I’m all for this. One omission I saw right away, flowers!! I love flowers as a gift. Hopefully they’re beautiful (I’m picky about flowers). You enjoy for a limited time and that’s part of the appeal to me. No major commitment. ;-)

Love it! Thanks so much for sharing this Annie. It's time for me to start getting my holiday shopping done and this is the perfect guide.

In fact you already gave me an inspiration. I'm going to give my daughter and her fiancee a cooking class at a local kitchen store. I'm sure they will have fun and it won't end up cluttering up anything but their tummies :)

Michelle -- if they've a green thumb, a plant is always welcome as well as flowers. Several of my plants are "memories"

Thanks for posting this.. Just what I needed.

If a loved one lives near a National Park, consider giving them an annual pass.

Actually, I bet most museums, parks, gardens, etc have annual memberships, not just the big national ones.

We honor people with contributions to their favorite charities.

Thank you! Great list and really useful. I am casting about for an "off the beaten path" luxury food gift for someone who really knows her food....only caveat is nothing from the SF Bay area where she lives. Any ideas?

Being older there are probably only a couple of things on that list that I would like. I would like some other things though. :)

Sue

I have a friend with whom I exchange gifts for birthdays, Christmas and just because. We've recently agreed to start giving each other things that are useful and that won't clutter up our houses. Some of the things we've given are soaps, candles, socks, food gifts, teas and coffees, note pads, note cards and a spa day that included a massage. It's working out great for us.

Marilyn Sue what other things would you enjoy?

This is great having all these suggestions in one spot. Thanks Annie.

I do give "things".. specially curated for each recipient.. but I have also given a number of the above. Given the interest in Annie's list, I thought I'd share a few ideas and thoughts on how to give them or to whom they may be useful.

Netflix - I have an adult developmentally delayed/disabled nephew who has been receiving Netflix as a gift since he was a teen. In the beginning (pre-streaming) receiving/returning dvds was a great way to teach him responsibility and he loved getting the packages! This service is still available btw-- but he streams now. The annual cost is around 130 (I think-- I didn't get this year's gift cert yet) and he always makes a point of telling me how much he enjoys it-- and he loves telling me what he's watching at the time.

Pottery Class - my sister did a preholiday private party/gift for me/our sisters and a small group of friends. What a blast! We had a lesson along with wine and snacks and each took home 2 pieces of pottery we made (actually, they were fired after we left-- but we got them later). It was a super break from the holiday rush and the cost was really reasonable (about 45 each if I remember)... also, she had her husband chauffer us there and home which was a wise and appreciated extra touch given the wine ;)

Various Gift Certificates - one of my favorite gifts which I have shared here before is a nice calendar/day planner with notes and gift certificates scattered through the month. Ive done them for my nieces in college-- some months with a small gift cert for a cup of coffee, some with cash, some with larger gift certs. And of course encouraging notes throughout. I've done the same for one of my sisters and my bff-- with promises/plans to do things. Some months it's a gift cert for a spa or restaurant, sometimes it's a note for "coffee and muffins by the lake" or other non-$$ related get togethers. This was especially meaningful because, really, we don't get enough time together. Also they are so fun to make!

Wine/Coffee/tea - everyone loves wine and coffee in my world but I hate to just always give the standard bottle of wine or bag of beans as it takes 0 thought. This year I will give a few gifts of a bottle of wine (or bag of coffee beans) with a pair of barefoot dreams (amazingly soft and warm) socks and a book specially chosen for each. It's a gift of "you" afternoon or evening..

Housecleaner - no real fancy ideas on how to give this-- but my siblings and I used to give my grandparents a year of housecleaning as a Christmas gift. This was SO helpful to them and they actually adored the cleaner we chose (a family friend) and looked forward to her arrival each week. My parents gave snow removal/lawn maintenance as one of their gifts.

I make a special hot sauce using Chocolate Habanero chilies that I grow and then smoke to give an added flavor to the sauce. Several of our friends crave this sauce, and it is somewhat of a rare treat because Chocolate Habaneros are difficult to grow and next to impossible to find, except perhaps for a two week period at a farmers' market.

I have also on occasion given dill pickles that I make myself as a gift. Sometimes I make several kinds of chocolate candy, such as English toffee, chocolate turtles, and chocolate covered walnut stuffed dates. The chocolate turtles are a bit labor intensive, and so I do not make them that often.

I started sending my aunties a fresh evergreen wreath every year in late November. They can enjoy it through Christmas and then throw it away or compost it.

Ditto on the Netflix idea. I pay for a subscription for my mother who is often bed or chair bound. She watches on her iPad. I'm considering get my parents a smart television if I can find one that is simple to use.

Funkyart, I love your calendar with gifts/notes inside - what a great idea!

I think I'm going to do that for my hubby, sister and best friend for next Christmas. I may take it a step further by having calendars made with photos that bring back special memories.

I'm excited already and can't wait to get started!

Ah.. and I will be making pistachio baklava for my work team -- they are mostly indian and they tell me it's reminiscent of the sweets they used to get at home. I use a honey syrup instead of sugar and I use either all pistachios or a mix of pistachio and walnut.

We have given the various gift baskets from this smokehouse for years and we have received many. Everything is excellent. I have not had any of the desserts but I would bet they are good. This is one of my favorites.

