Five practical ways to give great gifts for Christmas.
Love and gifts go hand in hand for some people.
I am one of those people. Although I love getting presents, I also love giving gifts.
But not just any gift, I want to give someone a present they know is thought about and was perfect for them.
I remember the last Christmas before my Father passed away, he took a lot of time to buy each of us a gift that meant something special to us.
It wasn’t a checklist gift if you know what I mean.
I got two books: one, a calendar book created by people who are different-able, one of the artists painted with her foot. It was about resiliency and creativity. The other was a book on photography, which I was planning to study in College.
Those gifts meant so much to me and still do.
Ever since that Christmas, I have loved giving gifts that have a special meaning to the person receiving them.
One gift that surprises me is the handmade coupon book; so many people love those. I remember giving a few out to family members, and both times, these sweet moms got tears in their eyes as they read “babysitting.”
Regardless if you are a great giver or someone who needs practice, here are five tips to take your gift-giving to the next level.
Know their love language
You might be wondering if I could get any more Christian cliches. Probably not. But there is a reason why cliches are popular.
Bare with me a little bit as I explain what “Love Languages” means.
Gary Chapman wrote a book called the five love languages. It is incredible and has changed a lot in the way I have seen other people, in the way I give gifts, and in the way I love others and myself.
In the book, the author talks about the five languages in which a person feels love the most.
My top is receiving gifts.
Honestly, this book changed my perspective about myself as well.
I thought I was selfish by liking gifts so much, then I read the book and started to understand more about love.
Although, I never needed a expencive gift to feel loved, but any gift, and one that is thoughtful truly made me feel special and still does.
If you are one of those people we definately are kindered souls.
There are several ways in which people feel loved and here is a online quiz you can take to find out more about yourself.
As you read through them, you can probably tell what your partner, family, and friends are as well. But it will never hurtto ask them some questions if you have good and open communication.
Here are the five from the book.
- Receiving gifts
- Quality time together
- Acts of service,
- Words of affirmation
- Physical touch.
There is an app you can download as well to help build stronger relationships.
But for those family and friends I know are acts of service a wonderful gift is a coupon booklet of things I will do for them.
As I mentioned above I gave one away to a new mom and she actually started crying. It was her love language and I spoke it to her with that gift. It also helped that it was a baby sitting coupons. She really needed sleep and some her time.
The next way to give great gifts for Christmas is,
Think about the person
Knowing the love language will really help you as you give a gift. But also thinking about the person as you get them something.
Ask these questions,
- What are their hobbies?
- What are things they like to do?
- What are things they are doing for fun?
These questions will help you when you are getting a thoughtful gift. If they love dancing, you might see if getting a gift card to a dance studio is an option, or if they love Art, an art subscription kit.
When I was a kid, for Christmas, we got a “Kids National Geographic magazine subscription.” It was the best gift ever, and it kept on giving.
Now I give these to my niece and nephews for their birthday. It’s always fun when your a kid to get something in the mail.
One of the most practical ways to give great gifts for Christmas is to,
Ask them what they want.
I hate to state the obvious, but it had to be done.
Asking people exactly what they want can help you get them a good gift, as well as take any pressure off about buying and receiving.
Know if they don’t really know, or they are one of those people who are not able to answer a direct question, this is a little different.
I have a few people in my family that will NEVER answer a question with a yes or no answer, even if it’s the most direct question you can imagine. Like, “Do you like butter?” They are still not able to give a yes or a no.
So these people will generally not be able to answer what they would like as a gift.
Here are a few tips on getting them a present.
Ask someone who is close to them what they might want. And buy something that you can get a gift receipt for, just in case.
Most of the time, they will not take the gift back, but at least they will have options.
As a side note many times giving a gift card to people that have a hard time making a decision will also be a challenge for them since they will not be sure what to spend it on.
They will more than likely spend it on someone else.
The next way to give great gifts for Christmas is,
Giving an experience
At Christmas time there are so many experiences people have, traditions that connect us are part of most peoples holiday.
Making memories together is really about Christmas and giving is just one ot those times.
How can you give an experience?
Cooking classes can be a wonderful gift for people. Now there are so many different online or in person cooking classes that can make a great gift.
On Airbnb you can now buy experiences as well, try giving something that is outside of the normal for a person. From Kayaking to a secret island in Dallas, to making candles with goats these experiences can be a fun gift.
If there love language is quality time then more than likely they will truly be moved by the gift.
If they love Art you can get them a membership to the local Art Museum, if it’s theater then Season tickets.
Giving an experience can help bring connection as well as a present.
The last practical ways to give great gifts for Christmas is just that something they need.
Practical gifts that are needed.
Did you ever get a gift that was so practical, and yet it became the best gift you got all year.
Like new tires. I know it might sound super boring and you can’t always wrap them but they are also the best gift you might have gotten the whole year.
One gift I got for years from my Mom was a AAA membership.
The gift of road safety.
At the time I had a used a car that looked like it came from a knockoff builder kit. It was three colors and had so many scrap yard parts that the tow truck driver knew me by name. That membership became one of my all-time greatest gifts.
In conclusion, a gift from the heart is one of the best gifts you can give or receive this Christmas.
I would love to hear any tips for giving better gift that you have received. Or even a story of the best gift you have ever gotten for Christmas. If you love Christmas you can check out our sister brand Joy In Christmas for fun ways to keep Christ as the center of your Christmas as well as fun party tips for the holidays.
Here are some related articles as well to check out for gifts this year.
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