Promotional Gifts - 5 Christmas Gift Ideas for the Outdoors Type

Do you have employees that work outside? If you are looking for promotional Christmas gifts for people who spend a lot of time outside then you have come to the right place. In this article I aim to introduce some of the best. Whether you work for a wildlife park, campground or the telephone company you will no doubt know a few people who could benefit from these promotional Christmas gifts.

Pocket Knives

You can choose from a huge selection of top quality pocket knives. I recommend looking at the selection on offer from Victorinox Swiss Army knives. These can be purchase in small quantities and there is a knife for almost every business or hobby. From camping to golf to rock climbing, there is a Swiss Army knife that your clients or employees will love and appreciate a lot.

Flash Lights

Whatever your budget you will find a good quality torch flash light that your employees and customer will like. Look into the Maglite range of torches which are excellent value for money and supplied in attractive gift boxes. These are available in small quantities printed or engraved with your logo. If you need to purchase promotional gifts for large quantities of people, look into the many generic brands.

Fleece Jackets

Everyone enjoys receiving a nice good quality fleece in the winter months. You can choose from many brand names such as Regatta, Result and Kustom Kit. When you are purchasing clothing it is a good idea to ask for a sample to ensure you are happy with the quality. The better suppliers will send you an embroidered sample before embroidering your whole order.

Umbrellas

Promotional umbrella are available in many different price brackets. Umbrellas always look the same in a catalogue or online. They aren't! You get what you pay for. The more expensive umbrellas are much stronger and will withstand even the strongest winds. If in doubt, ask to see samples.

Large Isolated Flasks

These products can also be purchased in small quantities. You will not need to spend a lot of money to give these away to your best customers or employees. Insulated flasks are great for keeping coffee, tea and soup warm for hours.

Each of the products mentioned in this article can be purchased in small quantities. If you are really trying to impress someone important to your business, these gifts are a great starting point.

What is the best promotional Christmas gift you ever received? What do you think of the selection offered here? Have I left anything out that you feel should have been included. Please feel free to leave a comment. I would like to hear your thoughts and experiences.

For more information on promoting your business with promotional merchandise and other low cost marketing methods, please visit my daily promotional gifts blog.

Dan Toombs is Managing Director of CompuGift Limited, one of the UK's leading online suppliers of promotional gifts.

Best Pocket Knives and Folding Knives for the Outdoors

Folders are the handiest knives around because they can always just sit in a pocket, waiting to be used. Sheath knives are handier only if you carry a sheath knife on your person all the time, and most of us can not do that. For some ludicrous reason, even some wilderness areas do not allow carry of a sheath knife, while folders are permissible almost everywhere. Everyone should carry a pocket knife in or clipped to their pocket when in the wilderness (or actually, all the time).

Good folders can range from a tiny Case Peanut to a Strider and everything in between. Any size can be useful, but the smallest probably won't be quite adequate in the field for most people. If a larger knife is carried as well, then any pocket knife should do. Swiss Army knives are some of the most popular models for the outdoors and for good reason. Victorinox and Wenger are the best known brands, but all the well-known models are made by Victorinox. The alox-handled models and the larger models are the most popular among outdoorsmen. The Pioneer Harvester and the Farmer are excellent choices in the smaller alox models. Both have a good blade and a saw, which are the most important options for the woods. Among the larger models, the Rucksack, the Trekker, and the Forester are great choices. All have a larger blade and saw, making them more useful than the smaller models if used as the general use knife. Pretty much all Victorinox models are great quality, but those named are some of the best for the outdoors.

Traditional folder types such as the stockman, trapper, copperhead, peanut, and congress are also good options. The stockman and the trapper are the favorites among these for wilderness use, but all are good. Case, GEC, Boker, and Queen are some companies that make excellent traditional knives. If cheaper options are needed, check out Rough Rider and Steel Warrior. Neither of these companies make knives as good as the others mentioned, but they are very cheap and decent quality.

