It is now officially the start of the holiday shopping season! This is personally exciting because I love gift-giving, even more so than receiving gifts. But I’ve always struggled with finding the right gifts. It’s so easy for me to find gifts that I like, but not gifts other people will like. If I do, it’s usually out of my price range.
Gift giving can be tricky with people having different interests or someone potentially buying the same gift as you for the same person. Giving a gift takes some consideration based on what you know about the person.
If you have no clue what to gift this year, here are some ideas that will hopefully inspire you!
1. Clothes
Photo by Pexels from Pixabay
This is a simple and potentially inexpensive gift. With winter time being chilly and cold, cozy clothing is a good choice to gift. This would keep them not only warm but stylish! With the added bonus that clothing can be used over and over again, and that there’s always sales on clothes!
You can find a variety of clothing for all sorts of prices. Some clothing items that would make perfect gifts could be: warm pajamas, sweaters, sweatpants, coats, scarves, socks or boots.
2. Food
Photo by Ana J. from Pixabay
Who doesn’t love food? Food is a to-go gift that can’t go wrong, especially if you don’t know the person very well. You could create a gift basket full of yummy treats that you could buy or create yourself. Examples of super easy and delicious treats are chocolate chip cookies, cupcakes or any baked goods. Some ideas to put in a food basket that aren’t food can include cooking pans, recipe books, lunch boxes or food gift cards. You could make a small treat bag or a big basket depending on your budget.
3. Practical Items
Photo by Free-photos from pixabay
Practical gifts are my favorite because it provides some productivity. Buying school stationery, hygiene products, organizational containers, or any item that is useful for that person. You can find those types of gifts pretty much anywhere, even at the dollar store. You should also check out Daiso, which is basically a Japanese dollar store. They sell all types of adorable and useful items such as kitchen supplies, makeup, food, containers, toys, stationary, hats, masks, etc. And all are the brands from Japan, so you can find some unique items for cheap!
4. Gift Cards
Photo by Steve Buissinne from Pixabay
This is quite an easy gift to give. If you are really stumped on what to get this person, the full proof gift is a gift card. Buy one to their favorite store, in-store or online, or their favorite food place. It’s great because they’re able to buy what they really like. And there is no pressure on you to figure out what they would like to receive.
5. Fitness/Health Gifts
Photo by Steve Buissine from Pixabay
New years is only a short week from Christmas, which makes it the perfect time to set goals for yourself. Give fitness gifts to anyone looking to improve themselves or to someone who really loves working out.
Some fitness or health related gifts could be a yoga mat, fitness membership cards, workout clothes, workout dvd, fitness journals, gratitude journals, a nice water bottle, etc.
6. Interest-Based
Photo by Free Photos from Pixabay
Sometimes, gift giving isn’t actually hard. If you’re close to the person and have an understanding on what the person likes to do, it becomes a lot easier. When I give a gift to someone, I want to go all out and make them smile.
If you know this person well, look at their interests and what you know about them. For example, my friends all have a wide array of interests. One of my friends really loves Kpop, concerts, anime, clothes and food. I can take one of those interests and give her something related to that. I can get her something related to her favorite Kpop group like an album, tickets to a concert, an iTunes gift card or merchandise. You can either focus on one interest or multiple. For example, my friend also loves anime so I could also get her merchandise, anime-themed baked goods, handmade anime fanart, etc.
If you can’t afford to buy a gift, then it’s totally fine! Gift-giving comes from the heart. DIYs are a great way to show your appreciation.
1. Photo Album/Photo Collage
Photo by Igor Ovsyannykov from Pixabay
Photos are great sentimental gifts. Creating a photo album or photo collage shows that you value memories and their presence in your life more than material gifts. You can print your favorite photos of special memories you have shared with the person you’re gifting to. You could cut the pictures out and glue them on poster paper or cut the pictures out and put them inside a photo album.
Click here for a video tutorial of laid-back influencer, Gracie. She shows how she created a photo collage and how she has it framed.
This might not be completely free, it depends based on your access to a printer and other supplies. If you don’t have a printer, you could go to your local library or to the printers here on campus. Based on how much each page costs and how many photos you plan to print, it can add up to a few dollars.
Photo albums and poster paper can be found at the dollar store or an arts and crafts store.
If you want to frame it, it might be facing an additional cost unless you already have an unused frame at home.
Use your creativity to make it your own, there is no wrong way to do this!
2. Christmas Cards
Photo by Rawpixel from Pexels
If you don’t have time or money to prepare a gift, it’s okay. The good thing about Christmas is that the holiday doesn’t require giving gifts. If you want to give something to someone important, words and acknowledgement are the perfect gift.
Take the time to sit down and write a personal letter to the person. Don’t overthink what to write, just show your appreciation and love for them.
For example, you can write how you feel about them, how they have made your life better, how important they are in helping you grow as a person, etc.
It can be a general letter to say thank you and to acknowledge them for being in your life. It could be complimenting them and hoping them the best. You could write about how much they mean to you. Don’t forget to decorate the card!
I once crafted a Christmas card where I wrote about how I was grateful to have a friend in my life and what I loved about them. She loved what I wrote and has kept the card ever since.
Overall I hope these ideas inspire you as you plan your gift-giving list this year. The message I hope you take from this is that the holidays are really about reconnecting with family & friends, and less about the materialistic things.
As cliche as this sounds, the truth is that gift giving comes from the heart. As long as you put in effort and time, the person who receives your gift will be happy and thankful.