This pillow has a secret layer

Twelve feet tall, sold out every year since 2020. The Home Depot’s Skelly is back with 20 LCD eye expressions, app-controlled voice, and four new animatronic friends. Still in stock, for now.

Get Spooky

A down pillow with a secret middle layer. It works.

Down pillows are famously soft and famously flat by morning. Pacific Coast’s 3-chamber design hides firmer feathers in the middle, and after weeks of testing, we have notes for side sleepers.

Sleep on it

Amazon’s under-$50 gift shelf is long, and most of it isn’t on sale. That said, there are a few things still worth pointing out. Here’s where I’d put my money.

The safe bet: Owala FreeSip Kids Water Bottle ($25). It has more than 141,000 ratings averaging 4.6 stars, which is less a review score than a census. Kids can sip through the straw or tilt and swig, and the lid locks.

The actual deal: adidas VL Court 3.0 Kids’ Sneakers ($42). This is the biggest markdown in the bunch, and they hold 4.7 stars across 3,000+ reviews. The classic court silhouette goes with basically everything in a kid’s closet.

For the teen who has everything except a camera that isn’t a phone: Smartklik Digital Camera ($37). It shoots 44MP stills and 4K video, comes with a 64GB card in the box, and doubles as a webcam.

The gift that looks pricier than it is: Caudalie Vinotherapist Body Butter ($38). It’s a vegan, grape seed oil–based body butter from a French skincare brand. It reads as a splurge without being one.

Worth a look: The Marimekko Unikko Cosmetic Bag ($38) is for the design-minded, with that famous poppy print in terry cloth. Or, Hanni Water Balm ($37) is a body mist built for people who skip lotion because they hate the goop.

If you buy one thing: the Owala. If you want a discount: the adidas.

Holiday meal prep starts here

A 25-pound turkey needs a roaster that can take it. One of our favorite All-Clads is at its lowest price in months, and three more Amazon kitchen deals make the holiday cooking marathon less of a sprint.

Prep smarter

One running shoe is somehow both ultra-soft and ultra‑flexible

Lace up a pair of super-cushioned running shoes, and the first few steps feel amazing. A few miles later, all that foam starts to feel stiff, and your feet can't bend the way they want to. Brooks fixed that in the Glycerin Flex by cutting a groove across the midfoot, so its soft DNA LOFT v2 foam bends with every stride. Long runs are comfortable, and the shoe works just as well on a treadmill or gym floor. Men's and women's pairs are 24 percent off right now, just $129.95.

Go the extra mile

Hot sleepers, the real fix is under the fitted sheet

Fans and breathable sheets only get you so far. We found the best mattresses for heat diffusion, and our top pick kept things cool while barely registering a restless partner's rolling over at night.

Cool down