For a more modern "tactical" style, Benchmade, Spyderco, Cold Steel, and Kershaw make cheap to moderately expensive, but excellent quality, knives. Benchmade is the top of the line as far as these knives go. Their Griptilian is an amazing knife at a little under $100. Mine did everything that I wanted it to do, until I lost it. The Rukus is a huge folder that was recently discontinued, but a great knife. Spyderco also makes good knives. The Delica and Endura are the most popular and best known. The Spyderco Tenacious is a Chines-made knife that is getting a good reputation for a working knife. Kershaw and Cold Steel make slightly cheaper knives, and Kershaw in particular has a great reputation. The Kershaw Tyrade is an excellent knife if you can get it, and the Junkyard Dog II, Needs Work, and Skyline models are also great.

A folder shouldn't be your only option if possible, but one or more should definitely be part of any outdoor kit!

Timothy Cook is a geologist and knife enthusiast. He is interested in all aspects of knives and tools. For more information on pocket knives and folding knives, visit http://best-pocket-knife.info. If you are interested in wilderness and outdoor knives, come by and visit at http://greatoutdoorknives.blogspot.com.

Best Pocket Knives and Folding Knives for the Outdoors

Folders are the handiest knives around because they can always just sit in a pocket, waiting to be used. Sheath knives are handier only if you carry a sheath knife on your person all the time, and most of us can not do that. For some ludicrous reason, even some wilderness areas do not allow carry of a sheath knife, while folders are permissible almost everywhere. Everyone should carry a pocket knife in or clipped to their pocket when in the wilderness (or actually, all the time).

Good folders can range from a tiny Case Peanut to a Strider and everything in between. Any size can be useful, but the smallest probably won't be quite adequate in the field for most people. If a larger knife is carried as well, then any pocket knife should do. Swiss Army knives are some of the most popular models for the outdoors and for good reason. Victorinox and Wenger are the best known brands, but all the well-known models are made by Victorinox. The alox-handled models and the larger models are the most popular among outdoorsmen. The Pioneer Harvester and the Farmer are excellent choices in the smaller alox models. Both have a good blade and a saw, which are the most important options for the woods. Among the larger models, the Rucksack, the Trekker, and the Forester are great choices. All have a larger blade and saw, making them more useful than the smaller models if used as the general use knife. Pretty much all Victorinox models are great quality, but those named are some of the best for the outdoors.

Traditional folder types such as the stockman, trapper, copperhead, peanut, and congress are also good options. The stockman and the trapper are the favorites among these for wilderness use, but all are good. Case, GEC, Boker, and Queen are some companies that make excellent traditional knives. If cheaper options are needed, check out Rough Rider and Steel Warrior. Neither of these companies make knives as good as the others mentioned, but they are very cheap and decent quality.

For a more modern "tactical" style, Benchmade, Spyderco, Cold Steel, and Kershaw make cheap to moderately expensive, but excellent quality, knives. Benchmade is the top of the line as far as these knives go. Their Griptilian is an amazing knife at a little under $100. Mine did everything that I wanted it to do, until I lost it. The Rukus is a huge folder that was recently discontinued, but a great knife. Spyderco also makes good knives. The Delica and Endura are the most popular and best known. The Spyderco Tenacious is a Chines-made knife that is getting a good reputation for a working knife. Kershaw and Cold Steel make slightly cheaper knives, and Kershaw in particular has a great reputation. The Kershaw Tyrade is an excellent knife if you can get it, and the Junkyard Dog II, Needs Work, and Skyline models are also great.

A folder shouldn't be your only option if possible, but one or more should definitely be part of any outdoor kit!

Timothy Cook is a geologist and knife enthusiast. He is interested in all aspects of knives and tools. For more information on pocket knives and folding knives, visit http://best-pocket-knife.info. If you are interested in wilderness and outdoor knives, come by and visit at http://greatoutdoorknives.blogspot.com.