Giving a gift to someone you care about can often be more exciting than receiving something for yourself. There’s something wonderful about seeing your loved one’s face light up when they receive a present chosen just for them. While any surprise present can be a wonderful way to brighten someone’s day, a gift means so much more when there’s a lot of depth and meaning behind it.
Even if you know the ins and outs of someone’s tastes, it’s often difficult to find the perfect gift to get your message of love across. That’s why we’ve put together this list of top tips on how you can make your next gift seem more thoughtful.
- Step into Their Shoes
When we’re browsing for gifts online or offline, we often have a habit of thinking about the kind of items we’d like to receive. While this instinct is understandable, it’s important to remember that everyone has different preferences. Stepping into the shoes of the person you’re buying for is a crucial way to improve your chances of choosing the right gift. You may even consider buying boys trainers as a gift to your mum pals for their little bundle of joy.
If it helps, start your search by writing down a list of the things you know that your gift recipient loves. For example, if they love Zumba, choose them gifts for people who love Zumba. You could also include words on your list that reflect this person’s personality, so you don’t stray from their perspective.
- Money Isn’t Everything
It’s tempting to assume that the most meaningful gifts are often the most expensive too. While it’s true that expensive items can be wonderful, some people feel more uncomfortable accepting something that they know cost a lot, because they feel unable to reciprocate with items of similar value. Don’t let a price tag cloud your judgement.
Think about what your recipient would like to receive, considering how they’ve responded to expensive gifts and other presents in the past. You might find that it’s much easier to give your loved one a selection of smaller presents, rather than something big.
- Package it Perfectly
The event of opening a perfectly packaged present can be just as exciting as the gift itself. Put a little time and effort into making the present look immaculate, and you’re more likely to get the right response from your recipient. Choosing the right wrapping paper, picking a bow, or even making it a challenge to find the item with a scavenger hunt are all great ideas.
Planning the moment when you’re going to hand the gift over is essential too. Think about how you can make that time more special. Maybe you can meet in the person’s favourite place, or make sure that their favourite song is playing.
- Reference a Great Memory
The term “it’s the thought that counts” refers to how important it is to put time and effort into finding the right gift for the person you love. Thinking about the previous moments that you’ve spent with this person, and the events that mattered to you is a great way to make a present more meaningful. If you have an amazing memory with this friend or loved one, ask yourself what you can do to showcase that memory in an exciting way.
For instance, you may have a picture that you and your friend took on your first camping trip together blown up and turned into a canvas that they can hang in their house. If you’re buying a gift for your significant other, maybe you could reference the restaurant that you went to on your first date or get a picture of what the stars looked like on that night.
- Make it Personal
Finally, if you’re struggling for ideas on how to make a gift feel more special, think about how you can tie the present to the unique traits of your friend or loved one. For example, you might get them a pair of socks knitted in their favourite colours, give them friendship rings or have their name laser-etched onto a wooden frame, along with the date when they first met their other half.
These days, it’s becoming much easier to have almost any gift personalised. You can get initials and names on pieces of jewelry, or even get a person’s fingerprint turned into a piece of art. Taking the extra step to ensure that there’s no other gift like this available elsewhere in the world gives the item so much more meaning. This is a great idea if you’re looking for a way to make an otherwise seemingly simple gift appear more special.