Christmas gift ideas you can give or ask for when you like surprises, but don’t want money spent on the wrong gift!

One guilt-inducing element of Christmas bound to come around is knowing what you like but still wanting to be surprised with the gift. When we were kids, everything felt like a surprise, and I think we can admit that it really added to the magic of Christmas. Part of me always feels a touch guilty asking for something specific and getting what I want, yet still feeling a bit sad for missing the magic surprise of opening gifts on Christmas Day. I know I know… There are worse things in the world, but who doesn’t like being surprised with gifts they love! These past few Christmases, I have realized the answer to this “problem” is so simple! All you need to do is pick a NEW or RELATIVELY NEW hobby or niche that you are interested in and tell your loved one that you want items associated with that niche. This is also great for giving gifts! It works best if the activity is new to you or the person, because if you have been doing it forever, you already have the items you need. It sounds simple now that I’m typing it out, but stick with me here!

Scrapbooking & Junk Journaling

My best example is from last year when I started scrapbooking/junk journaling (fyi, I absolutely love it). So when my sister asked me what I wanted for Christmas, I told her anything to do with scrapbooking! It’s an activity with infinite supplies that can be constantly replenished. She went to Hobby Lobby and got me stickers, craft paper, an ink pad, stamps, pens, etc. She very well could have bought the whole store! The point is, she was able to easily set her price limit, buy items she actually enjoyed picking out, and surprise me with a thoughtful gift! And I absolutely loved opening it:) There was so much joy on both our parts that it felt like the old Christmas, the childhood Christmas that we know and love.

Journaling

Last Christmas, my mother told my sister and me that she wanted to get back into journaling! Journaling is a great activity for gift giving, especially if they are just getting into it. We got her a journal (of course), cool pens, bookmarks, and the best thing was a photo printer and extra photo paper for her to put pictures in her journal. You can buy a journal cover, bookmarks, a book of journal prompts, etc. There are so many fun gifts you can give related to journaling! Even if the person knows relatively what they’re asking for, they will still be surprised. It makes receiving the gift so much more exciting and buying the gift much more rewarding.

Nail Kit

A few Christmases ago, I wanted to start doing my own acrylic nails. I asked my mom for nail items for Christmas, something I admittedly gave her some guidance for. So for Christmas, I was essentially gifted a nail starter kit for Christmas! It was something that wouldn’t have been affordable for me at the time, but it made a perfect gift from my mom. She gave me a nail drill, files, gel polishes, acrylics, etc. DO YOUR RESEARCH before doing your own nails!! Be weary of allergies

Other examples of activities or hobbies include:

• Camping
• Sewing
• Painting
• Drawing
• Hair styling
• Creative writing
• Embroidery
• Cooking
• Fashion design
• Puzzling
• Traveling

I hope you all have a Merry Christmas and happy gift giving!

– with love, Kathryn