Christmas quandaries solved
Tis the season to be jolly and dig deep – with a smile. Here are some hints.
It’s that time of year again when you start to fret about what to buy for the person in your life who has everything.
Christmas shopping can be stressful at the best of times, but that feeling heightens when searching for a gift for the hard-tobuy-for friend or relative.
Trade Me has some ideas, including gumboot jandals (for the farmers in your life), minipressos (for the coffee lovers), or a pet backpack (to carry your furry friend to your favourite holiday hotspots), while gift-buying expert Maxine Pigou says you can’t go wrong with an experience.
Pigou, who owns lifestyle management and personal assistant company Busyfix, says it can be as simple as a spa treatment, or as extravagant as a lap in a supercar.
‘‘For the person who has everything, it’s more about going and doing something … Think about their interests and go for an experience present, rather than a material gift.’’
However, if an experience did not work, Pigou’s advice was to get a few smaller gifts, rather than one big gift.
‘‘If you are not sure what to get someone, get them small, different things, because if you go and buy one thing and it’s not right, that’s worse than buying, say, five smaller things because at least you are guaranteed some of those are going to appeal to the person.’’
Trade Me spokeswoman Millie Silvester said they had a few ideas ‘‘from the practical and fun, to the downright silly’’ which fit the bill for that hard-to-buy-for person.
One of the most popular items was the Minipresso, which was ‘‘perfect gift for a coffee mad Kiwi on the go’’.
To date, there have been more than 5300 searches on Trade Me since the start of October for the a pocket-sized coffee maker.
Pet backpacks, which was ‘‘perfect for the lazy canine in your life or to help them out after a long summer walk’’, were also proving to be a hit, Silvester said.
‘‘And just in case the weather packs it in, we recommend Punderdome, which is a game that encourages cringeworthy puns and dad jokes.
‘‘I spend a great deal of time doing online research first, so I know exactly where I can buy it for at the best price.’’
To make gift-buying easier, try and find out the person’s interests, Pigou said.
‘‘Really try and find out what they like, and like I say, do your research, and listen. Pick up those clues. Pick up the tips they leave out there.’’