Christmas: Thoughtful gift ideas

Everyone knows it’s the thought that counts when it comes to giving presents, yet many still give friends and relatives some pre-packaged, just-for-Christmas sets of booze miniatures with glasses or chocolate and hot water bottle combos.

Scented Christmas candles from Interflora make a lovely gift for “Aunt Jane”, but for those who you are really close to, spend a little time and effort creating a personal gift that is straight from the heart this year.

Name a star

Simple but effective; naming a star is an original, personal gift idea for that friend, relative or lover who already has everything. Even though it is not as tangible as other gifts, you can always get an unframed or framed certificate, highlighting the name of your chosen star, as well as its coordinates so you can locate it with your telescope at a later time. The sky is the limit with this one!



Home-made books


A hand-made book really demonstrates how much you care. The type of book you make is up to you and depends very much on who it is for, so customise all you can here. For
Grandparents a nice idea is to write a little story about the children, then illustrate it with photographs and the child’s artwork.

For a friend, maybe put together a collection of all the recipes they have asked to borrow over the years. For a spouse or partner, perhaps write a love story based around how you met and decorate it with photographs, ticket stubs and other mementos.


Personalised gift hamper 

A home-made gift hamper or an extravagant Christmas hamper from Interflora always shows more effort than a single gift. If you take the time to fill it with all the recipient’s favourite things it suddenly becomes a testament to how well you know and love them as well.


Take note of their favourite wine, sweets and chocolates in the run up to the festive season. Throw in a book you know they have been itching to read, a miniature bottle of their signature perfume or the Blu-ray of a film you saw at the cinema together.

Christmas video

For relatives who can’t be with you for the festive season, consider making them a Christmas video. Show them all your preparations, including the tree and decorations. Get the kids to put on a short play or song and dance.

Make sure everyone who knows and loves the recipients records a short personal message for them. You can either send the film through the post or upload it onto the internet.


Experience gifts

Having something to look forward to is often far better than yet another material gift under the tree.

Something as simple as restaurant vouchers or a model makeover or even a helicopter ride will do the trick, or for something really special try find tickets to a sold-out concert on sites such as eBay or TickCo.

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