Ask MetaFilter questions in the shopping category

Any suggestions on a professional work bag?

Mr_Thirdworld — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:37:18 -0800

Looking for a professional work bag. Any suggestions? I usually pack my stuff in a medium sized Jansport backpack to carry the things I need to and from work. It's time to switch to something a bit more professional. With a budget of $100 USD, I've narrowed it down to a few choices but wanted to see what else is out there before making a purchase. Here's my short list:

-Boa slimcase M
-Oakley VERTICAL COMPUTER BAG 3.0

I'll need space for the following:
10.9" Netbook
Netbook charger
PSP
PSP Charger
Portable HDD with charger
A few magazines
Lunch

So......any suggestions?

I am not nearly young or cool enough to make this happen

msali — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:53:13 -0800

I thought this would be simple, but it isn't. I want to purchase a song as the new ringtone of my At&t Blackberry Pearl, and I have hit all sorts of roadblocks. So the song is Nelly Furtado's "Manos al aire", more specifically, I want JUST the chorus to be my ringtone, and damned if I can't make that happen. I am not particularly web or phone savvy, but somehow in the past, I managed to make "Man of constant sorrow" and "Cigarettes and chocolate milk" as my ringtones. Now I want a song that is one of those chart-toppers, and I can't make it happen without purchasing a subscription! I want to pay my US$ 2.49 and make this happen, but it isn't working, even on the AT&T website (which asks me to enter my type of cellphone, and after I do so, the site just shuts down). Help?!?

Buying odd dice in bulk

Mozai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 12:10:05 -0800

Where would I purchase dice in bulk? Not just six-sided dice you'd find in Risk or Monopoly, but tetraherdral (4-sided, pyramid) or dodecahedral (12-sided, cries itself to sleep)? It seems the cheapest place -- indeed, the source for many places -- is Chesshex. I was hoping for a better price than $0.55 per unit since my game idea requires 32-50 of the pyramid-shaped dice.

Could you tell me about how much these diamond earrings are worth? More inside...

picapica — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 11:32:49 -0800

Could you tell me about how much these diamond earrings are worth? More inside... I would like to find out about how much these diamond earrings are worth, but I don't need an exact amount. Can anyone help me with this?

Relevant information:
-2 diamond earrings, purchased for $600.00 in 1975
-14k white gold setting
-.96 point (This I don't quite understand. On the receipt it says ".96 Point", but on another tag it says "96 TW".)

Thank you!!

Where can I find a good secondhand record store in Hong Kong?

The Card Cheat — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 23:17:22 -0800

Can anyone suggest any good secondhand record (i.e. vinyl) stores in Hong Kong? I'm in HK until this Saturday and I'd like to check out a record store or two, but I'm having trouble finding anything aside from HMV and other chains. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

Looking for cheap DVD shops in Paris (Left Bank)

lahersedor — Sun, 08 Nov 2009 18:37:49 -0800

While I'm in Paris (for a short stop) I plan to buy DVDs (movies) by french new wave directors like truffaut. I have heard that there are cheap DVD shops in Paris. Do you know of any good ones in the Left Bank ? I will be staying in Montparnasse.

What kinds of stores are out there?

Deathalicious — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 09:54:39 -0800

What kinds of stores are out there? I've gotten so used to buying most of my things at department stores or large chain grocery stores that if they suddenly disappeared I wouldn't know where to go to buy things. So I'm wondering where you'd get things if you didn't get your things at a large store. I already know you'd get meat at a butcher's, fish at a fishmonger's, bread at a bakery, etc. But where would you go for other household items? This occurred to me because I'd like to get a nice large bag of washing soda and I know that a fair number of grocery stores probably wouldn't carry that, but for sure there is a kind of store that would always having washing soda.

For practical purposes I'm interested in stores in the US, but out of more general interest anecdotes about store types in other parts of the world would be of purely academic interest too.
For example from personal experience I know that in Egypt there are store devoted exclusively to roasted nuts. Except for Western-style groceries catering to ex-pats, these nut roasters are pretty much the only place to get your hands on peanuts.

