‘Tis the season ... for winter gear

The cold sometimes comes without the snow (boo!) and Summit countians and her visitors must bundle up for safety and comfort.

Stay fashionable with a custom-made hat from Diane Harty in Frisco; get the trendiest and warmest gear at local shops; and find out which of the latest and greatest mp3 player accessories are for you.

Trends in gear

SUMMIT COUNTY — While last year’s line of snow gear and apparel still line the racks of many stores, there are some new technologies and trends emerging for the ‘07-’08 ski season.

Kevin Smith, who works in the board shop at Mountain Sports Outlet, said neon is in this year.

“It’s bringing back the ‘80s more or less,” he said, describing apparel in tones of purples, hot neon yellows and blues.

Paul Panicucci, Christy Sports manager in Breck, said prints were popular this season, along with textured materials like tweed and corduroy. Although similar to last year’s, he said this season’s trend was a “a little more wild, more bright colors.”

He also mentioned Burton’s latest in staying-warm gear. Items like socks, shirts, gloves and coats featuring Outlast, “an adaptive, comfort-fabric technology,” regulate body temperature by absorbing and releasing heat through a thermometer system.

Anthony Hagman, assistant manager at Zumiez in the Outlets at Silverthorne, said it’s all about ease this year in gear, referring to items like Burton’s pullstring bindings and the ratchet design on DC boots.

There is also a trend in skis that are easier to tune, Panicucci said.

— Leslie Brefeld

Local creates custom hat ware

FRISCO — Wintry weather is here and Summit County residents will all agree that they’re in need of hoods, headcovers, and protective devices to keep warm throughout the chill months of snow. However, where can one find a unique hat that not only warms the head, but also expresses the distinctive personality of the person beneath it?

Diane Harty, a local milliner, creates a wide variety of hat styles, from fanciful and elegant to practical and everyday. Though her business has traditionally focused on producing spring hats, Harty has developed a series of winter hats that are stylish, warm and versatile.

Harty’s winter line is made from cut felt or chenille. Vintage style cloche hats sell particularly well at art shows. However, she can often be seen wearing a deep cap with minimalist accents — her current favorite.

Interested individuals can go to her studio for hat fittings and to see color choices, though customers can also order hats over the phone. Customers can also choose accenting; the hat can be simple or elaborate with accents varying from beads, buttons, braids, feathers, other decorations and combination accents.

“No hat is the same ... so it’s always an adventure,” Harty said.

Harty’s hat prices range from $130 to $200. Time needed to make a hat varies as well. A hat can take anywhere from one week to a month to make, depending on the hat and whether she’s traveling to art shows.

Though her creations can be pricey, a Harty hat cannot be precisely duplicated.

Given that they are handmade and that there is always a variable in shape, the customer will be sure to have a complementary hat.

“I think of hats as signifying motion and travel, even without going anywhere,” Harty said. “Putting on a hat is traveling to another part of yourself, another personality.”

Diane Harty Millinery creations are located at 120 N. 7th Ave. in Frisco.

— Caitlin Row

Check out the latest equipment for tunes and technology

Winter fashion is not complete without a music player that will entertain you during the day’s activities. Following are some picks from the guys at GearGiftsandGadgets.com of digital entertainment accessories that might be just right for you or someone on your list.

• Fully Loaded: SanDisk Sansa View

SanDisk planned to introduce its new video MP3 player, the Sansa View, much earlier in the year. But instead of rushing the release, the company decided to make some improvements. Fortunately, the finished product will be on store shelves in time for the holiday shopping season. Those looking for a digital media player with a number of extras should take a long look at the competitively priced View. It comes in two versions, one with 8 gigabytes of storage space and one with 16GB. The larger flash-based model can hold an estimated 4,000 songs, 24 two-hour movies or 8,000 JPEG photos. Those totals can be boosted with an optional memory card. You can watch movies or look at photos on a 2.4-inch TFT color display and the unit’s rechargeable battery provides as much as 35 hours of audio and seven hours of video playback. Additional features include a built-in FM radio with 20 presets and voice-recorder capabilities with a built-in microphone. Expect to pay: $150 (8GB)-$200 (16GB).

