Quick Tip: Last Minute Ideas
This month is Thoughtless Gift Month. The Donkey provides tips on getting holiday gifts for your wife without spending much time or thought.
The Handwritten Options method.
If you celebrate Christmas and haven’t purchased anything for your wife, you are now in real trouble… or are you? Here is a proven method that allows you to provide a meaningful gift without spending any time at the store or thinking ahead. In fact, you can even do this Christmas morning if you can get up 15 minutes before your wife. Here are a few simple steps:
- Brainstorm for 5 minutes about potential gifts. If you have trouble, you can default to this year’s top 3 gifts women are looking for: weekend getaway, spa package, and gift card to her favorite boutique or shop (at least that’s what I heard on the radio the other day).
- Write your ideas on separate pieces of paper. Ideally you will come up with 4-5 different options. If you have a preference for what you want your wife to choose, purposely put in a few options that are certainly too expensive for your budget. Or, if your wife isn’t budget conscious, then put in a few super cheap options. This will make your preference look a little better.
- Fold up the options and bundle together in her stocking.
- Have her lay out the options and read them one by one.
- She makes the selection and is very happy.
This is a great method since it requires almost no time or materials–You didn’t even step foot into the store. You might even convince your wife to make the actual purchase, since she will probably want to pick it out herself. It will likely cost more than you would have otherwise spent, but that’s the price you pay for procrastinating. Try it out and let me know if it was a success.
4 Responses to “Quick Tip: Last Minute Ideas”
I already bought my wife something, but I’m gonna try this to get a few bonus points
By LiteMike on Dec 24, 2007
this seems like a good idea throw in the classic homemade coupon book-you know the one that entitles bearer of this certificate to breakfast in bed etc.
By phillyz on Dec 24, 2007
Hi, I trotted over from Problogger. I have a ton of experience as the wife and overall this is a good idea, for an emergency back-up. I would suggest that you (whoever you is) not put anything as an option that you could not live with her choosing because at Christmas/birthday/anniversary if it’s the day of the occasion we women tend to take it at face value that anything offered is really available.
Also don’t do this too often, we remember and if the husband consistently fails to think about remember a gifting occasion it will backfire. But everybody has emergencies and this works.
By G's Cottage on Dec 26, 2007
If you have been screwing up on the present front for a long time (OH, maybe more than 2 years) this will NOT WORK! There better be some hint that you thought about her for more than 5 minutes. Maybe a beautiful box that she can keep on her dresser might soften the idea a little.
And if you’ve been really rotten about giving gifts, well, it’s likely she won’t even be able to choose!
Good luck, I vote NO for the Donkey.
kerch
By Kerch on Dec 27, 2007