Nov 14

Nov 14 How to Make Gift Cards Personal

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It’s that time of year again. There’s a chill in the air. People are beginning to hustle and bustle. Anddd gift guides are popping up all over the internet. Personally, I love gift giving. I enjoy finding that perfect gift for someone. If I had unending funds, I would gift give all the freaking time, buuuut that’s not currently the case. Maybe someday ;) Though I will say, it’s never about the money for me. It’s about the thought! And that brings me to my main point. THOUGHTFULNESS. Maybe you break out in hives when picking out a gift. Don’t overthink it, but just give it some thought. Who are you buying for? What do they like?

Gift cards are relatively new in the art of gift giving and because of that, I know not everyone likes to give them. My mom hates giving them, because she’d rather give an actual “something”. I somewhat agree with her. I know I’m a different generation, but even I think there’s something weird about asking for money for a downpayment on a house instead of a gift. (among other things. hah!) Plus, a lot of the time, the value of a gift isn’t what you paid for it, so you’re able to actually give MORE to someone than you would have with just straight cash. I know other people who feel like a gift card is actually a cop out of giving a gift. They are “easy”. Andddd while they maybe easy, they can actually be thoughtful and what someone wants.

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HERE ARE SOME EXAMPLES

Last Christmas, my Mimi gave me and Nick a gift card to Eddie V’s restaurant. It was where we had our first date, where we went after we got engaged, and where we had our rehearsal dinner. It was super thoughtful, as it gifted us a night out, at a place that held a lot of weight for us. It wasn’t “on our Christmas list”, but was still very meaningful!

Most of my friends don’t really neeeed anything, so they can be hard to buy for. For one of their birthdays, I got them a giftcard to a local ice cream shop, as she loves ice cream and can never get enough. For the other, I got her a gift card to a local craft coffee shop that she passes every day after she works out. She had mentioned that she will sometimes splurge on a drink from there, but most of the time she didn’t. In the card I wrote something along the lines of for your birthday and X amount of almond milk lattes! It was only a $25 gift card, but the fact that I listened and cared about her life was shown through in that present, anddd that’s what we all really want, right? For people to know us.

One of my sister-in-laws loves boutique work out classes, but rarely does them, as they are expensive. We typically get her a soul cycle or corepower yoga giftcard, which is of course good for you AND a great gift.

As wedding thank you gifts for our parents, Nick and I got them gift certificates for hotels. Read more about that here. My parents got one to a hotel in San Antonio, as they spent their own honeymoon there. Nick’s parents got one to San Francisco, as it is an area they love to visit. I know these aren’t all gifts that were given at Christmas, but they still apply to this topic!

Anyway, don’t get me wrong. I enjoy getting gift cards! It’s a great way to let someone buy what they actually want. I have a spot on my Christmas list (my mom always asks for one) where I list gift cards I’m interested in, so no harm there. Regarding giving gift cards in general, just put a little thought into where it is from. Do they love makeup? Grab a Sephora gift card. Do they like to stay in? Grab a Postmates gift card. Are they they life of the party? Maybe get them an Uber gift card. Do they like wine? Try a gift card to a local wine shop. You catch my drift? Just make it personal!! And of course if cash is your thing, pretty sure no one has ever complained about that!

Enjoy the season and remember it’s about more than just presents, so relax and make some memories!

P.S. I shot these last weekend in Beverly Hills. It sure doesn’t feel like Christmas in LA, so I took the opportunity to snap a shot like a tourist, as they were putting all the holiday decorations up!