Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with presents and gifts

You are talented in many ways. In bed.

iamkimiam — Sat, 19 Dec 2009 15:15:15 -0800

Give me your best fortunes! I bought some beautiful ceramic fortune cookies to give as holiday gifts this year. I need some good fortunes to put inside them. I'm looking for short phrases that are sweet and funny. Nothing directly sexual or romantic, but bonus if they sound better with 'in bed' at the end.

A gift idea to last throughout the ages

AnnaRat — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 01:15:28 -0800

What gifts do you give (or receive) either every year to the same person, or gifts that you always give to people at a particular age? Or, are there any products or books that are released each year that you think are worthwhile. I am, of course, after suggestions of things you like / the receiver genuinely appears to like. For example, does the newest baby in the family always get a Bunnykins set for their first Christmas? Does your aunt always get you a pair of cashmere socks for your birthday? I've nearly finished my Christmas (and Quonsar) shopping. I would like to streamline my gift shopping a bit more though, for future years (and birthdays). While finding something perfect and new each year is great, I do also like creating a bit of a tradition with a gift that is appreciated, though not unexpected.

On my part, I always buy my parents the latest release of Quaff: Best wines in Australia under $15. I used to always get money from my aunt from the teenage years through my twenties, as she said her grandfather had always done that and she could rely on it for buying a good pair of shoes each year. As a kid, our neighbours used to give me a Darrell Lea Bo-Peep Jar of rock candy, and I used to always look forward to it. I buy my grandmother, who is difficult to buy for, a beautiful boxed flower arrangement of miniature roses for her birthday each year (the shop was near my work and is filled with gorgeous flowers and makes you want to buy the lot and fill your house with flowers - if you ever need to order flowers online in Melbourne, this is it).

I have from <1 year old nephew through to grandmother to buy for each year. Stocking stuffers to major gifts, suggest away, please!

Affordable Luxuries

Miko — Tue, 10 Nov 2009 12:45:30 -0800

What are some great gifts for Holiday Season that convey a sense of luxury, yet cost between about $25-75? Everyone's had a hard time for the last couple years, and nobody's got a lot of money in my family. In the past when in this position I would sometimes go for quantity in my gift-giving, and get a bunch of littler, less costly, sometimes kinda jokey gifts to really stretch my budget.

But this year I was thinking that the last thing most of us need is more piles of middling-to-cheap stuff, and that rather, it might be nice to get people some gifts that are true luxuries. By "luxuries" I mean things that are a level of quality up from the everyday/discount item - things you might look at, and consider for yourself, but then reject in favor of the cheaper and more ubiquitous version. Things you wouldn't splurge on yourself but would love if someone did it for you. An example might be a really nice pair of leather driving gloves as opposed to drugstore stretch knits.

Specific suggestions of things you love welcome. A variety is fine, given that I have men and women of varying ages to think about.

But even with this philosophy in play, I won't have a ton of $ to spend, so I'm willing to spend what I have on fewer items that feel like they contain a lot of value. I'm just wondering what might be out there that I can afford but will still make the recipient go "OOoooooh!"

Gifts of an "Adult" Nature

Diagonalize — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 14:40:26 -0800

What kind of stuff does a 20-something "grown-up" not know he needs/wants? No surprise, my boyfriend's birthday is coming up. He's turning 27, and his parents have been needling him to add things to his wishlist. Gifts are a big deal in his family, and the Amazon wishlist has been a crucial part of that for years. In the past, his list was populated almost exclusively by video games and the occasional movie, but lately, he's been trying to move towards a more grown-up selection. Well, that's super, but when he sits down to try to add "grown-up" stuff to his wishlist, he gets this panicked, "deer in the headlights" expression. I know there are plenty of things he likes/wants, but he has no idea where to start.

