Magical key bands

I was having a key duplicated at Ace Hardware when I noticed I was carrying around three mystery keys. No idea what they were for. "I should label these things," I thought, and there on the counter was my solution: Key-WRITE.

This little pack of colorful, rubbery bands is kind of magical. You slip a band around the top of a key, dip it in boiling water, and the band fuses to the shape of your key. Dry it off and you can mark the band with the key’s purpose.

Key-WRITE sells for around $5 for 16 sleeves at Ace or www.key-write.com. — Betty Shimabukuro

Sometimes you feel like a macaroon

Nordstrom Marketplace Cafe’s oh-so-delicious chocolate-covered macaroons are a treat that keeps me coming back to the department store’s ground floor at Ala Moana Center. At $2.95 they are big enough to cut into quarters and share among friends, but you might not want to — that big scoop of chewy, not-too-sweet coconut filling wrapped in milk chocolate is ultrayummy, like a homemade Almond Joy without the nuts. The cafe is open 9:30 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mondays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Sundays. Call 953-6110. — Elizabeth Kieszkowski 

Lip-smacking good

Eos lip balm is like an adult version of the Bonne Bell Lip Smackers of my youth. Made with vitamin E, shea butter and jojoba oil, the "100% natural, 95% organic" lip moisturizer comes in a surprising egg shape created to draw attention. But be prepared to keep reapplying as the summer fruit smell will keep you licking your lips. Eos lip balm is available at Target for $3.49. — Donica Kaneshiro

Designer deals

Who doesn’t love a great deal? Get them 24/7 on the television shopping network QVC (Quality Value Convenience). There’s a daily "Today’s Special Value" that’s an extra bargain from leading brands and designers priced as much as half off the "estimated retail price." Such was the allure of my bejeweled blouse and faux snakeskin loafers by Isaac Mizrahi. A cute chicken casserole dish came with free shipping. I found the best-fitting pair of pants on QVC, too. Hosts with astounding gifts of gab power-sell the virtues of every item, so beware your impulses. But if you overdo, there’s always a 30-day money-back guarantee. — Joleen Oshiro

Ship it!

Online, you’ve found that thing you can’t live without. It’s on the mainland. Hey, free shipping! But when you actually try to buy it, the fine print says they don’t service Hawaii. Or the "free" shipping evaporates, and the new cost is more than your thing is worth.

But there’s a workaround called Ship to Hawaii. The concept is elegantly simple. You sign up with Ship to Hawaii, and your goods go to a consolidation spot in Hawthorne, Calif., and from there, twice a week, all the stuff is airlifted to Hawaii and you pick it up at their facility in Iwilei. The cost is just a fraction of what FedEx or UPS charges. The downside is that it takes a couple of days longer (and make sure the seller knows that the end destination is Hawaii, so you don’t get charged California tax). Ship to Hawaii alerts you via e-mail when your package arrives both in California and in Iwilei.

I’ve used Ship to Hawaii for several years, ranging from a 200-pound electrical inverter to a couple of shirts, and never had a problem. See www.shiptohawaii.com. — Burl Burlingame

Correction: Chocolate covered macaroons at the Nordstom Marketplace Cafe are $2.95 and the cafe is open from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sundays. An earlier version of this story online and a story in Friday’s Star-Advertiser on page D3 had an incorrect price and hours. The phone number was also wrong but has been corrected.