5 Steps to Great Gifts

My mom is a Jehovah's Witness - she doesn't celebrate things like birthdays, Christmas, or well - anything. I have built from that - an abnormal focus on celebrating things and giving gifts. Gift Giving is like a mission to me. I seem to take it upon myself to make sure no one feels like someone doesn't give a damn.  All that being said - I'd rather get No Gift, than a Bad Gift. Bad gifts make me uncomfortable. You? If it's "the thought that counts" - a truly bad gift shows that no real thought was put into it.

If you want to be a famously good gift-giver - When shopping for gifts try to remember these tips:

Experiences are remembered far longer than "things" -
Do you remember how you felt when you received that meaningless item on your shelf? Do you even know where it came from? Is it even yours? Experience gifts - a yoga class, a trip, a massage, going to the theatre, cuddling by the fire with hot cocoa... all things that will be remembered and much appreciated.


If it's edible, you can't go wrong -
People love gifts they can eat. It won't go to waste. Someone will eat it and love it. It shows effort and appreciation to bake someone a gift. You can taste the love in each bite. Unless of course they have a lot of food allergies - then steer clear of the food thing.

The gift is not for you -
When looking for gifts, think about what that person's interests are. Think back to conversations you've had, things they wear, things just like what they buy but more "fancy", and things they would get if they were more selfish.  The best gifts are the ones that make someone feel listened to - like someone really KNOWS you. You don't have to like it. Definitely avoid buying a gift because YOU like it - regardless of the fact that they've never shown any interest in such a thing. Once, someone bought me a gift I HATED. HATED IT. Ranted to my friend about how much I hated it. Later - she was seriously considering getting me The Exact Same Thing. Um why?

Expensive does not equal Good -
I don't care if your baby seal skin rug cost a million dollars - I still won't like it. It will probably make me cry. On the other hand if you got a free scarf, but knew I wanted it - I'd still love it.

It's okay to ask -
If all else fails - ask them to provide you with a list. Santa gets a list - why not you? Nothing is worse than getting a gift that immediately makes you think - "How long do I have to keep this before I can give it away?" Especially if the terrible gift was expensive. Avoid being the bad gifter and get a list.