My most successful gift was the glass chess set I got for my brother and his fiancée. I knew they wanted a chess set, so there we are. They were thrilled (her especially) – they’re, like, completely rearranging their living room around it, which honestly I think is kind of an overreaction.
I feel kind of guilty, because I got it for $15 at the discount housewares store and I think they think it was $80 or something.
(I got lots of fantastic gifts but my favourite was the terra cotta “memory” teacup my boyfriend gave me.)
I got my oldest daughter a digital camera (I was happy to find out thats what she wanted since she wouldnt give me a clue before Christmas!) and money. Youngest was happy to get added memory for her computer so she could run her SIMS2 games, and some light up speakers.
My SO did really really good… he gave me his heart =)
I decided to do mostly handmade stuff this year - scarves, bath salts and milk baths, and spiced coffee blends. Well, I knew the scarves would take the longest, so I started knitting in November. (My family is huge, and I was (and still am, sadly) doing them for friends, too.) I was about 75% done (17 or 18 scarves done) when my mother emailed me (on the Thursday before Christmas) to say that her side of the family had decided that the adults were “not doing presents this year.” To which I responded, says you! 
So we sat around on the Saturday before Christmas, and the kids opened three or four gifts apiece, and the adults opened two per couple. Apparently, the new policy (as stated by my excited aunts and uncles) is “Tea didn’t get the message - and don’t tell her next year, either!”
I was really pretty happy about that - even not having anything to open myself, it was a lot of fun watching everybody else enjoy the stuff I’d made, and seeing the joy that unexpected gifts can bring.
Talked to my friend today. She received the package and decided to open the little present first. She was surprised to see the Nano. She’s a full-time student who’s living off of some small savings while she’s going to school, so she’s really watching her money. I know she likes listening to music, and I knew she could use an iPod. Much more convenient than her old CD player, and she can put all of her music on it instead of having to choose which CDs to take with her. She said she couldn’t believe it and cried for ten minutes. I told her I was sorry I made her cry, but she said, ‘No, in a good way!’ So I guess it went over pretty well. Better than those REI socks she always asks for.