Holiday Shopping Strategies By Janet Bennett Washingtonpost.com Staff Wednesday, December 1, 1999

(Kathleen Carr/WPNI)

*First and foremost, think about what you're going to buy before you spend a single dime, and then don't go out without a list. You know the old adage about going to the grocery store; the same applies here.

*Consolidate your efforts. Don't go to more than one mall. If you're lucky enough to live close to one of the less-frenetic ones (Fair Oaks, for example), so much the better.

*If there are any shopping possibilities near your office, take advantage of your lunch break as a buying opportunity.

*Go quirky. Our favorite restaurant editor goes to Indian Spices and Gifts (3901 Wilson Blvd., Arlington), which stocks saris as well as spices, and even televisions. Load up on stocking stuffers like jars of lime pickle, cardamon pods and Indian toothpaste for your favorite foodies.

*Filene's Basement is going out of business. Everything in the store is discounted 20 percent and more. Look for great bargains on handbags, fleece gloves, sunglasses. Those power-bead/prayer bracelets that are being hawked all over town are $9 here, as opposed to as much as $30 elsewhere. Expect crowds.

*Many museum shops are open late over the holidays to accommodate shoppers. Here's a brief list:

The Phillips Collection shop is open Thursdays (until 9) and stocks lots of creativity-inspiring gifts for kids.

The Strathmore Hall Arts Center gift shop is open every Wednesday until 9, offering tea-for-one teapots in an array of colors and shapes for $15, and the biggest collection of kaleidoscopes around town.

The National Museum of Natural History gift shop is open until 9 on Dec. 3, 10, 17, with merchandise that ranges from toy dinosaurs to diamonds.

The National Building Museum is open two Wednesday evenings (Dec. 8 and Dec. 15) until 7. Favorite buys include a wrist magnet for do-it-yourselfers to keep track of their nails and screws.

The Indian Craft Shop (located in the Department of the Interior) is open until 8 on Dec. 16. Sand paintings, pottery, jewelry and the unusual: dream catchers (baskets with feathers that filter bad dreams from good).

*Personally, I can't think of a better gift or an easier one to obtain than a gift certificate from a spa such as Aveda. Just call the spa, order from its list of treatments that include hot-stone massages, facials, body scrubs and polishes, and a certificate will be sent out to the lucky recipient. So enticing you may just want to order up one for yourself as well.