Him: scruffy, quiet, socially-capable, 27-ish, physicist

Likes: adventure/RPG video games, reading political and science blogs, puzzles (a la MIT Mystery Hunt), food (eating, not cooking), and Philip Seymour Hoffman films

Dislikes: mushrooms, Will Ferrell movies

Mostly clueless about: fashion, cars, power tools, professional sports, fine wine/booze, and any music other than classical or showtunes

Clearly, he's not a guy's guy, and I've had little luck finding a "manly, but not too manly" guide that wasn't just all gadgets. We'd love to point his family in the right direction, but with the lone exception of an iPhone, his wishlist looks about the same as when he was 14 (video games and Star Trek). He doesn't want to be viewed as the eternal teenager, so what do you want/need when you're "all growed up"?

Help me make my boyfriend's birthday awesome with fiendishly delightful present wrapping and delivery!

t0astie — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 00:32:15 -0800

It's my boyfriend's birthday soon, and I want to make the present giving AWESOME! Have already purchased presents and booked flights to be with him. Am organising special birthday meals for him, and a couple of activities too, so most of the day is pretty much sorted. But I really really want the present giving/opening experience in particular to be super fun for him. I'm thinking along the lines of a treasure hunt with clues so he has to hunt for the presents... Or wrapping the presents in a giant box and painting it like a cake with sparklers on top! Or multiple layers of wrapping disguising the present...Or, um, something else. But I don't know what exactly. I just want to make it a completely excellent fun surprise for him. Some background

Him: mid-thirties engineer. Likes:dinosaurs, robots, sci-fi, machines, beer, puzzles, poker.

Me: mid-thirties journalist / photographer. Handy with glue, cutting, drawing, writing, pics, collage and general crafty stuff. But even simple woodwork or electronics would be beyond me.

Equipment available: minimal. Can go to the hardware store, and there's a not-very-good craft store in his town too. I don't have a sewing machine. Everything basic like glue, paint etc is easily available where he lives, but more complicated stuff not so much.

Finances: low. Am broke after present and plane-ticket buying. Could go $20-30AUD extra. Aiming for ingenuity and surprise over extravagance.

Location: Outback Australia. Really.

Timeframe: Nine days til I catch the plane and another eleven days in his town before B-Day. If it's going to be massive in size, must be constructed in 11 days. I won't be bringing a papier-mache fort or birthday banner on my discount flight, for example.

Help me hive!

He is really the best boyfriend in the world and deserves the Best Birthday in the History of the World Ever.

Doronophobia?

Sova — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 14:11:12 -0800

Is there a name for the dislike of the anticipation felt on receiving or opening gifts? I know this is perhaps a bit of an out-there question, but I'm looking for further information on people who dislike or even fear receiving or openings gifts. It's not the dislike of what the gifts are themselves, or strictly the fear of having to participate in a strained social situation when the gift turns out to be undesirable. I'm thinking of the specific idea of having this unknown 'thing' which causes anticipation, and those people who refuse to commit emotional energy to it.

Any ideas? Examples ranging from downplaying the opening of presents all the way to keeping them unopened for years would be great, as well as some explanation or even - holy grail of this question - a name.

Have yourself an internet little Christmas

nax — Sat, 13 Dec 2008 07:07:41 -0800

Help me send virtual gifts to my kids overseas. A big part of our family Christmas tradition is Christmas stockings. This year both of my kids are working abroad in jobs that I can't mail a package to. So I want to stuff a Christmas stocking on line. I'm looking for something interactive along the lines of various online advent calendars like this one, but where you open presents instead of dates.

Does anyone know of a site or app (google? yahoo? facebook?) that will let me do this? Suggestions for what to put in it would be good too: I could stuff it with online gift certificates for games or music (assuming it's secure), fun websites, what else?

I know I can do this via a simple email, but I'd like a fun graphic interface as well. Tried googling it, but only got commercial sites. Thanks, hivemind.

Self-links welcome, if you do this yourself, or MeMail me to stay within the site rules.

Book-Hungry Mother

Weebot — Tue, 09 Dec 2008 14:23:23 -0800

[Xmas Filter] I'm doing my Christmas shopping, and I'm a bit stuck on what I need to get my mother. She likes culinary-cultural history books, preferably with recipes. Suggestions? She's been really into these books for a while now, and I was hoping to get some suggestions. She's gone through Salt, Cod, and all the other Mark Kurlansky books, as well as Lizzy Collingham's Curry and David Kamp's The United States of Argula.

