As the most festive
time of year is inching ever closer, the mind immediately wanders
towards gift giving: what to buy your friends and family, and more
often than not, the gifts you yourself would like to receive too.
There are some unspoken rules when it comes to buying presents for
your nearest and dearest, though – and can even cause anxiety –
is your present expensive or sentimental enough? Should you have just
stuck to joke gifts? Who are you expected to buy a gift for?
Gift Giving Rules to
Live By
Why is it that these
rules never discussed? It would make life so much easier, don’t you
think?
We have all been there
– having bought someone a gift card last minute and then receiving
an incredible gift that you adore in return. Avoidthe awkwardness and create some hard and fast rules to live by,
for Christmas, Easter and beyond!
- If you know someone is buying you a gift, be prepared and make it reciprocal
- Set a cost limit for gifts – either with the individual or as a blanket across the board so that you don’t get blindsided
- Be consistent with the people you buy gifts for, year in year out
By making the most of
gift-giving
etiquette and these rules for buying presents for your loved
ones, you can easily avoid any awkwardness and potential conflict.
And we can all agree that this will only ever be a good thing!
Finding a Suitable
Gift
Knowing how to find the
right gift is something that many people struggle with, but it
doesn’t have to be. You just need to know where to start.
Firstly, do some
research. Have a look through their social media – what have they
been talking about, or is there something they are excited about but
haven’t bought already. Instagram and Pinterest – and even Amazon
wish lists –are a great starting point.
Make a list of all the
things you know and love about your loved ones and use this to help
when looking for inspiration. It doesn’t even have to be a gift,
organising something you can do together is also a great way of
spending some quality time together.
Finally, make it
personal – while buying something the person wants or needs is a
great start, be sure to add a personal touch. Does your loved one
love cheese boards? Put together some of your favourite cheeses and
crackers for example.
It’s cliché for a
reason, but being prepared in this way can really make gift giving an
easy task, and you will go down in history as someone who gives the
most thoughtful and generous gifts – and that’s never going to be
a bad thing!
Alternative Ideas
These
days, knowing what to buy as a gift in itself can be difficult. You
always run the risk that you end up buying something they already own
or buying something they simply won’t ever use. A great alternative
to getting around this is to opt for something less physical; perhaps
a donation
to a charity or sponsoring an animal, a gift
with real value to the recipient. These kinds of gift are so easy
to organise and really demonstrate how well you know your friend or
family member, and always go down well.
With just a little bit
of planning and forethought you can be the gift giving queen or king
that you were always destined to be. Follow the rules and you can’t
go wrong. It is always worth remembering, though: Christmas is but
one day of the year. Don’t get yourself into debt for this one day,
your family and friends really will understand if you can’t afford
it this year, and more importantly, they will still love you on
Boxing Day!
