Under My Skin

Posted by Canadian Gift Guide on December 6, 2013 · 64 Comments

GelaSkins is one of those brands I can’t seem to quit. Every time I visit their website I’m impressed not only by the new designs they carry, but the new products. For the uninitiated, GelaSkins is a proudly Canadian brand that licenses artwork to apply to a range of devices (and beyond, as you’ll see). Originally they started with their signature removable phone skins, but today the line has blossomed to include phone hardcases, skins for tons of other devices, and as of late, stretched canvas. You can browse their existing collection and attempt to narrow down your favourites, or you can even custom print your own artwork, pattern or photo. Long story short? They’ve got tons of gifting inspiration in store.

iPhone 5C Skins – $15
This past fall marked the launch of the new ‘cheaper’ iPhone, the 5C. Users that scrambled to buy this purchase may have been slightly let down to learn it’s not compatible with old iPhone 5 or even new 5S gear, owing to its thicker, rounded backing. Luckily GelaSkins still has you covered with their trademark line of skins, available in virtually every print they carry. What’s particularly cool with the brand’s skins in particular is they pretty much transform your phone: wrapping around the back, front, button, and even carried through a free matching wallpaper. So if you’re looking to shake up your friend’s iPhone style in the new year, consider grabbing a few fun skins to tuck into their stocking – or better yet, to accompany the gift of a new iPhone 5C – plus stay tuned for the launch of a new hard case in 2014. Note: GelaSkins also carries skins and hard cases for the iPhone 5S, 5, 4S, 4 and even all the way back to the 3!

Stretched Canvas Prints – From $45
Fun fact! I used to work at an art gallery and shop for five years, and in that time I noticed wrapped canvases were quickly becoming a favourite style – it’s lightweight, easy to mount, and looks very chic, modern and bold. GelaSkins has taken their pint-sized artwork that was previously applied to your phone and adapted it so you can now have your favourite pieces printed on big, glorious stretched canvases. There are four different sizes to choose from, as well as three different finishes for your edges (personally I love a ‘gallery wrap’ which pulls the image over the sides), making it easy to adapt to your home’s design or your giftee’s personal tastes. If however, you feel like the stark canvas on its own looks a little unfinished but you like the idea of its 3D shape, you can easily add a wooden frame to complete the look while placing your order.

Kindle Skins – From $20
From the time I first wrote about GelaSkins, eReaders really exploded. Naturally, as yet another piece of hardware that we all want to customize in our own way, GelaSkins has added a line of skins to deck out your favourite eReader device, with the same ‘wraparound’ effect as their classic phone skins. Note that while I’ve highlighted Kindle skins here, the site’s menu does not speak to ALL of the products they carry – it really just highlights the most popular. Long story short, if you type in your device’s name in the search box, you’re likely to find skins that will work for it (like I did for ‘Kobo’). Anyway just as with the cell phone skins, consider gifting one to someone along with that new eReader they’ve been wishing for – or give them a GelaSkins gift cert so they can browse to their heart’s content.

Fine Art Prints – From $55 (framed) or $25 (unframed)
Despite my love of plaquemounted and canvasmounted art, I also have respect for the bold look of a colourful print encased in a clean frame and bright white mat (that’s the border that goes between your image of choice and the frame). In fact, I’m currently compiling framed artwork of different shapes, sizes and styles to create a mosaic effect on a feature wall in my house. Enough about me. Just as with the Stretched Canvas Prints, GelaSkins has also offered up their line of spectacular images in a more traditional, framed context. Once again, there are four different sizes to choose from, and you have the option of adding on a white or black frame to your favourite print. Alternatively, you can also just order the print on its own, leaving you to do what you want with it – use it as a poster, mount it onto wood, custom frame it, swap out a picture in an existing frame, you name it! An incredibly smart use of GelaSkins’ expansive image library, if I ever saw one.

Xbox Skins – From $15
Not everyone is rushing to get the new devices out there – they’re pricy, unproven, and there’s always a slight risk with buying first gen systems. If you’ve got a gamer that’s perfectly happy with their existing Xbox system, consider giving it a kick in the designer pants by purchasing some new skins for their system, Kinect, or even their controllers. What’s particularly neat is the same design can be applied to all pieces, giving you a truly custom look. Alternatively, GelaSkins handily highlights each print’s artist, so you can peruse other items from their collection and create a complementary and cohesive look that isn’t overkill.

In very awesome and fun news, a couple of you readers are about to have some pretty tricked out devices in your life. Why you ask? I’ve got two $75 gift codes to give away to spend to your heart’s content on GelaSkins (be forewarned, it’s a HUGE time suck to go through their collection and try and narrow down your faves). Want to win it? Here’s how to enter:

1) Tell me in the comments below by December 26th: What’s your favourite GelaSkins print and what device would you apply it to? Hint: visit their website to peruse the print names & what you can apply them to.

2) Entries are limited to one per person / per email address / per household (or more if you score bonus entries). A random draw will be conducted on or around December 27th to select the winners, who will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen in their place.

3) Entries are limited to Canadians that have reached the age of majority in their province. Quebec is not eligible for this promotion.

4) Bonus Entries: Get hooked up with GelaSkins for the chance to score 3 extra bonus entries. Like ’em on Facebook, leave a comment, link back to it and / or Follow ’em on Twitter, tag ’em in a Tweet, link back to your Tweet below and / or Follow ’em on Instagram, love a photo, link back to your photo of choice.