Top trending Gift ideas this Christmas

Gift giving is actually an art. Buying or hiring or securing the best possible present for loved ones can take time to navigate. These days the world’s marketing machines are working hard to persuade us to buy things that they want to sell. But the great art of successful giving is that it’s a personalised gift and therefore means something to the lucky recipient.

This kind of approach is thoughtful and considered. But let’s for a moment look at some other options. How about your partner loves a hobby? Sporting hobbies like golf, tennis, basketball, football or squash? The list of ball games is long. Or maybe they go to the gym or love running or cycling? With all these interests the idea of a magazine subscription may go down well as it isn’t necessarily something they’d buy themselves. Contributing to membership of the local sporting club is an option if you have deep pockets. But these things aren’t necessarily tangible on the day presents. The subscription may start several months later & in these strange Covid times the club may not be opening its doors in the current climate.

Which is where the personalised gift comes in. A simple way forward may be to buy some kit and what better way to do it than to order it bespoke? A personalised golf towel, a personalised gym towel, indeed any kind of personalised towel is great way forward.

Not everyone’s interested in sport - and for some the idea of being curled up in a comfy chair by the fireside sipping a favourite tipple is more of a Christmas treat. So how about wishing your loved ones a fun & pleasant festive period by giving them a personalised hip flask? Either a neat rectangular shape both silver or black or a pretty round shape.

There are all sorts of gimmicky prezzies available - I came across a special stand incorporating a four piece set of ice tongs, bottle opener, jigger & mixing spoon for making cocktails. All very well but how much would you use that when compared to a simple straight forward personalised bottle opener ? Far more of an everyday object.

There’s (almost) nothing worse than thinking when you open a present, dear me, that’s going in the present drawer. In other words you can’t imagine using it. And that’s the problem with many top trending ideas for Christmas - they seem novel and therefore appealing, which may lead one to regret pressing the buy button. Take a ceramic planter in the shape of a Llama - is that really going to bring joy ?!

I return to the point. The simplest gifts are often the best. And in this context what’s to go wrong with a personalised gift or personalised garment of any sort? By using a message or picture you can convey to those you cherish just why they are special to you over Christmas, the season of giving.