She has also been a fan of food memoirs like Tender at the Bone as well as travel books with a strong culinary bent. You get the idea. So, any suggestions?

What would you give Lord Byron?

Skyanth — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 01:25:40 -0800

Special gift for a special gentleman? I'm looking for gifts for a gentleman. The gentleman in question likes special/pretty/tasteful things that are to do with (Napoleonic) history, cats, dracula, dandies, dueling, books, the romantics and goth. I got him a sword cane once and he loved that. I really don't want to give him clothing. I was going to give him cufflinks but I made the mistake of showing them to him to make sure he liked them and he loved them so much he got them himself, robbing me of the one solid idea I had. Bah. I would also prefer not to give him shaving equipment (he already has a nice set).

I've seen this, but the answers are much too clothing/shaving oriented.

What else. Oh yes, there will already be a bottle of some gentlemanly drink to go with the gift so no alcohol suggestions either. Sorry. :)

There's thought behind it, sure, but also twenty hours of knitting.

carbide — Sun, 19 Oct 2008 13:52:23 -0800

What are the most memorable, awesome or useful handmade gifts you've received or given? I'm in search of some inspiration, as well as cautionary tales. My extended family has been very polite in enduring handmade gifts from me year after year, but I think only a few people have really enjoyed what I've made them, and the pleasure in giving gets a bit lost that way. The success rate is better with friends but inspiration would still be handy.

I'd love a wide variety of suggestions so I won't say too much, but here's a few details:

- I can cook, sew, take decent photographs sometimes, bind books, knit, make prints, draw, etc, so anything goes.

- Previous gifts have included screenprints, cold-process soap, shortbread, cookies, handmade journals, and a roaring success in a portrait of my grandparents. Current plans include blank cards with suitable photographic prints on the front, some knitted hats for a few people who will definitely wear them, one well-targeted mix cd.

- Particular areas of difficulty are: teenage boys (not bookish or alternative, damn!), professional glam women in their mid 20s to early 30s (ditto!).

Any stand-out gifts you've made or received?

(Warnings about the chasm between intention and reception would probably be good, too. And weirdly, I can't find any previouslies.)

What do you wish you had when you graduated?

AceRock — Fri, 29 Aug 2008 05:13:27 -0800

What (item) do you wish you had when you graduated from college? My brother is graduating from college after this semester and I want to get him a present he will end up really appreciating. So, what (item or items) do you wish someone had given you when you graduated from college, or otherwise entered the real world for the first time?

I don't want want to limit ideas in any way, but if it helps to inspire: he's graduating with a degree in engineering, but he loves writing fiction.

Random act of kindness

HotPatatta — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 13:51:41 -0800

What item do you use all the time and wonder how you ever lived with without it? I want to show someone special how much I care with a killer gift. Inspired by this essay, I'm in the mood to spend a bit of money on myself (aren't I thoughtful?) but I don't know what to buy. It should be something practical that I can use often, but it can be a luxury item or something cheap. I live in NYC, so I don't have a yard or much space to put something large.

Onward Unitarian soldier, marching as to the interconnected web of humanity of which we are all a part

harperpitt — Mon, 04 Aug 2008 11:55:43 -0800

What's a nice goodbye and good luck present for a former boss of similar age and temperament? My supervisor from a previous job is leaving the team that both she and I loved a lot, to head out for new and exciting opportunities. She is close to me in age and I'd consider her a friend, albeit not a super-tight one. She's not moving out of town or anything - just searching for new work.

Do you have any recommendations for a lovely, sweet, simple gift I could get her that shows my appreciation without being over-the-top and gushy? She doesn't actually *need* anything, so it's a question of finding her something nice she wants.

About her: she is 27 or 28, and very kind/earthy/liberal. We are both Unitarian Universalists, and the work was in progressive faith, so things with a spiritual - though probably not overtly Jesus-y/Buddha-y/Allah-y - bent would be OK.

