Treat Yourself To These Holiday Splurges

The kids are outfitted in their new winter gear, your spouse loves what you’ve done with the house, and your canine companion is as content as can be — but what about you? Hey, I know how hard it can be to devote a few minutes to “me time,” but it’s important to find a moment or two to relax and really treat yourself.

• Home is where the spa is

Drawing a hot bath and just unwinding for a bit can do wonders for your mood, and it doesn’t take much to turn your den into a makeshift home spa (minus the bath, of course). Pick up a luxurious Zyllion heated massaging back cushion ($159) and lay it on your favorite chair and then heat up your Aqua-Jet Foot Spa ($99) while you find your favorite playlist. You can set the mood for relaxation by flipping the switch on some Luminara LED candles ($39), which flicker just like the real thing but never burn out.

• Chocolate heaven

Nothing says treat like something sweet, which is why it’s hard to beat a chocolate fountain for pure, unadulterated bliss. The Wilton Chocolate Pro ($59) isn’t like those cheap-o models you find on the shelves of a local department store — which have a tendency to burn the chocolate and create a seriously gross mess — and it can hold a whopping 4 pounds of delicious, melty chocolate to coat everything from marshmallows to fresh fruit to everything in between. Feel free to invite some friends over for a relaxing evening of indulgence, or just keep it all for yourself — I won’t tell!

• The sweet sound of sleep

Getting a good night’s sleep can completely change how you feel the next day, and if a full 40 winks is the best treat you could ask for, the SoundSpa ($19) can help. This compact sound system fills your bedroom with any of six soothing sounds that have been proven to bring a peaceful night’s sleep. Doze off to the sounds of a rolling thunderstorm, a peaceful brook or ocean waves, and wake up feeling like you just got back from a mini vacation.

• Summon a servant

Earlier this year I told you all about how to use your smartphone to get other people to do your work for you, and it’s still one of the best ways to kick back and relax. Finding a babysitter for the night while you catch a movie is easy with UrbanSitter;Rent-A-Gent sends a good-looking, hard-working man to your front door for dates, parties, or to help around the house; and Hire-A-Chef finds you a professional culinary guru to whip up a delicious meal for you right in your own kitchen. You can even conjure up a bottle of your favorite beverage thanks to the DrinkFly app, which delivers adult beverages straight to your door.

If you want some serious pampering, download the Zeel app and order in a professional massage. It only works in a handful of major cities right now — like New York and San Francisco — but if you’re lucky enough to live in one of those areas, all you have to do to schedule your rub is tell the app what you want, like deep tissue, female or male masseuse, and pick a time. Done!

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Need a break from the winter blues? A few taps of the Vint app finds you a local personal trainer or professional athlete to seriously get your heart pumping. Book a session starting in as little as one hour and pick an activity that suits you, from cardio to yoga to a variety of sports like tennis, customized to fit your capabilities and goals. Oh, and if you need a little added help setting down that pint of ice cream, this Ben & Jerry’s Euphori-Lock will keep your sweet tooth in check.

• Give the gift of gifts.com

Insider tip: I’ve found a ton of great “me” gifts at Gifts.com, which has a virtually endless list of awesome ideas broken down into categories like Under $50, Men’s Accessories, and Gifts for Your Girlfriend. The site has become my failsafe for presents, and it’s equally useful when you’re searching for a gift for yourself, so dive in and find something that puts a smile on your face. The Gifts.com team always has great gift guides, like Gifts for Staying In, which is all about keeping yourself comfortable.

• The secret weapon

OK, if you’ve gotten this far you must not have found anything that suits you quite right. But I have a secret weapon. It’s insanely cool (and very, very expensive), but when it comes to treating yourself, there might be nothing better than this: the robotic bartender. Monsieur ($3,999) is a drink-making machine with a built-in touchscreen that lets you create drinks without ever having to lift a bottle. Oh, and you can even use the free smartphone app to order up a drink from the couch, backyard, or wherever you happen to be, and have it ready and waiting. The Monsieur has over 300 drinks in its database and it can even monitor your daily habits to determine when you’ve been working late, in which case it will automatically offer a double, instead of a single —seriously — or notice that you have a date over, so it can offer to mix a second as well.