If you’re anything like me, you’ll have been putting off shopping for Christmas until December because it just feels more festive and fun to head to the shops now that Advent is here. It’s such a lovely feeling to wander down the high street – perhaps on a special late-night shopping evening – and immerse yourself in the experience of buying gifts for the special people in your life.
So, I actually haven’t started my own festive shopping yet – this gift guide includes presents that I’m donating to the Benjamin Foundation’s charity gift appeal so that the adults they support will have a gift to open at Christmas. So, if any of my family members reads this post, their Christmas gift will still be a surprise!
Picking the perfect present for the adults in your life is a tricky task – perhaps even more so than choosing Christmas gifts for teens! Here are some ideas to get you started…
Lovely leather goods
When buying for adults, the tricky thing is that they have their own money and can buy anything they need whenever they like. So, often, a present has to be something special or a little luxurious – the kind of thing they wouldn’t treat themselves to on a daily basis. There has been a rise in the trend for ‘quiet luxury’, so with that in mind, I think that any kind of leather goods is a good starting point.
Leather turns even the most simple items into a luxe option and will therefore make the recipient feel extra special. A journal bound in leather, for example, turns a simple notebook into a coveted item. Likewise, we all have a washbag for holidays but, if it’s a lovely leather bag, it elevates the gift from practical to a luxury.
Wallets, purses, bags, document holders, key-rings, keepall trays – they’re all made extra special in leather. And the best place I’ve found for affordable leather goods is the Scaramanga online shop. I’ve got many gifts from there over the years, including the backpack I use every day and my husband’s canvas and leather apron.
There are plenty of options on the website, many of which can be personalised and beautifully gift-wrapped but, if you simply can’t choose which gorgeous gift to get, a gift voucher is the ultimate treat. It lets them choose the item they prefer and gives them something to look forward to arriving in the post in January, doubling the joy of the gift.
Perfect photography presents
With a few photography buffs in my circle of family and friends, I know that a related gift will go down a treat. However, photographers tend to already have their own kit that they like to use and it can be tricky to find out what accessories they’ve already got.
So, I suggest going retro with an analogue camera. We can all remember the days when we loaded a film into a camera and had a certain number of exposures to play with, making each photo a more considered or artistic choice. Vintage cameras are having a real moment and a new launch of the AgfaPhoto Analogue film camera brings the trend to life.
I think it’s the joy of slowing down while capturing the perfect image rather than snapping the same shot multiple times. Plus, it’s exciting not knowing what image you’ve managed to capture and being patient until you get those photos back from the developers.
These vintage-inspired cameras are reusable and can be used with both colour and black and white film, so don’t forget to buy a roll to gift alongside the analogue camera. Plus, they come in a range of colours from traditional brown or black to vibrant red or green, so you can choose a design that suits your friend perfectly.
Cool calendars
I always get my mum a calendar each year, so I’ve been shopping around to source some lovely designs. That’s when I came across Seltmann calendars and discovered their range of designs – with plenty of options to suit everyone’s personal taste.
These daily tear-off calendars aren’t just for keeping track of the date; each page is a mini piece of art you can keep, collect, or hang on your wall – especially the Daily Drawings calendar by Joni Marriott, full of humorous and poetic images in the bold ‘ligne claire‘ artistic style.
There are many options for music lovers in this range of perpetual calendars, including reggae, punk and this one below that showcases The Art of Vinyl Covers. Dotted throughout the calendar are Spotify® codes, which can be scanned to allow you to enjoy the music that accompanies the iconic album.
Presents for plant lovers
If you know your friend or family member is a fan of plants, choosing a present within this theme is a good bet. Just look around their house and, if they have a number of potted houseplants, you can be sure they’ll enjoy receiving an additional plant for their collection or a present that’ll help them tend to their plants.
The new smart plant-care system from Willow will help your houseplant-loving friend to look after their greenery. By combining an intelligent sensor that sits in the soil with a clever companion app, the device measures moisture, light, temperature, humidity and nutritional health, helping them to understand exactly what’s going on beneath the surface.
Through the Willow app, they’ll receive instant alerts when the plant needs water or feed, along with post-watering feedback to help them fine-tune their plant care. It’s a gift that’ll appeal to techy folk who love using Smart technology to help streamline processes, making it a double-wammy gift for plant-loving gadget fans.
Edible treats for foodies
Another present that’s certain to please is a food gift. Anything edible or drinkable is a gift I personally love to receive because I don’t really have much room for any more stuff in my home! Plus, I rarely treat myself to any special snacks or sweets, so it’s wonderful to be given something special to enjoy.
If you know your friend’s preferred type of treat or their favourite cuisine, you can easily find a boxed hamper that fits the bill. For example, in previous years, I’ve got a gift for my brother that’s packed full of special foodie finds from far afield: Tokyo Treat.
The first time I got one of these boxes, I was surprised at just how many items were in this gift hamper – the treats just kept coming and coming as he unpacked it. Plus, it comes with a guidebook with information about all the Japanese snacks inside the pack, making it a learning and tasting experience too.
You could buy a one-off hamper, or for a substantial gift, it’s possible to subscribe to foodie boxes like this for a 3-month, 6-month or full-year duration, making it a gift that’ll surprise them every month. What a treat!
Books for creativity
Another git that I love to receive is a book, especially when it’s something I’m interested to learn about. If you have a creative family member, getting them a book that taps into their interests, such as the Flowers in Watercolour book for budding artists, may help to inspire them to pick up a paintbrush in the new year – a great time to kick-start a hobby.
Alternatively, you could choose a practical book that sparks their creativity, such as one of the books from the Paper Paper Paper collection. These contain a plethora of printed paper that can be used for projects, crafts, card-making or origami. They also contain sheets of gift wrap, tags, postcards, letter paper and a notebook, pretty-much everything you can think of made from paper. This one is packed with Christmas-themed designs, so gorgeous!
Finally, who can resist a book on happiness? I’m sure most of us could do with more happiness in our life and this book makes it super-easy to achieve. Each chapter works through the alphabet with suggestions on ways to boost wellbeing, such as Gratitude, Habits, Innovation, Jokes, Kindness and so on. I’m planning to read The Alphabet of Happiness myself this year and I’m sure it’ll make a lovely gift for a loved one.
Fun with the family
Sometimes, I think that just spending time with your family is the best gift of all. So, a game that the whole family can enjoy playing together is probably the ultimate gift. The board game Family tension, challenges players to name ten things in a given category – anything from landmarks to biscuits – before time runs out. It’s suitable for ages 8+ and it’s a fun, fast-paced naming game that’s the perfect test of who really knows their stuff around the table after Christmas dinner.
I hope this list of present ideas has given you some inspiration when you’re shopping for the adults in your life. I’ve also shared a gift guide for children and a tricky-to-buy-for gift guide for teens so be sure to check those out too. Please let me know in the comments below if you’ve got any great present ideas for adults, I’d love to hear your tips.
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Some items in this blog post have been gifted to me and the pink links indicate a gifted product, affiliate link or information source. All thoughts and opinions in this post are based on my own experience and I am not responsible for your experience 🙂
