By: Alexa Gonzalez
The best gift ideas for 2020 – because we all deserve it
As this unforgettable year is coming to a close, it gives us time to reflect on everything that has occurred in the past twelve months. However, the last month of the year is not as peaceful as one may think it is. With all the twists and turns that 2020 has thrown at us, one part has remained intact. It is the everlasting question of ‘What should I get for Christmas?’. This question, although timeless, causes a frantic among many. Whether you plan on being the gift giver, receiver or both, you can consider this piece your personal gift consultant.
For the person who has everything
Beginning with the basics, clothing is a classic gift that never gets old. Due to the fact that there is such a variety to choose from, picking clothes as a gift for somebody can be both a blessing and a curse. Finding the best clothes for the best person could prove to be a difficult task. Determining the style of the person you want to give clothes to is another important factor to keep into consideration. Their favorite color, what they usually wear, and what is on their wish list are all important hints that will eventually lead you to the perfect gift. Websites such as Boohoo.com, Shein, PrettyLittleThing, and Forever 21 all have great deals on items for seasonal items.
Uncommongoods.com is a website that features items that you cannot find anywhere else. This website has a cool feature in which you can actually click an option labelled ‘gift finder’ to type someone’s interests and it will provide you personalized results with gifts that are relevant to these interests. Some interests to choose from include music, art, cooking, gaming, and other hobbies someone might take a liking to. This feature saves you a lot of the time that you would have spent scrolling through pages of items searching for the perfect present. Even if a website does not have this option, narrowing down these qualities in your head, can prove to be very helpful.
Even if someone has just about everything you can think of, gifts do not have to always be some sort of physical object. Experiences can be bought and turned into long lasting memories. With the proper distancing and safety precautions, a trip could be an amazing gift. If you don’t feel comfortable going on a plane with the current state of the pandemic, a road trip could prove to be more of a fun experience. Taking a trip to see snow (especially if the person has never seen it before) would definitely be extraordinary. If you do not want to leave the state, however, there is a new artificial snow park right in Florida. It is called Snowcat Ridge Alpine Snow Park which has a play area, a bunny hill for small children, and a 60 foot tall snow tubing hill.
For mothers
For the parents or someone who is similar to a parental figure in your life, it is my personal belief that Etsy.com is the place to go.
One gift that may be great to give is a family portrait created by a real person and delivered to your home. These portraits can include family members and even pets! By simply providing an original picture of the family and sending it in, the artist is able to create these pictures which will surely warm the heart of the person you gift it to.
Another gift for parents could be a ceramic travel mug to take on the go (such as a Yeti Mug). These can be plain, with designs, or personalized; dependent on what you feel this person would enjoy the most. Amazon has a few of these but if you wanted to find a personalized gift, Etsy.com is known for individualizing products and having an abundance of creative vendors. Therefore, it is a good place to search if you want a gift that has a personal touch to it, even if it is not necessarily one that is listed.
Candles, soaps, and perfumes, Bath and Body Works have great products for good prices. In my personal opinion, smelling these scents in the store is a gift in of itself. Also, it is something that does not take much time to do. If you buy these in bulk, they can be a gift to more than one person of your list. Fathers, cousins, and others may like these as well. For men I recommend Mahogany Teakwood, for the Christmas vibe I recommend Fresh Balsam, and for a subtle year-round scent I would recommend Rose Water & Ivy.
For your significant other
One idea for Christmas gifting to a significant other could be matching shoes. Websites such as Converse, Vans, and Nike have the option to ‘design your own’ shoes. Keep in mind, there are a lot of ways to match with somebody without being tacky. Matching is all about complementing and coordinating, it is not necessarily equivalent to copying and duplicating the same shoe twice. One idea is to choose two colors and alternate them on each shoe. However, two of the same shoes can work just as well.
This was my personal favorite toy growing up and it also adds a nostalgic element to any gift. A reel viewer is perfect as a playback of all of your favorite moments together. By buying the reel viewer and choosing the pictures to include on it, you would be making a worthy investment since you can buy more discs with pictures later on and you already have the machine itself. It can even be made into a tradition!
For Others
Necessities are often overlooked when it comes to holiday gifting, however it occasionally proves to be the kind of present that one would be the most grateful for. Whether it’s a new charger, a replacement for something that is already old or broken, a wallet, hair/body wash, or even socks! A do-it-yourself kit full of self care items does not require much effort. A box or basket can be purchased from anywhere including the dollar store and filled with multiple small gifts! In fact, an alternative for a box could be a stocking to further the Christmas spirit. Small to medium sized items can fit in this ‘package’ as well, making it a good and creative idea to use this holiday season.
The Watchdog 