wi-Fi?

Good traveling folk, we may soon see an end to the dreaded hotspot shuffle (which, if you don’t already know, is the increasingly common dance one must often perform to find a strong wi-fi connection in an airport, coffeeshop, hotel, etc.).

The ThinkGeek Wi-Fi Detector Shirt detects wireless Internet networks and announces their signal strength using an animated, glowing decal only a true geek could love.

Suddenly, just by wearing a shirt, you’ll know exactly where to plop down and fire up your laptop in airports and hotels (places where signals are notoriously uneven). But how, you may be asking yourself, will I be able to wash this new specimen of high-tech fashion? Easy. The decal is detachable (as is the AAA battery pack). This geek-tastic piece of apparel will be in stock by the end of October. Cost: $29.99

Source: Gizmodo

Toss One Back

These days, seems everyone in water bottle land (a highly populated, very wet place) is talking about Swiss-designed Sigg aluminum water bottles. Patagonia’s new all-black version is sure to appeal to traveling granolas, while the Sigg Lifestyle water bottle offers a hydration solution for style-conscious eco-ists (and, um, thirsty people).

For those of you thinking, why should I care about this aluminum water bottle, here are a few important advantages of this alternative to plastic: they’re ultra lightweight, extra durable, leak-proof and made with a non-toxic liner that is designed to be safe and devoid of taste or smell. You know, so your beverages taste like they’re supposed to. And when you’re done with the bottle (maybe after you’re dead, unless you bequeath it to your beneficiaries), you can rest easy knowing it’s 100 percent recyclable.

Insider It Gear is a regular series from TravelPost.com that showcases new travel gear, products and accessories that today’s active traveler simply can’t live without. Okay, maybe you can, but we’re having a hard time. Got ideas for an upcoming edition of Insider It Gear? Contact Us. We won’t bite. Often.