10 Last Minute Practical Christmas Gifts For Every Busy Santa
3:44 AMChristmas is only 2 weeks away! Still having trouble finding gifts for family, friends, or colleagues? Fret no more! I've prepared a list of some of the most practical gifts I tend to give out each year to give you an idea!
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| Photo from Unsplash |
1. Gift Cards
Also known as 'The Gift of Choice', gift cards are some of the easiest to buy and give out. If you don't know the person too well, opt for something generic like gift cards from cafes or cinemas.
Why this is a good Christmas gift: You're given the same gift by not having to wait through long queues at the department store.
2. Store Coupons / Meal Coupons / Supermarket Coupons
Similar to gift cards, coupons from selected stores and supermarkets can offer them the choice that stuffed teddies and a fresh pair of socks can't give them.
Why this is a good Christmas gift: Show me someone who absolutely hates getting discounts. No one? Exactly!
Why this is a good Christmas gift: Show me someone who absolutely hates getting discounts. No one? Exactly!
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| Photo from Unsplash |
3. Cash
Another 'Gift of Choice', a cash gift is everyone's universal gift card.
Why this is a good Christmas gift: Please refer to #2
4. Reusable Food Containers
I would use the term, 'Tupperware', as it's generally how people in the Philippines call it. But given that this blog crosses continents, let's use 'reusable food containers instead'. These containers are as universal as gift cards. Plus, they can store anything! From your recipient's lunch to his mother's extensive bead collection, if it fits, it stays!Why this is a good Christmas gift: After Christmas, finishing up leftover holiday food is every household's common goal. And since not everyone has the power to binge eat in one sitting, all the leftovers need to be placed back into refrigerators to avoid spoilage. Help your friends and relatives fit a whole buffet inside chilled storage by giving them handy containers to replace the bulky pots they've used to cook the stuff with.
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| Photo from Unsplash |
5. Bundled Common Day-To-Day Items
If there's anything better than one gift, it's two gifts— no, two! three! A dozen?
Why this is a good Christmas gift: If you're the type who's not contented with giving someone with, let's say, a bar of fancy, artisanal soap, I would suggest buying stuff in bundles instead. This gives your recipient more variants to choose from. It's more attractive to look at as well!
People from the marketing industry have caught on too well to this phenomenon, that every holiday, brands always try to group their products in certain budget-friendly bundles. So while early Christmas shopping is nice to do, shopping too early can cost you more than waiting for these bundles to be released. Satisfy your curiosity by asking store personnel if any Christmas bundles will be offered in the coming weeks. They're usually informed about this. They're not secretive either as this isn't a new marketing strategy.
To cut things short, take advantage of bundled items and maybe buy a few for yourself, maybe? (I'm assuming you've been good all year?)
People from the marketing industry have caught on too well to this phenomenon, that every holiday, brands always try to group their products in certain budget-friendly bundles. So while early Christmas shopping is nice to do, shopping too early can cost you more than waiting for these bundles to be released. Satisfy your curiosity by asking store personnel if any Christmas bundles will be offered in the coming weeks. They're usually informed about this. They're not secretive either as this isn't a new marketing strategy.
To cut things short, take advantage of bundled items and maybe buy a few for yourself, maybe? (I'm assuming you've been good all year?)
6. Something for the house
To: Your Home
From: Me
Homes need presents, too! Some of the best presents for use around the house could be decorative items (e.g., candle holders, table centerpieces, new beddings), household appliances (e.g., popcorn maker, humidifier, burglar alarms, emergency lights, white noise machine), and kitchen utensils (e.g., a set of utensils, a new mixer, a multipurpose kitchen tool). The list goes on!
Why this is a good Christmas gift: If someone gave you a steamer for your clothes, would you still need to get your old clothes iron fixed? My point exactly. Gifting something with purpose around the house solves two things: the recipient's agony and the old appliance's late retirement.
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| Photo from Unsplash |
7. Something edible
The best part of this is that you can gift anyone any food or drink even if you have not one iota of an idea if it suits their liking. It's edible! Someone in their family will gobble it up one way or another. They can even be regifted (which is far better than letting it reach the expiration date). This is especially significant to best friends who have known the other's specific cravings. Not only is it endearing, it shows that you truly listen whenever they're on a massive rant about wanting to eat it while you two search frantically around the store like two desperate, thirsty travelers trapped in the Gobi desert.
Why this is a good Christmas gift: This is the only kind of gift I know which never goes to waste (e.g., Unless they're lactose intolerant and you've gifted them something with dairy, then be prepared to see your gift in Barbara from Accounting's hands. Also, you're not allowed to vote anymore, you inconsiderate husk of a human).
8. Something for their guests
It can be anything at the top of your head: The treats your recipient will be handing out to their friends and family who will be coming over, the board games the family's younger generations will be bonding over, or even the cocoa your recipient's family will be sipping around the tree in their family room. Not only did you save your recipient a few bucks, you've managed to get each generation to connect, too! Hooray for the gift of practical old you!
Why this is a good Christmas gift: I honestly can't be the only people pleaser here.
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| Photo from Unsplash |
9. An extra pair of hands
I'm not asking you to donate yours. No, Sir! I'm asking you to help around before, in between, or even after Christmas. Even generosity needs a limit.
Why this is a good Christmas gift: Every party host needs an awesome sidekick who can dry the plates after washing them, throw out the bags of garbage after the party, take down all the decors from the tree, or simply someone to spend the holidays with.
10. A handmade masterpiece
You may not be the Picasso or the Bob Ross of this generation, but with a good combination of effort and decent materials that cost close to nothing, you can make your very own Christmas present. Popular gifts in the handmade section include knits, framed art, handmade leather, and even a storybook you wrote yourself!
Why this is a good Christmas gift: If there's anything anyone appreciates about gifts, it's the other person's effort. Whether it's the amount of overtime work he had to pull just so he can buy your tickets for an upcoming concert, the time she spent knitting you a scarf, the amount of hair he had to pull just so he can make an artistic representation of you using his body hair (okay, I felt goosebumps while I was writing that) or the long wait she had to endure just so she can give you that expensive pair of limited edition kicks, effort almost always trumps expense (I say "almost always" here because some people are just too rich to be practical).
Final Notes
I honestly hope that more than half of what I've written down made sense to you because it does— to me! If I've helped in any way or if you have some other practical gift ideas you'd like to share, please feel free to write down your thoughts in a comment below. I appreciate every feedback I get, just as much as I appreciate the views that come rolling in every day! Look! I've reached more than 14k visits already! Woohoo! Happy Christmas shopping and Happy Holidays, everyone! :)
NOTE: I figured publishing 1 blog post per month might be the direction for me these days. Not that I have tons to do at work, but because I need to give myself the weekends for catering to my own needs. Every hustler needs a downtime after all. Catch you next time!
Until the next blog! Thank you for reading!
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