We all have one.
That person who is absolutely impossible to buy for.
You ask what they'd like for their birthday and they say, “Oh, nothing. I don't need anything.”
Helpful.
Or perhaps they're the person who genuinely seems to own everything already. If they want something, they buy it themselves. Their house is full, their wardrobe is full and there is absolutely no obvious gap in their life waiting to be filled by whatever present you can find on the internet at 10pm three days before their birthday.
I think these are actually the people who make us overthink gifting the most.
We start looking for something unusual enough, expensive enough or impressive enough to qualify as the perfect present, when really, the gifts we remember aren't necessarily any of those things.
They're the ones that make us think, “They know me.”
And after nearly six years of putting together gifts for all sorts of people and occasions at Hygge at Home, I've learned that thoughtful gifting doesn't have to mean finding one extraordinary thing.
Sometimes it's much simpler than that.
Stop looking for the 'perfect' present
One of the reasons buying for somebody who has everything feels so difficult is because we're often searching for the thing.
That one present that's going to surprise them despite the fact they've spent the last 20 years buying themselves everything they fancy.
Instead, I like to think about how you want somebody to feel when they open their gift.
Perhaps they're always looking after everybody else and you'd love them to spend an evening looking after themselves for a change.
Maybe they've had a difficult few months and you want them to know you're thinking about them.
Perhaps they're permanently busy and you know they'd love an excuse to stop for an hour.
Or maybe they're simply somebody who really appreciates a good cup of tea, something delicious to eat and a pair of ridiculously cosy socks.
That's where a collection of smaller things can sometimes say far more than one big present.
Give them things they'll actually use
There's a misconception that a special gift needs to be something somebody can keep forever.
It doesn't.
Some of my favourite gifts are things that eventually disappear.
A beautiful candle that gets lit every evening. Really good chocolate that doesn't make it past Tuesday. A lovely hand cream that lives next to the bed. Tea they wouldn't normally buy themselves. Bath products that persuade them to spend an extra half an hour doing absolutely nothing.
None of these things needs a permanent place in somebody's home, which makes them particularly good for people who already have plenty of stuff.
And every time they use one of them, there's a little reminder of the person who sent it.
That's exactly the sort of gifting I've always wanted Hygge at Home to be about.
Make the present last longer
This is probably why I've loved seeing our 7 Day Countdown Gift Box becoming so popular again recently.
Instead of receiving one present and opening it all at once, there are seven individually wrapped surprises, numbered and opened one day at a time.
Suddenly, the gift isn't just the things inside the box.
It's having something to look forward to tomorrow.
And the next day.
And the day after that.
We've made them for birthdays and celebrations, but I also think they're particularly lovely when somebody is going through a difficult time or simply deserves a week containing a few more nice moments than usual.
You don't always need to give somebody more.
Sometimes you can just make the experience of receiving it last a little longer.
Think about the person, not the occasion
This is probably the biggest thing I've learned from making thousands of gifts.
It's very easy to shop for the label.
Birthday present.
Thank-you present.
New-home present.
But the best clues usually come from the person themselves.
Do they love being outside? Are they always reading? Do they have a sweet tooth? Are they permanently cold? Do they love skincare? Are they somebody who actually takes baths, or would that beautiful bath soak sit untouched in their bathroom for the next three years?
I think about this all the time when I'm putting together our Surprise Me Hygge Boxes.
You choose how much you'd like to spend and tell me a little about the person receiving it. Then I do the choosing.
And, genuinely, these are some of my favourite boxes to make.
I can wander around the workshop at St Helena Cottage picking things out and thinking, “Yes, she'll love that,” or “That would work really nicely with this.”
No two boxes have to be identical because no two people are identical.
It is, essentially, permission for me to go shopping in my own workshop, which is probably why I enjoy it so much. 😂
Or choose every little thing yourself
Of course, sometimes you know exactly what somebody would like; you just can't find a ready-made gift that contains the right combination.
That's why we have Build Your Own Gift Box.
You might choose some of our handmade Eva Carys Botanica skincare, add a candle, some chocolate, a pair of cosy socks and something for their garden.
Someone else might create an entirely different box.
There are no rules saying that because it's somebody's birthday, their gift needs to look like everybody else's birthday gift.
Choose the things that remind you of them.
That's what makes it personal.
Give them something they wouldn't buy themselves
I think this is another little secret to buying for somebody who seemingly has everything.
Don't necessarily buy them something they can't buy themselves.
Buy them something they wouldn't.
Most of us have little luxuries we look at and think, “Oh, that's lovely,” before deciding we don't really need it.
That's precisely why those things can make lovely presents.
A beautiful hand cream when the supermarket one would technically do the job. A candle simply because the scent makes an ordinary Tuesday evening feel nicer. Proper chocolate. Lovely tea. Something handmade. Something beautifully packaged.
They're not necessities.
They're treats.
And sometimes the fact that you wouldn't have bought it for yourself is exactly what makes receiving it feel special.
Thoughtful doesn't have to mean expensive
This one matters.
I don't think the amount somebody spends on a gift tells you very much about how thoughtful it is.
A £100 present chosen because “I didn't know what else to get” isn't automatically more meaningful than a £25 gift full of little references to somebody's favourite things.
Some of the nicest gift messages we see at Hygge at Home aren't attached to enormous orders either.
They're little “Saw this and thought of you” presents.
“You deserve a treat.”
“I know things are rubbish at the moment.”
“Thank you for being there.”
Sometimes the message is actually the most important thing in the box.
It's one of the reasons I've always loved including the handwritten gift note when we pack an order here at St Helena Cottage. Before somebody has even discovered what's underneath the tissue paper, they know why somebody was thinking about them.
So, what do you buy someone who has everything?
Perhaps the answer is to stop trying to find something they don't have.
Give them something to enjoy instead.
Something to eat. Something to use. Something that gives them an excuse to slow down. Something connected to a little thing you know they love. Seven small surprises instead of one big one.
Or simply a box that arrives unexpectedly on an ordinary Wednesday and tells them somebody was thinking about them.
Because ultimately, most of us don't need more things.
But I don't think any of us ever gets tired of feeling thought about.
And that's the bit of gifting that matters. ❤️
Ready to make someone's day?
If you're buying for one of those notoriously difficult people, there are a few ways we can make it easier.
Choose one of our Surprise Me Hygge Boxes and tell me a little about them, create something completely personal with Build Your Own Gift Box, or make their present last all week with our 7 Day Countdown Gift Box.
Whichever you choose, we'll put it together with care and beautifully pack it here at St Helena Cottage, ready to make somebody's ordinary day feel a little less ordinary.
