I’m new to posting, but not to visiting this site… and I’ll say first of all that there are some very interesting, insightful people here.
My question that I thought I’d pose to any creative person is one that’s been on my mind for a while. Gifts for any “significant other” is never really an easy thing when it comes down to finding something meaningful, so I thought I’d ask: has anyone received any present from a wife/husband/boyfriend/girlfriend that they will never forget? What was it?
(If there are any awesome stories about a women getting a vacuum cleaner from her husband, bring those on too!)
My SO is the BESTEST at Christmas gifts. When we first started dating and for a few years after we married, I constantly wore dark colors. Why? Because I was color/fashion challenged. I didn’t know what went with what, didn’t know how to accesorize etc…My SO would give me complete outfits, down to the shoes, purses and jewelry, all in complimentary light colors.
Two years ago he gave me a pair of wireless headphones for the TV. With 3 kids in the house, it was almost impossible to hear what was going on in TV Land. They are great and I use them alot.
The first Christmas gift I got from my future mother-in-law was a vacuum and I loved it. I would have loved it if my fiance bought it too. I also love the mixer, 2 crock pots, smoothie maker, quesadilla maker, stove, griddle, and coffee grinder which either my fiancee or his mother have bought me over the last 5 years. I’m just wierd like that.
The coolest non-appliance gifts I’ve been given by my fiance:
a planet (google: Josh Simpson)
a pair of footie pajamas
The Sims Mega Deluxe
The gifts I’ve bought for him which he loves:
Diablo II collectors edition
City of Heroes
They Call Me Tater Salad (google: Ron White)
A flashy blue light thingie for his computer
A DVD player
A green hoodie sweatshirt
See, it all depends on how well you know the person. Last year, my fiance and his mother got together to buy me a diamond necklace for Christmas. I do like the gift and the sentiment was wonderful - but I still like the footie pajamas better. It’s just the kind of person I am. If you aren’t 200% sure your lady would want an appliance - DON’T DO IT! She will not be amused. The same goes for jewelry. Make sure you know her style first. I personally hate big flashy things. I would not be impressed by more than a 1/4 ct. diamond. I still prefer a good book or computer game to jewelry.
My fiance will take a computer game or more memory over any power tool or any other traditional “man gift”.
The best gift I ever got from an SO was my first 35mm camera. Even though we’d been together for several years, I was very impressed with the insightfulness of the gift. Photography became a big hobby for me.
The worst gift was a remote-controlled model airplane from a boyfriend (it was exactly what he wanted). We took it out for its maiden flight, which of course had to be controlled by the boyfriend since I’m too stupid. The boyfriend crashed the plane. I never got to use it.
To me, the best gifts have been things I could tell some thought was put into. If there’s a surprise factor, it’s usually that much more special. A good example would be the year I received a globe with floor stand. I had been asking for one for a few years, when asked what I would like. The response to my request was not taken seriously, though I’m not sure why. My best guess is that I wanted an inexpensive desk top model, and maybe people figured I could get one any time.
The Christmas I ended up with the globe, the SO and I were going to his parents’ for the holiday and he somehow managed to load the huge box without my noticing. We exchanged gifts and had a great time, and as things were coming to a contented end, he feigned forgetfulness on his part and headed to the truck. When I saw him return with the enormous box, I figured he had grabbed one last gift for his two younger brothers and was looking forward to seeing what was inside. He plopped the box down in front of me, and in complete surprise, I opened it to find a certain globe I had admired several months earlier. One that I had quickly dismissed as too expensive and unnecessary. Though I appreciated the cost involved, I appreciated more the idea that he had gone to so much trouble to surprise me, and had filed away my admiration (I didn’t even know he had seen me looking at the globe, he had been making a purchase of his own) for a future gift.
He’s gotten me lots of great stuff over the years. It’s mostly the little odds and ends that I’m really taken with, though. You know, the inexpensive stuff you pick up because it makes you think of someone. The stained-glass coloring book with pictures of aquarium fish, the reindeer antlers, the star earrings he found at a craft fair, that sort of stuff.
But hands down the most memorable gift was the clicker training system he got me the Christmas after we got engaged. I’d just gotten Dolly the Vicious Attack Hound a couple months previously, and him getting stuff for her meant he was welcoming her into our family. And aside from that, I’m the sort of person who gets a lot more whipped up about a box of liver treats for my critters than expensive clothing or jewelry for myself. I was all kinds of excited when I thought he’d gotten me a doggie seatbelt for Christmas.
One of my favorite gifts was a necklace with 3 miniature rings strung on it - one for each of my children’s birthstones. Absolutely beautiful.
My brother gave me Pink Floyd’s The Wall (The Movie) on DVD last Christmas - remembering from 10 years ago that I’m a big Pink Floyd fan. That meant a lot to me as well.
I’m one of those weird women who loves to get appliances, so my ex-husband considered himself pretty lucky.
In general, any gift that shows the giver pays any kind of attention to what I like or what is important to me means a lot to me, and will very easily become a cherished gift, regardless of the price.