Today;s home handypeople, male and female, want tools that are highly functional, convenient to use and with a touch of "cool." What;s that? You;re not sure a power washer belongs under the Christmas tree? Think again. Give it to the right individual and you;ll be remembered for life. Cordless power tools are the handyperson;s best friend. The Makita cordless combo kit is like having all your friends in one place. Inside the set;s rugged carrying bag, you;ll find a battery-powered hammer drill, reciprocating saw, jigsaw, circular saw, and angle grinder. This useful allin-one gift can be found for $599.20 at The Home Depot. Carrying cordless drills can be a hassle, of course, so Lee Valley Tools solved the problem by making both leather and nylon drill holsters.

These fit two-inch leather and nylon belts and include Velcro strips to keep the drills in place. The leather holsters have a nice "cowboy" feel to them (leevalley.com). Now if only band saws were portable. But they;re too big, right? Wrong: Makita builds a portable band saw that can be taken from place to place; Acklands Grainger offers both cordless and corded models. Trying to work in dark spaces is always a challenge. Lee Valley has solved this problem by offering the $12.50 Cree head-mounted LED flashlight. This is not a toy: The Cree headlight puts out 160 lumens of usable light with variable brightness settings. It can be focused from a wide field to a narrow beam, and moved through a 90-degree range so that the user;s head is always in a comfortable position.

Black 38; Decker;s AllinOne Laser Level attaches to the wall, and sets a level line using a built-in laser. But that;s not all: This device has a green/red light that visually indicates when the line is level, and when it is not. Available at Home Hardware and other retailers (blackanddecker. com). Is your f avo u r i t e handyperson constantly plagued by power issues? Get them a Wagan 200W Power Dome LT from Best Buy for $79.95. This is a portable battery unit that can jump-start dead car batteries, and has a built-in AC plug that will power laptops, battery chargers, or most anything else that has a standard AC plug. There are workshop radios and then there;s the Bosch Power Box 360 Digital Media, available at The Home Depot for $249.

This is a rugged, jobsite AM/ FM/Sirius satellite radio-capable audio system with five speakers plus a subwoofer that provides 360-degree sound. The Power Box 360 accepts music inputs from iPods, MP3 players and USBs. It even charges 14.4-volt and 18-volt li-ion batteries. According to the satirical singing group The Arrogant Worms, a typical man likes his pressure washer "because it makes cleaning destructive." Canadian Tire sells the gasoline-powered Diamond 3800 PSI Professional Pressure Washer. The professionalgrade triplex plunger pump is designed for the toughest jobs: This $1,9.99 unit will make pressure washing truly destructive of everything you;re trying to blast away. Fun times! Multi-function mini-tools can be a lifesaver when you;re in Portable Electric Drill Manufacturers the middle of a big job. The Leatherman Skeletool is a sturdy device that comes with a stainless steel combo blade, pliers, bit driver, removable pocket clip and carabine bottle opener.