Have you ever bought someone something that seemed great at first, then started to lose its appeal after a few weeks? Maybe you bought your friend a great new blender after she told you how much she’s been dying to create her own smoothies. Then you get to wrapping the present, and you think that it’s just not as much fun as you thought it was.
Alternatively, maybe you’re concerned that your gift is going to end up being outshone by all the other amazing presents that the person has already received.
The good news is that there are ways you can upgrade even the simplest gift. 1. Help them Make the Most of it
Sometimes, you can instantly improve the quality of a gift by giving the person something relevant to go alongside it. Maybe instead of just buying someone a selection of makeup items, you could grab those items, put them in a cosmetics bag, and wrap them with a set of “how to” instructions for getting the kind of looks they can create.
If you’re worried that the blender isn’t going to make a huge impact on its own, why not get them a basket of fruit to go with it, or just written down a selection of recipes that you’ve found on the internet for them to try out. There are tons of ways to make the simplest gift seem a little more impressive, just by showing you’ve put a lot of thought into it. 2. Get the Wrapping Right
Yes, the wrapping is a part of the gift experience, but it’s also something that many people tend to overlook. It’s easy to focus entirely on buying the item, and then just hand it over in a plastic carrier bag. Unfortunately, this kind of takes the magic out of the gift experience. Instead, have some fun with the wrapping to make it more appealing.
You could fill the gift bag you’ve bought with shredded tissue paper and glitter to make for a magical surprise, or wrap the box in a large bow that you’ve learned how to create yourself on YouTube. Practice the wrapping and make it look phenomenal, it will show the other person how much you really care.
Remember the card too. The card is something that a lot of people forget about with gift-giving, but it’s a great way to make your exchange more meaningful. Don’t just grab something off the internet. Hand-write the card, or include a little note within the wrapping so your friend can see you’ve put time and effort into creating the right message. 3. Deliver the Gift in an Interesting Way
Sure, you could just hand the present over to that other person the next time you see them, but what if you can deliver it in a slightly more interesting way? Create a scavenger hunt in your home and make your friend or relative search for their present, so that they can build up some excitement before they open it. Meet in a café and have the staff sing happy birthday when you hand over the item.
The right way to deliver the gift will depend heavily on the kind of person you’re giving the gift too. If you know this other person couldn’t think of anything worse than having someone sing to them on their birthday or special day, keep it simple. You could even have the gift delivered, so you don’t have to worry about getting it over there on the right day, or at the ideal time. 4. Buy Something they Wanted
You won’t have to waste time thinking of ways to make a gift more exciting if you’ve already bought this person something that they really want. Your friend won’t mind that you’ve bought them a blender that doesn’t look for exciting, if that’s all they’ve wanted for the past few years. Stop worrying about the gift delivery, and spend your time figuring out what your friend or relative really wants from you. You could even ruin the surprise entirely and ask them what they’d like to receive.
Remember, most people would be happy to get something that wasn’t a surprise if it meant that they actually got what they wanted. There’s nothing worse than having to pretend that you love a new set of knives when you’ve been dropping hints about a blender for the last six months. There’s nothing wrong with asking for hints sometimes.