Motorcycle Helmets in New York

LongDrive — Sat, 07 Nov 2009 07:52:16 -0800

What shop in New York City has the largest range of Motorcycle Accessories, specifically helmets? Currently visiting family in New York from Australia, and really want to pick up a Nolan Motorcycle Helmet this week. Nolan's own site has a pretty poor/non-existent retailer list, and due to the the limited time I am here, I turn to the hive.

I have a car, and can go pretty much anywhere in Long Island/Manhattan, so if anyone knows of a shop that has a huge/wide range of helmets in store, it would be most appreciated! Thanks!

Toy shopping Google-fu sought

kmennie — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 11:13:17 -0800

Shopping Google-fu sought. I want a P'tit Quiz T'choupi -- in Canada, or at least N America. I can find lots of sites selling the P'tit Quiz T'choupi, but not a single one willing to ship overseas. This seems odd: T'choupi is not unknown in Canada; the books, from the same company as the toy, are sold here, and it also seems strange that so many dot-fr toy retailers would be so happy to overlook the Quebec market.

I am dying for a "P'Tit Quiz," and assuming mail order, but lots of looking has been so fruitless that I am also interested in hearing about (1) any non-book T'choupiana available in Canada, (2) retail stores in Quebec that may be worth a drive (I am in Ottawa)... Where are French-Canadian parents buying their toys? toysrus.ca and other obvious big ones are terrible for French stuff.

Help?

Where can I find this watch?

zennoshinjou — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 08:27:21 -0800

Where else can I get a Casio Cubic? Since I loathe spending money I sat too long on this watch and now Tokyo Flash isn't selling it. I looked on ebay and did some googling to no avail. Can anyone help me out?

Treasure Hunting around Richmond

MayNicholas — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 05:18:00 -0800

Richmond VA Filter: Can you recommend any good fun antique shops in the Richmond area? Ones with good estate jewelry, coins, & historical artifacts (civil war buttons and the like)? Preferably one that has reasonable prices and the opportunity for haggling. We went to the Virginia Bazaar last weekend but were disappointed by the lack of good stuff and the inundation of sports paraphernalia & generic yard sale type items. We don't mind a little Sunday drive, say 45min to an hour from Richmond City. Thanks!

Hook me up with yummy breakfast fixins.

the luke parker fiasco — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 02:29:25 -0800

Where can I buy specialty grains in Vienna during the upcoming holiday season? I will be in Slovenija and Austria over Christmas/New Year's this year, and would like to buy some steel-cut oats and quinoa. Can anyone speak decisively to whether there are shops where a) these items are sold, and b) if they will be open around the holidays?
(Specifically I will be in Ljubljana and Stara Fužina in Slovenija, and then Hallstatt and Vienna in Austria, but I'm guessing that Vienna will be the best bet.)

Strobe Tuners

otherwordlyglow — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 09:11:22 -0800

I need help buying a strobe tuner for a gift. I know nothing about them. My husband has suggested that he'd like a strobe tuner for his guitars (he plays bass guitar primarily but also acoustic and electric guitars). From what I can tell, they seem awfully expensive. He even suggested that they were probably too expensive to get as a gift but perhaps there's something used that I can find on eBay or elsewhere? That would be fine. I'm aware that there are software-based tuners but he's a gadget guy and would prefer a device.

So first, are there decent inexpensive (under $150) strobe tuners available for retail? And if not, what should I be looking for in a used one and where? Since I have zero background in this item, I'd like some general tips on what makes a good strobe tuner.

A carbon air filter that works?

Nish ton — Wed, 04 Nov 2009 03:36:46 -0800

Have you ever encountered an activated carbon air filter that actually removed odors, leaving the output air clean? Which one? Never in my life have I been so peeved at the whole steaming pile known as consumerism.

I've tried no less than 7 times now to find something that works.

I bought a honeywell filter appliance, a febreze, and a bionaire, only to find that there was something wrong with the carbon filter material itself in all 3 cases. Not only does it not clean the air, but even after more that a week running in the garage (12 days in the case of the honeywell) it was still releasing some sort of awful fumes. I strongly suspect the smell is added intentionally by companies to make the air "smell clean" to ignorant consumers.

After the misfortunes of finding the honeywell and febreze machines didn't work, and having bought and not yet gotten around to returning the bionaire, I decided to try something.

