DUCT TAPE PURSES

$60 from Saginaw Street Salon (purse can be customized), 811 Saginaw St., Bay City, MI 48708; phone: 989-894-7972; E-mail: ductt@hotmail.com. $25 from DuctTapeFashion.com (not pictured), 1292 County Road 875 East, Carmi, IL 62821, Internet: www.ducttapefashion.com

Suggested by Laurie White of Kalamazoo, Mich.

If you were to stop a sophisticated, well-dressed woman on the street and ask her to name a material that never goes out of fashion, she would say: ''HELP! POLICE!'' So we will just tell you the answer. The most fashionable of all materials is: duct tape. It goes with everything! Or at least it goes ON everything.

That's why in this year's Holiday Gift Guide, we're proud to include these duct tape purses. These are made from 100-percent duct tape, which means that they not only have great visual appeal, but they also could, in a pinch, be taken apart and used to tape a duct. Men, we guarantee that if you give this item to that ''special lady'' on your list, you are going to be rewarded with a look that says, ''There better be something REALLY expensive in this thing.''