(Quick PS - we have both gone through Anne Lamott's books, which we both enjoyed, if that helps any. I'm certainly not limited to faith-based stuff or to books, though.)

awesome present for an awesome kid?

mustcatchmooseandsquirrel — Tue, 15 Jul 2008 09:54:34 -0800

What present should my mother get for her 13/14 year old nephew? Complications within. Mom is visiting Russia tomorrow for a month. She hasn't been there or seen the family since 4 years ago and she doesn't really know his interests (other than that he likes chocolate). Also, his parents give him everything he wants/needs generally.

She needs to buy this present today and I'm guessing wants to spend less than $60 (she rejected my iPod suggestion). Any ideas, metafilter?

gift for a skaterboi?

Anonymous — Thu, 21 Feb 2008 19:39:47 -0800

My bf's birthday is in two weeks and well I have no idea what to get him. He has been skateboarding for a long time in the NYC area (his spot is the Globe and some parks in the city) and very much into the culture, which I don't know too much about. I would like to get him something skate related but don't know what exactly where to look or for what. I'm thinking of possibly dvds (he likes watching skateboarding videos) or clothing. He has his own board so I won't be getting him another unless he is there to pick it out, but I want to surprise him so.....any suggestions?

What should I get for my friend

nimkip — Thu, 03 Jan 2008 13:34:13 -0800

Gift ideas for a friend who's really into Native American culture? Around $50 or under, please.

Help me be a cool older cousin and get awesome gifts for a 14 and 15 year old.

Mr Bunnsy — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 09:56:53 -0800

Help me find gifts for remarkably un-greedy teenage girls: they are 14 and 15, and absolutely refuse to tell me what they want (I think their mother, my aunt, raised them too well.) More details: The older one has gotten into music lately, but she seems to mostly be into one band and has all their stuff already. (Both already have MP3 players.) She's a popular social butterfly type, goes to concerts and such with her friends all the time. Was very into Harry Potter. Has a boyfriend.

The younger one is a bit more nerdy, likes to read but doesn't have much time because she's very busy with school. She also does cheerleading, but contrary to the stereotype she's pretty introverted and quiet. She loves dogs (they have one), and likes to cook.

At that age I'd have wanted video games or computer stuff but they're entirely unlike me so I am baffled. Plus they're super polite and don't admit to wanting anything. I've even tried taking them shopping and only with great great reluctance did they let me buy a couple of DVDs and books. For birthdays I just gave them $50 apiece but that felt impersonal so I'd like to do real gifts, with approximately the same budget.

Thanks in advance!

I need a gift for my 80-year-old auntie

AgentRocket — Wed, 07 Nov 2007 07:06:39 -0800

Help me find a good gift for my beloved, octogenarian, Luddite Aunt. My auntie turns 80 this year and we are throwing her a nice party. My wife and I love her to death and would like to get her a good, meaningful gift but - like every other time we've shopped for her - we have no good ideas.

She lives alone and has a house full of chotchkes, so a little statue or other trinket is out. She likewise is up to (and over) her ears in hats, scarves, gloves, etc. She likes TV and is reliant on her old-school VCR Plus to record shows. We thought of a TiVo but she is too intimidated by it to use it. That same reasoning rules out all but the simplest technology. She likes the St. Louis Cardinals and Notre Dame football, but has tons of gear from those teams and can't travel well so a roadtrip to a game is out. She's got 79,000 photographs in an equal number of frames so that's not really an option. We want the present to be meaningful or lasting.

Our current best idea is a flowers-of-the-month club, where a nice bouquet will be delivered to her each month. That's pretty, and will provide fresh flowers to her year-round. And she is a widow so she doesn't really have anyone to send her flowers otherwise.

Is there a brilliant idea we have not considered? All suggestions (including good f-o-t-m clubs) are welcome. Our budget is variable, up to several hundred dollars.