I bought some carbon filter stuff (they call it " paper" but it more like a mat of hair made from Polyethelene terephthalate), the sort they use in air conditioners in office buildings, from Camfil Farr. To remove odors, suposedly. Then I took the filter out of the bionaire machine and taped a few square ft. of filter paper over the intake.

Exactly the same smell and problem after running it for a week. I figured it was just a matter of finding a brand of carbon filter that actually worked. I tried 3 more filter medias from various sources, all with the same problem.

I read up on some of the physics and design principles and it is clear that it is easy to make a functional filter that will absorb household smells, but
apparently it has come to the point now that companies have decided to stick with just duping the masses into accepting useless junk instead, no matter how little effort making a functional product actually requires.

So has anyone ever encountered a filter that works?

BTW this really matters because I live in a house with no provisions whatsoever for bringing in fresh air during the winter.

How to find authentic goods?

Anonymous — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 21:16:42 -0800

Looking to buy a WW2 ring. Help me not get scammed on eBay. (Anonymous because this is going to be a surprise, and the gift-receiver is a sneak)

I'm planning on proposing to my long-time boyfriend some time in the next year, and I'd like to get him a ring. Since he's a history buff, I figured a German WW2 ring would be an awesome choice. Ebay has piles and piles of Todkopf rings, but I'm looking for something a little more subtle; something from a Panzer team would be great, but I'll consider anything that's not just a giant cross/swastika/skull. I've come across these two which are particularly nice. Too nice, I guess. Although they're being sold from different accounts, both accounts are in Latvia, and the listings are suspiciously similar. "100% original old! Solid and presentable appearance is suitable for a man’s collection." But both accounts have good feedback. For what it's worth, I know absolutely nothing about period jewelry, so I likely wouldn't recognize a fake if I held it in my hand. So here are my questions:

1. Am I right in thinking that these listings are a little shady?
2. Are there any policies in place to handle falsely advertised items; if the item arrives and it's not authentic, do I have any recourse aside from leaving a negative review?
3. Where else can one look for authentic military artifacts?

Throwaway email: germanring@gmail.com Thanks in advance for any help!

What to do, what to do, what to do??? What mp3 player should I buy?

GrooveStix — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 20:50:51 -0800

Could you help me find a mp3 player that has large capacity and plays flacs? It seems to me that I am spending too much time googling on this matter, so I decided to finally post my question here.

After my trusty mp3 suffered a severe fall from my schmuck self, I decided to upgrade. Which is when I hit a wall... :(

I am something of an audiophile and have a fairly large, evergrowing collection of music, so I am looking for something that's a music player FIRST and everything else is secondary. So something around 120gb, or more. iPods don't play flacs, and I've been using Rockbox long enough to know that there isn't a port for the later generations (with bigger capacity) of iPods. Is there anything else that I can buy?

I am really not interested in a device that plays dvds, makes pancakes, and occasionally calls the boyfriends of my ex-girlfriends to have a chat, so lets make sure it's something reasonably priced and back to basics. :)

Swimming in a sea of wood and strings.

radioamy — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 13:28:46 -0800

Boyfriendbirthdayfilter: Do you know anything about buying mandolins? Please hope me! My boyfriend is a musician (guitar mostly, dabbles in bass) and has mentioned that he would like a mandolin. His birthday is next week (oops!), and I’m interested in buying one for him. However I know little about buying musical instruments, and nothing about mandolins!

I’m looking to spend about $200. Is that a reasonable amount to pay for a decent quality instrument? Is a mandolin something that I could buy at Guitar Center or do those sound like they came from Toys-R-Us? What should I look for and what should I avoid?

I've looked at two previous questions and through the FAQ at Folk of the Wood but I'm still unsure. There are SO MANY FUCKING OPTIONS! A-style, F-style, A-style with F-holes...halp!

Do you have some advice for me? The more direction the better, because I feel like I'm swimming in a sea of wood and strings!

I live in New Orleans, LA if that's relevant. I'm okay buying online if I need to.

Jewelry shopping in Boston

Aizkolari — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 12:04:25 -0800

BostonFilter: Can you point me to a reasonably priced jewelry shop? I'm new in town and am looking to spend 40-60 bucks buying a simple gift for my girlfriend's birthday. Maybe something a little funky done in silver with semiprecious stones, either a necklace or bracelet, or perhaps earrings.

