The Perfect Personalized Gift For Any Occasion

Giving gifts has become a year round event.  No longer are gifts only present within the Christmas holiday season but now people are giving more often.  People are celebrating birthdays, anniversaries, babies, weddings and many smaller holidays such as Easter, Valentine’s Day and Independence Day.  With all of these gifts how can one giver offer personalized gifts that show thought and relevance while staying within a budget that is reasonable? 

One element that makes gift giving easier and less of the challenge that is involved in going out to the stores is the blessing of the Internet.  Gift giving and personalization is so much easier when you can search online and everything you are looking for is a click away.  Givers are able to find unique personalized items that are often not found in stores locally or are only found at specialty boutiques.  Everyone knows shopping boutiques takes time and often easily takes us over budget.  

If you find yourself in search of a gift for a friend, loved one or even an acquaintance it is easier than ever to find something personalized.  A personalized gift that is made for someone is something you can be proud to give and the receiver will be so thankful to receive.  A personalized gift shows the receiver that you have out some thought into why they are special and why the gifts is just perfect for them.  Personalized kids toys are amongst my favorite to give because children light up when something is especially made for them.  It is amazing what that little bit of personalization says for you as a gift giver. 

I know what you are thinking however it is not true, personalized gifts and toys are no more expensive than any other gift you might choose.  Many presents can be engraved, embroidered or painted with a name, initials or something else unique to the receiver.  An economical approach to personalized children’s toys for an event such as Independence Day is sand toys in red, white and blue with their name on them.  This makes it easy to keep track of all of the sand toys the child brought with them to the beach (nice for mom) and also shows you put thought into the reason for the gift. A gift like this can be kept easily under ten dollars and is something that any young child would love to have. 

If you are looking at a personalized present make sure to consider each recipient separately.  For instance I love crabs so I would enjoy a personalized gift with crabs.  In fact my husband took a plain beach towel with a crab design and embroidered a phrase that is personal to us regarding the beach on it.  I appreciated that gift more than anything.  It showed he had been paying attention.  However, this present would not be appreciated to someone who never spends time at the beach and that thinks crabs are nasty. It pays to know your recipients hobbies, past times, likes and dislikes.  This will make it simpler to find a perfect personalized gift.   

Finding a personalized gift for someone not only makes their day but yours also.  It is so nice to give a gift that you are proud of that someone will appreciate.  The one thing I hate more than anything is on Christmas to receive a candle or something silly for the house.  Put a bit of effort into buying presents year round for your friends and family.  I guarantee they will notice the difference.

Personalized Children’s Toys Alternatives To Generalized Gifts

What do you purchase for a child in your life when they already have everything?  You might be thinking about all the gifts the child in your life would enjoy.  What about a personalized children’s gift.  Personalizing a present for a child in your life is one way to show them how important they are to you.  Making something theirs, and only theirs, by personalizing it with their name it allows them to stake claim to the item.  Who doesn’t love something they can say is all theirs?

Sometimes personalized children’s toys can also have the child’s birth date on it.  This is a special way to personalize a present that is being given as birthday present.  It is a keepsake.  A personalized present to a child will have more of an impact than a generalized present any day.

My favorite personalized children’s toy is not really a toy at all.  For every baby shower we attend the baby is given a toy box with their name inscribed on it.  I was given one for each of my children and it is a keepsake they will have forever.  I keep all of the items that mean the most stored in the box for them.  Now that they are growing up that silky blanket they wouldn’t let go of until they were a bit older needs a place to live.  As do the yearbooks, first soccer shirts, ballet slippers and ever sentimental thing mom’s and dad’s tend to keep forever.

Options in personalized children’s toys and furniture are endless.  Some common gifts include pillow cases, plates, silverware, play kitchens, black belt holders, stools and cozy comfy chairs & bean bags.  Personalized gifts are best for children ages two to about eight.  From there a bit of the appeal may be lost. 

Children in this age group find something ultra appealing about to be able to tell and show the world that something it is there’s.  So children that find their name engraved or painted upon something it is just that much more theirs.  This was so true when it came to the personalized pillows that my husband and I had made for our kids.  In fact my thirteen year old still sleeps with hers!  Those pillow cases go on every sleepover they have.  It was such a terrific gift.  My son’s nickname is Bear and he loves soccer so his is all about that.  Our daughter is a softball player.  We knew it from the first tee ball game.  Her pillow case is personalized with softballs and her name. 

Another great present is a blanket that is made and embroidered with the baby’s name, date of birth, time and weight.  This gift is one that will grow with them and most likely become a personalized favorite.  A personalized gift basket filled with things all about the child is also a great way to personalize a gift.  Say you have a soccer fanatic like mine.  A gift basket filled with everything soccer from stickers to coloring books make a terrific personalized child’s gift.

The Gift Of Time

The days of simple gift giving are over for my oldest child.  She has moved on from playhouses, dolls and doll house to iPhones and iTunes.  This happens to all parents at one time or another.  What are parents to do when their babies out grow toy boxes and playhouse and move from dollhouse on to docking stations for every tech gadget known to man.  My suggestion is simple -STOP.

The beautiful little lady has blossomed into an incredible young lady who is in need of nothing and in desire of it all.  We have reached the point where we pack up the play area and store the kid kitchen and train table.  The play area is now being transformed into a study nook.  With this comes the days where Santa moves down the totem pole and the “but they have two cell phones and I don’t even have texting” starts.  With this is the need to simplify and explore options to help preteens and teens realize the world does not, has not and will never start revolving around their need to be like everyone else.

It has become a family tradition that around age eleven birthday gifts start to come to an end.  Don’t get me wrong it is still a huge deal that this is the day of her arrival however it is celebrated with her at the center.  No gifts center this holiday.  Time and togetherness however are very much present and accounted for.  She controls the mood of the event, invites people within the family she wants to spend time with and that is how the day proceeds.  Games are played, private conversations are carried on, food is eaten and time is shared.  Does the fact an iPhone has not been opened bother her?  Not one bit as in this moment her heart is filled with the maximum amount of affection one could ask for.

The same will be started this year at Christmas.  Our family will always believe in the spirit of Santa and so he will always visit bringing one most wanted present for each child.  This year a pillow pet is wished for by Bear and for Belle a game, Apples to Apples.  The main present we are choosing for our children is time.  Usually the holiday is a hustle of cramming events in followed by being beyond broke!  This year however we will take the entire week off both my spouse and I.  This is our gift to them. 

It is an amazing feeling to see your child open a doll house on Christmas morning that they will play with every day until the day until they trade it in for make-up and tech gadgets.  Giving presents to children especially something personalized is and will always be a special treat.  When the magic of those presents teeters off and the greed starts to show itself, give them the one thing they crave more than anything…time.  It is one of the least expensive presents you can buy.