Hey y’all! Today I wanted to share some ideas I have for thoughtful gifts a minimalist would love! I consider myself pretty minimalistic. I’ve had family members tell me I’m hard to shop for or that I’m picky. At first I took offense to that, but after thinking about it I realized it’s actually true. But being picky doesn’t have to be a bad thing, as long as you try not to be rude about it! It just means you want to really value everything you have and not just have stuff for the heck of having stuff! Being picky can actually be seen as a good thing, but I understand why it can be frustrating for people who want to buy you a gift.
On the contrary though, gift receiving can be equally frustrating for a minimalist because for many people clutter is a huge cause of anxiety! It is definitely true for me. After Christmas I look around and see piles of STUFF EVERYWHERE and it makes me a little nuts. You also inevitably receive things you don’t need or want and then are left with the task of deciding what to keep and where to put it and what to do with the rest of the unwanted stuff, all while feeling like a guilty ungrateful jerk for not keeping something that someone picked out just for you and spent their hard earned cash on. See what I mean? I used to keep everything because I felt bad since someone bought it for me, but that’s a silly burden to bear! Especially if you’re a person who is anxious and overwhelmed by clutter. You’re not doing anyone a favor by keeping unwanted items. You can be honestly grateful for someone’s thoughtfulness without having to keep something you don’t want just because you’d feel guilty to get rid of it. 🙂 But anyways, that’s not what his post is about, but by being intentional about your gift giving, you can make sure you don’t cause these feelings for your minimalist loved one! 😉 Since the holiday season is coming up I wanted to share all my best ideas for thoughtful gifts that a minimalist or picky, hard-to-shop-for person would really appreciate. 🙂
Unique/Thoughtful Gift Cards/Gift Certificates
I read a statistic once that the majority of people would prefer to receive a gift card or money rather than a physical gift. It’s so true, Everyone can use a gift card or money. Some people are practical and will fall back on this as a gift and that is perfectly fine with me, and the majority of people! But some folks might think that’s too impersonal and want to give a more thoughtful gift. I understand that because I take gift giving pretty seriously! Haha- I love shopping for unique and thoughtful gifts for others, but I’m also not above just getting a practical gift card too sometimes for the hard-to-buy-for-folks, but if you want to make it more personal, make the gift card really specific to something you know they love! Most small businesses offer gift certificates! Get a gift certificate to someone’s family photographer so they can book a session for their family! (Any Mom would love this!) Get a gift card to their favorite salon. Do they love a specific shop? Make a trip to get them a gift certificate to it! Avoid big name stores that sell gift cards in Kroger or Target or Walgreens if you want it to feel more personal. Those gift cards can still be great…(Starbucks anyone?) but if you want it to be more thoughtful, think smaller and get something more specific or unique! The person will be a lot more excited! My personal favorites would be Etsy, Anthropologie, or a specialty kids store like SpearmintLove!
Consumables
Consumables are things the person will use up! Something that is not going to last forever. Consumable gifts are great because it’s not something you’re going to have forever and ever and have to find a home for! Maybe your recipient is a coffee lover and would love some local coffee beans. Maybe they’re more into wine or beer and you could get them a nice bottle as a special treat! Candles are a great consumable gift! Maybe a child is really into art and would love art supplies or your wife has a favorite makeup brand and would love to get some more makeup to play with. Special soap, bubble bath, etc. are also popular. A favorite candy or treat or even homemade baked goods are also another idea! This is not only practical, but can be something that will make a person really excited, especially if you get something really nice that they wouldn’t normally buy for themselves! That’s what makes a great gift.
Experiences
There are lots of articles going around right now talking about how parents wish people would gift their children with experiences rather than toys! I totally get it! Concert tickets, zoo, garden, or museum memberships, movie tickets, sporting event tickets, etc. This is awesome because you’re not giving someone a material item, but an experience that will create a memory that they will treasure forever! That’s so much better than a material object that might only be enjoyed for a short season.
Gifts From the Heart
Think about your recipient’s love language! For those who don’t know, the love languages are gifts, acts of service, words of affirmation, physical touch, and quality time. One of my top love languages is words of affirmation! For this one you could write a letter or note telling the person all the ways that they are awesome or why you love them or even a list of compliments! It would bring a huge smile to their face and probably be a treasured keepsake to them. And it doesn’t cost a thing! If their love language is acts of service you could serve them in some meaningful way. For example I used to be a photographer so I could gift a family with a photo session! If you have a special skill or trade you can use it in this way too. A husband could do chores that the wife normally takes care of, etc. The applications for this are endless! It helps to know your recipient’s love language but you can use any of them and do something truly thoughtful and meaningful. One year for Valentines Day Ryan gave me a coupon for a surprise date. It was awesome because he planned the whole thing himself and I was completely surprised. Another of my love languages is quality time, so I really loved that gift! It was an experience as well as the gift of quality time with him.
Gifts from a list!
For close friends and family you can make lists! Our family does this and I like it because you get things you pick out yourself and you buy things that you know the other person wants! It’s kinda lame I admit, but at the end of the day, you’re saving time searching for the perfect gift, and you’re not wasting your money on a gamble by buying something you’re not sure about. You can’t make lists for everyone, it would be considered pretty rude to ask for specific things from everyone unless you’re really close with them or unless they ask you for a specific idea. If you don’t have this type of relationship with them you can always ask people who are close to them for ideas on what they need or want.
Do you have any other foolproof gift ideas for minimalists or hard to shop for folks?! If so let me know in the comments!
Rachel, over the years my family has gradually turned to most all of these types of gifts–and we are all happier for it! There are many reasons: an older family member who has everything greatly values dinner with the whole family around. The young one, newly out on his own, just really needs the cash! We also make list as there is no shame in asking for what you want, and sometimes you just need stuff! I wholeheartedly encourage families, groups of friends, coworkers–anyone who exchanges gifts–to look at these types of gifts over simply buying something just to give a ‘thing’. Thanks for the wonderful article!