A Crowd-Sourced Gift Guide
Let's help each other out (this is not a list of stuff to buy)
It’s currently stick season in Vermont, but this (above) is all I really want for Christmas. Seriously though. If only that pesky old climate change wasn’t warming the planet and making it snow less often and later in the season. Anyhoo, that’s not what this is about (or is it)?
I know there’s plenty of gift guides out there. And also, more than $8.3 billion is estimated to be wasted on unwanted gifts according to a 2022 report. During holiday seasons where up to 1 million returns are made daily – it’s easier to throw them away, resulting in 9.5 billion pounds of returns being sent straight to landfills. That is, not great.
But it doesn’t have to be a buzzkill. There actually is more to the holidays than panic shopping Black Friday/Cyber Monday sales. Also, here’s a list of gifts people really don’t want (clothing and accessories top the list). So what’s the plan?
Sorry not sorry for the humble brag, but a recent text message from my SIL went something like this…”you always have great gift ideas…and they’re so practical.” This was in response to a delivery of fresh juices I sent my brother and sister-in-law after my nephew was born. I like to give gifts that are practical yes, but also that I know the recipient will use. I loathe buying stuff for the sake of having a gift.
Which brings me to the point of all this. I’d love to know the best gifts you’ve even given and received? I’m not talking about a dyson vacuum or another holiday beauty set. These can be food gifts, handmade gifts, experience gifts, tickets, classes, trips, second-hand gifts. Drop them in the comments and I will round up all the best for a crowd-sourced gift guide along with some of my favorite gift ideas, plus what we’re doing for Christmas gifts this year.
Each year for Christmas, my parents give me a gift certificate to have my car detailed. It is my favorite gift of all time.
As somewhat of a minimalist, I love that it is a service and not an item that takes up space in my home. And each year, it feels like I have a brand new car. This has also become one of my favorite gifts to give others for special occasions.
And if you’re in saving mode, you could even give a coupon for a DIY car detailing for a close family member and I bet they’d be very appreciative.
My family did a "make, bake, thrift, or regift" last year and it was the best Christmas ever! My kids got puzzles, books, art supplies and we received some thrifted art and home goods like mugs and a regifted rice cooker that was going to go to Goodwill but we actually use all the time. It took a lot of pressure off but still required all of us to think about the gift receiver maybe even more so than just going to the store and dropping a bunch of money.