• Moving in Stereo: Motorola MOTOROKR S9 Headphones

Thanks to Bluetooth wireless technology, you can now control your digital audio player or answer the phone without ever breaking stride during your next run or walk. The MOTOROKR S9 stereo headphones were developed with the active person in mind. They weigh about an ounce, are water- and sweat-resistant, and feature a comfortable behind-the-head design. You can stream music from an iPod with a special Bluetooth stereo adapter or listen to tunes loaded onto your Bluetooth-enabled stereo music phones. Then when you have a call, press the integrated touch-sensitive controls on the headphones and start talking. A lithium-ion battery provides about six hours of music listening time, seven hours of talk or six days of standby time on a full charge. Enhanced Bluetooth technology helps the MOTOROKR S9 headphones deliver better call quality, less interference and faster connections.Expect to pay: $130.

• Storage Room: Apple iPod Classic

If you haven’t heard much about Apple’s iPod Classic, you’re not alone. The debuts of the iPod Touch and a redesigned nano overshadowed the coinciding announcement of upgrades to Apple’s high-end portable media players earlier this year. Nevertheless, these improvements are of special interest to those who fill their iPods with massive amounts of audio and video content. The key change is the huge storage capacity on these hard drive-based units. Storage has been increased from 30 gigabytes to 80GB on the lower-priced model and doubled to 160GB on the higher-priced one. This means you can store as many as 40,000 songs or 200 hours of video content. Expect to pay: $249 (80GB)-$349 (160GB).

• Picture This: Altec Lansing inMotion Mini-Theater for iPod

Sure, an iPod with video capabilities is a great way for those on the go to enjoy movies, TV shows and music videos. But when you’re at home, you may prefer to watch that video content on a screen that’s larger than the iPod’s color display. Altec Lansing has a solution. The made-for-iPod inMotion iMV712 is a digital mini-theater that pairs a quality sound system with an 8 1/2-inch LCD screen. Crystal-clear sound is delivered through a pair of 3-inch full-range speakers and a 4-inch subwoofer. Use contrast, brightness and color controls to adjust the picture quality on the high-resolution widescreen display. The inMotion iMV712 comes with a wireless remote plus a built-in alarm clock and sleep timer. Also, an audio input jack and supplied stereo cable allow you to plug in a number of other portable media players.

Expect to pay: $350

• Listen Up: Shure SE110 Sound Isolating Earphones

The question is not whether Shure makes some of the highest-quality earphones on the market. Its products have long been popular among musicians and audio engineers. The real question is how much are you willing to spend to get the best sound out of your portable media player? That becomes less of an issue with the most recent addition to the company’s line of Sound Isolating Earphones. Sturdy construction, a comfortable fit and Shure’s Balanced MicroSpeakers are major selling points for the new SE100 model, which is available in either black or white. But competitive pricing makes it an attractive alternative to similar products from other manufacturers. The earphones are designed to eliminate more than 90 percent of ambient noise and each pair comes with a “fit kit” featuring foam sleeves in three sizes.

Expect to pay: $120

• Sound System: Logitech Pure-Fi Anywhere Compact Speakers

There are countless accessories available for the iPod, but only a few can be considered essential. High on that list are speakers so iPod owners can enjoy music without being tethered to earphones. It’s also the only way to share digital music libraries and carefully crafted playlists with friends. One solution is Logitech’s Pure-Fi Anywhere Compact Speakers, which combine big sound with portability. Most impressive is the type of full-range sound produced by a unit that weighs about 1 1/2 pounds and stretches a little more than a foot in width. The Pure-Fi Anywhere speakers are designed for high-end clarity and maximum bass response with a minimum of distortion. The unit can be packed in a protective travel case along with a wireless remote control and power adapter. But it also draws power from a 10-hour rechargeable battery, and a built-in indicator tells you if the battery is running low. When the Pure-Fi Anywhere is plugged in, it simultaneously plays and charges a connected iPod.

Expect to pay: $150

For information on other new or improved products, visit www.GearGiftsandGadgets.com.

— Don Weiner and Dave Wilk