Be sneaky to my 3 year old, with my blessing!

artifarce — Tue, 03 Jul 2007 07:17:54 -0800

What gift would you give to a three-year old to tease her for her half-birthday? We've decided to do small celebrations for our kids' half-birthdays, mainly because we wanted the excuse to see their reaction upon waking covered in stickers. In other words, we want it to be silly, goofy, quirky, and an "un-birthday" (for more context, they love April Fools' Day). We've also planned the "dinner that looks like dessert" and "dessert that looks like dinner," but we don't have a gift. Given this theme I'm conveying, what small gift would you give a playful 3-1/2 year old, that's silly or tricky in either its nature, or wrapping, or how she has to go about getting it? Because of her young age, she probably wouldn't be interested in practical joke gag items, but she is relatively precocious otherwise, or likes to think she is at least. ;) She also pretends that she's a cat most of the time, if that gives any more ideas, but I'd like the gift to still be something she'd enjoy after the party (i.e., no cans of cat food).

Thanks in advance, creative sneaky mefites!

I want an espresso machine.

sneakin — Mon, 02 Jul 2007 05:42:16 -0800

Can my partner and I still make use of a gift registry even if we are not doing a traditional ceremony-then-reception type event? So, my girlfriend and are going to tie the civil union knot. We are leaning towards just going to City Hall, doing the deed and then having a big ol' party sometime after. Here's the thing, I am greedy for some of the trappings of a traditional wedding-- like registry gifts. Is it kosher to still have a registry even if people won't be present to witness the nuptials? I guess I'm a bit insecure that the more non-traditional we get from our end (same sex wedding, no ceremony, etc.) the less traditional we are allowed to be in what we ask from our guests.

Opinions? Experience? Suggestions for other ways to do stuff? Thanks a lot in advance.

What's the cutest $50 thing in the world?

symbebekos — Thu, 19 Oct 2006 05:56:06 -0800

What's the cutest thing in the world? I'm looking for a birthday present for a friend and am a little bit stuck. I want the cutest, most adoreable thing possible; my only condition is that it not be alive - no puppies or baby chicks. Any ideas?

Finders Keepers?

fake — Mon, 03 Jul 2006 06:54:34 -0800

Lost and found: I lost my wallet in Russia. Someone found it and managed to find me and give it back. I'd like to buy them a present. Details: Lost the wallet, drivers license, and about 600$. This person and his wife found the wallet, searched for me for three days, and returned it perfectly intact. As you can imagine, I'm both incredulous and also completely unbelievably grateful.

About the finders: early 30's, man and wife. Probably have money, as they had a nice car. I've been told that the husband is some kind of famous tennis trainer. The wife is an English teacher here in Obninsk.

What would you buy? I'd already written off the money, so I'm not opposed to an expensive gift. Any suggestions are welcome. They need not reflect Russia or Russianness.

Stories about giving

hamfisted — Wed, 21 Jun 2006 11:13:48 -0800

Classic stories or fables about gifts/giving. I'm looking for a story or fable to use as a centre-piece for a speech I'm writing and Google isn't helping. I'd like to use a story about a gift or present, to illustrate the importance of, well, giving (it's for a graduation, although not at all in terms of fundraising). I'd like a classic story, or something multicultural. Any ideas in the collective brain?

What gift should I get for a famous graphic designer?

jeremias — Mon, 27 Feb 2006 14:27:57 -0800

Design metafilterites: If you had $100-150 to spend on a thank you gift for someone who is an acclaimed and famous graphic designer what would you get? My first thoughts would be a cool USB drive or a design book of some sort. Obviously, I want to get him something he doesn't have but that's always hard to assess.

gifts for my elderly FIL.

mecran01 — Fri, 16 Dec 2005 13:08:53 -0800

GiftFilter: What do I get my 76-year-old Father-in-Law for Christmas? (additional parameters inside) He is smart, likes CNN and the weather channel, books on math and physics (I got him Wolfram and he liked it), a former Boeing engineer and department of environmental quality employee, and has a fairly new Imac that he likes. Doesn't like pop science reading as much. Widower. Likes talk radio. Needs to get out more. Lives alone. Budget: around 40 bucks. Likes walking. Cooks simple meals. Thank you.