Tenders trio

New Braunfels Smokehouse

https://www.nbsmokehouse.com/Items?kwd=&cat=&lpr=0&hpr=0&fid=7&sid=&ss=&n=&page=1

I'm giving each of my kids (with SOs) a gift card to expensive restaurants I know they like but can't afford. I always get them socks too.

There's always Harry & David pears. Also, socks and gloves are useful. I always lose one glove.

Thanks Annie - great ideas. A suggestion for Hollybar - Vermont Maple Syrup.

My friend enjoys hot toddies, so I'm putting together a holiday basket including bourbon, Meyer lemons, local honey, and a few cinnamon sticks.

Nice to have ingredient foods:

Authentic balsamic vinegar

Nice salts, I love Saltverk https://www.saltverk.com Falksalt but there are many. Big salt flakes are very nice to use

Spice mixes from LA Boite https://shop.laboiteny.com/collections/spices

Spanish Saffron in a tin

Funkyart, I'm kicking myself for buying a jumbo bag of hazelnuts from Costco today, but now your post has me thinking baklava...

"Fruit of the Month Club?!"

https://youtu.be/sNBwCQQpuaw

LOL, we've actually been met with a similar reaction when giving the gift of fruit!

Hollybar: I would suggest muscadine jelly as something unique. Not sure of the best place to buy it. It has a distinctive taste. IMO, it's better than grape jelly.

I can second The New Braunsfall Smokehouse as having good gift baskets.

My mil sends a big box of oranges every December about a week before we come visit. We can't use that many and they go bad while we are gone.

Personally, I'd love gift certificates to some great lunch or breakfast places. My kids like Starbucks or specific fast food gc's because they go to these places with their friends.

I think it would be well received to give a little card with pick a date and let's go to lunch or a movie together. My treat!

Flowers are a great gift, but please don’t send me a spring looking arrangement when I worked hard on my traditional red/green Christmas decor. (You tell my friend).

DH's cousin told us Ohio Maple syrup is better than VT...I didn't believe him until he brought us some... Yow it was much better! Who knew??

I agree with flowers, I get a beautiful arrangement every month!

One year I received an amaryllis bulb kit. They sell them in the grocery store for $6.99. The kit comes with a plastic pot, growing medium, and the bulb. They are very easy to grow. It bloomed beautifully.

DH and I assembled the six different soup mixes in jars today and they are lovely! Going to make a few for myself, since I have extra ingredients. Just need to print and attach the instruction tags, and voila! Instant consumable gift!

Awaiting their proper tags:

I have done those in the past. Some were for drinks, desserts, soups etc. There's a lot of good recipes for those.

https://www.google.com/search?q=gifts+in+a+jar&oq=gifts+in+&aqs=chrome.1.69i57j0l2j69i65l2.4902j0j7&client=ms-android-asus&sourceid=chrome-mobile&ie=UTF-8#scso=_W4HtXYehHYbaswXj452QDQ83:657.6666870117188.6666870117188.6666564941406.6666564941406

For us being elderly, the gifts of Time and those of Consumables would be our choice. Homemade meals we could heat up would be a blessing as would various cookies we could freeze. As for Time gifts, we are fortunate that our neighbor man helps us since we have no family with things we can no longer do.

Hollybar, how about a selection of unusual spices? Sumac, Hyssop, Baharat, juniper berries, and so forth?

For me the list under memories is clutter unless it is digital.

I try to give the grand kids experience gifts and gifts that get used up like art supplies and some clothing. This year they are also each getting a Target Gift card to spend however they wish. They are 5 and 7 and I consider it sort of an educational experience for them.

Best gift DH gave me was a voucher four horseback rides a few years back when I mentioned I had never ridden. Now I am the horse crazy old woman. LOL

The gifts I like are some of their time to help do things I can not do, such as rake the yard, wash windows and things like that. I do get a lot of help all year long from my children. They are a blessing. Money is what I give for Christmas and they can buy what they want. The little ones gets a gift and money.

Sue

idaClaire, that's exactly the scene I think of whenever I hear "fruit of the month" or frankly, anything of the month. Thanks for the link. It was fun watching it again.

Does anyone else think of cool useable gifts too late to get them...every single year? Every year I think (too late) about how useful a wall hook is. There are so many interesting ones, like a hand, animals, flowers, ships, cars ... well you name it. Who can’t use a wall hook somewhere? Especially an interesting one? However, every year I remember this thought too late. One would need to go to a zillion stores to happen across a special one. It’s very much an online purchase I think.

justerrilynn, that's the kind of stuff I pick up throughout the year as I know that when I want it or am ready to buy, I will no longer be able to find it. I just stuff it all in a box on a closet shelf, and when ready to gift, get it out and go through my hoard. My sister loves all things goat related and goats are not a particularly trendy thing these days. Whenever I see something I think she'd like, into the box it goes. Last year it was goat themed kitchen towels and oven mitts. She loved them.

I buy year-round, too. When I see something special, I go ahead and buy it and put it in a special cupboard that holds birthday and Christmas gifts. I also keep a list on my phone of what I've purchased for which recipient so that I don't overbuy.

My youngest nephew asked me this past Sunday what I'd like for Christmas and my reply was "to do something with you!"

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I bought these on a whim for each household in my family last year-- I wasn't able to make it to our annual New Years dinner but they made their wishes and set them off then. They all thought they were a delight.. just a simple little thing but full of good energy. They actually filmed letting them fly in the dark so I could see. Here's another video that gives you an idea of how they work

There are SO many designs to choose from on amazon

and when you're done-- you have nothing but wishes and good energy :)