It’s the Holiday season, and if that means anything, it’s shopping time. Especially now as the first weeks of December fly by, it’s becoming increasingly crucial to bag your deals and do your shopping before it’s too late and all the good deals disappear.
No matter what you’re getting, chances are you’ve got some staunch competition wanting it too: according to the NRF, over half of the United States has started shopping at least as late as the Thanksgiving weekend, with more than half of the country checking in on Cyber Monday — and with cut-off times for deliveries being mostly estimated to be around December 20, according to Shortstack, people are racing to get their presents in.
But getting a gift isn’t the question here – it’s how to get a gift for the ladies in your life. Getting your dad a gift is one thing. Your co-worker, sure. But your wife? Sister? Mother? Mother-in-law? It’s a whole different ballpark.
Watches and Jewelry: A Little Glitz, a Little Glamour
An excellent idea is always to keep things classy – that means simple, elegant, graceful, and stylistic. Women value taste, and kitsch is the antithesis to taste. You may be able to get your best dude something stylistically bad or satirically campy for Christmas, but when you’re getting a gift for a woman, aesthetics matter – and satire can take a backseat (you don’t have to boot it out of the car, though!)
When picturing something stylistic, try and stay minimal. A single-color blouse works much better than a two-tone piece of clothing.
An exception to the rule is jewelry. In that case, it can go both ways – studded watches for women from retail sites like DailySale can often be just as great a gift as minimalist ones, although the difference often lies in the brand.
Remembrances and Hand-Made Memorabilia: A Personal Gift Is Always Best
Sometimes, it’s not the gift that really counts – it’s the thought. Even though spending is up since the recession, with this year’s Christmas spending per customer to be estimated at $830 according to Statista, not everyone can afford to spend a lot of money on luxury articles. Something as simple as a plant from the park where you had your first date, to a necklace made from a shell you found at the beach together, can be just as meaningful. Adding a personal touch, like an engraving, to a bought gift can be great, too.
Extra Tip: Try and Stay Clever
Don’t forget that humor can play a part in your grand gifting schemes. Add personality to your gifts by resorting to an old inside joke to boost the comedy of the moment. A gift can be the perfect opportunity to show your loved ones how much you pay attention to exactly how to make them laugh.
The actual gift tends to be half of the gifting process– the magic comes in everything else. If you can manage to personalize little things about the gift’s packaging, you can prove yourself to be not just the wittiest, but the most thoughtful man in her life.
When Ideas Are Sparse, Stick to the Classics
When you’re still not sure what to do with all of the tips and ideas above, then it’s a good thing to simply stickto what works – shoes, clothes, and accessories. Even jewelry can be beautiful when it’s simple. And diamonds are a girl’s best friend, after all. If you have the money, a watch by a high-end brand wouldn’t be a bad idea, either.
Ultimately, however, any gift will be the perfect gift to get your loved one – as long as it comes from the heart. It sounds clichéd, but it’s true – the joy in giving and receiving is based more in the act than the things being given and received. And that’s an important distinction to make, this time of year especially.