Can any Bostonian Mefites point me to some stores? I've done some walking around on Newbury and Charles with moderate success, but wanted to query the Hivemind for help.

Bonus points if the shops are in Cambridge or Somerville, but I'm willing to hoof it on the T to any cooler shops.

Further bonus points for any advice on buying jewelry in general.

Confused about a Sigma lens for Pentax

GuyZero — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 21:44:49 -0800

This new lens from Sigma (18-250 zoom) comes in a Pentax mount. Pentax puts their DSLR image stabilization in the camera body and not in the lens like Nikon or Canon. Yet the description for all the lenses is the same - image stabilization in the lens. Is this a case of cut&paste product descriptions or would using this lens on a Pentax camera have double image stabilization (both lens & camera body)? The Amazon description seems to indicate it's in the lens but the English is a bit wonky. I'm also curious whether this lens is worth the higher price versus the similar Pentax & Tamron lenses.

Help me find this photo taken by Bob Jackson

kingjoeshmoe — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 18:30:09 -0800

Help me find a better copy of a famous(?) desegregated school photo. You can see it here, on the left side of the second row from the bottom. I went to the Sixth Floor Museum in Dallas earlier this year, where I saw a really great photo of a couple children looking out a window at a newly desegregated school, taken by Bob Jackson. Right now, that little thumbnail is the only copy I can find. I'm interested in finding better, either as an electronic image, or else a hardcopy for purchase. Google has failed me. Do you know where I can find it?

Buying a stuffed onager?

historybuff — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 15:56:34 -0800

Where can I buy a stuffed onager toy? I have a niece who is really into horses of various types. She is really taken with onagers--a kind of Asian wild horse (Equus hemionus) that's smaller than a regular horse (about the size of a donkey). I am trying to buy her a stuffed onager as a present. However, all my searches have led to 1) generic stuffed horses; or 2) toy onager catapults.

Anyone have a suggestion for a good place to purchase (online or brick and morter stories) unusual stuffed animals? I'd like to do something not-cliche. Thanks.

Yay, I got #1. Now what do I want?

rabidsegue — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 14:48:26 -0800

Please help me come up with a theme for our family holiday Yankee swap. Every year we gather 3 generations of extended family for our holiday Yankee swap (white elephant, dirty santa, etc). We limit gifts to at or less than $25, centered on a very general theme, so as not to leave anyone out. One year was photography, one was cooking, one was games, as examples.

Please help me come up with a new theme for this year. I'm having a Yankee swap mental block. Thanks!

Slippers!

nam3d — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 10:02:16 -0800

My slippers are soon to thrown out with the rubbish, but before I rush out and buy some new ones I have few requirements. They need to be warm, comfy and not kill me when I'm walking downstairs. Also they should have some grip on the sole so I can safely walk in the garden without slipping when it's wet.

P.S. I'll accept all recommendations (however wacky) so if you think slipper socks (e.g.) are what I need let me know.

How do I get US-address-only items delivered to Australia?

katala — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 04:22:10 -0800

Can anyone please recommend a reputable mail-forwarding service for someone living in Australia who wants to buy from US-only stores? Hi MeFites, I need to buy some items (headbands of all things!) which I can only find on US store websites and they will only ship to a US address (no international shipping provided).

Can anyone please recommend a good mail-forwarding service who I can have my items shipped to, and then they will ship them to me in Australia?

Many thanks in advance for any help you can give!

Katala

Help me identify these figurines.

uans — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 18:52:34 -0800

Please help me identify these odd little figurines and "bunny house" teapot I bought for my bunny-mad niece. http://i38.tinypic.com/2vlpt2x.jpg I found them in St. Jacobs, Ontario, but even the owner of the antique store didn't know what they are called. I would like to buy more (from where? Ebay?"?) but I certainly can't until I know what they are called. The first two pics are of the figurines,the second two pics are of the back and front of the teapot. The teapot is hollow inside and certainly looks as if it was meant to be lit from within by a candle. All the items appear to be made out of plaster. Any help with identification would be much appreciated.