With the holiday season approaching, the pressure kicks in to find the perfect gift (within budget) that will be appreciated by each person you give to. I am sure everyone has that person that is difficult to buy for. It seems to rotate for me between my dad, my grandparents and my husband. Whenever I ask what they’d like for Christmas, I’m usually met with the “I don’t need anything” or “you don’t need to buy my a gift” response, leaving me wracking my brain and pinterest for ideas. I usually lean towards buying the sentimental/thoughtful gifts, but in recent years, I’ve found the joy in receiving completely practical gifts that enhance my adult life.
Today I’m sharing my gift guide for practical gifts. These are not warm and fuzzy-feeling gifts. And actually, some of these gifts are things you hope your loved ones never need to use, but as the paranoid person that I am, want them to have nonetheless.
Let’s jump in:
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These gifts, I fondly refer to “Gifts I hope you never have to use”…
I know it’s 2019 and most homes have these by now, but next time you’re in a loved ones’ home, take note of whether they have a carbon monoxide detector on each floor. These bad boys save lives. I never realized the importance until my family had an exhaust leak from our furnace on Christmas Eve 2002. My mom and I were at Christmas Eve Church Service, while my step-dad and brother stayed home that year. Afterwards we arrived home to see the flashing lights of firetrucks and the news that had we not had our Carbon Monoxide Detector, we would not have made it to Christmas morning. The levels were so dangerously high. That has stuck with me all these years and I am paranoid of making sure I have working detectors always. These are items that do expire and need to be changed out periodically, so it never hurts to give a backup to have on hand.
2.) Car hammer/seatbelt cutter:
This little gadget deeply falls into the category of “gifts I hope you never have to use”. Not trying to be morbid on my Christmas gift guide, but there is a tragedy that I’ve never been able to shake off 10+ years later where a car with 3 students and their dog became trapped after accidently driving into a pond. Unable to get out of the car or break the windows led to a terribly sad loss of life. I’m a paranoid person. I hate driving over bridges or near water and am insanely defensive while driving. This is something I like to keep hidden in my console and hopefully never need again. This device allows you to cut off your seatbelt (in the event you are stuck) and allows you do break your windows. It’s a hammer and a seatbelt cutting device in one. It’s small and inexpensive, and makes for a great stocking stuffer. You can get a 10 pack for $35 on amazon— pass these out to all your loved ones.
OK, let’s take this a step further and if you want more than a stocking stuffer, you can purchase a full car emergency kit.
This kit includes so many helpful items in the event that you breakdown or need roadside assistance. You get the safety hammer and seat belt cutter that I talked about before, but also receive a reflective warning triangle and reflective vest, a tow rope, gloves with strong gripping palms, a LED flash light, a rain coat, a tire pressure gauge, screw driver, jumper cables, adhesive tape, an emergency blanket and a full first aid kit. This particular kit is under $40 and a great practical gift.
This may be random, but everyone should have a fire extinguisher…especially if you’re a hazard in the kitchen.
5.) Window Ladder
OK, I promise this is the last paranoid-person gift on my guide! This window ladder folds up and can be stuffed away in your bedroom closet. If you have a 2 story or more home/apartment, this is something that can be used in case of an urgent need for evacuation.
Moving on to less stressful gifts that your receivers can use on a regular basis 🙂
6.) Water Flosser
Ok, so dental hygiene gifts may night be right for every person on your gift list, but if appropriate, this is an awesome gift for the person in your life that does not enjoy flossing. My mom gave me one of these bad boys two years ago for Christmas, and I love it! I do not do a good job a flossing–just keeping it real. I still have my wisdom teeth and I have a permanent retainer on my bottom teeth so it can be difficult to adequately floss. This water flosser goes above and beyond to make my mouth feel clean—there are multiple speeds/pressure that you can choose from so no worries if you have a sensitive mouth. This is a game changer. If you now the perfect candidate for this gift, you can also consider throwing in an electric toothbrush (if they don’t already have one)! Yay clean mouth haha
7.) Travel Steamer
Whether you hate ironing or travel often, this travel steamer helps you feel a tad more put together and wrinkle-less. This is gender neutral–my husband actually steams his shirts more than I bother to.
8.) Hand-held vaccum
A hand-held vaccum has been a game changer for the lazy cleaner like myself. It’s cordless, lightweight and makes for easy access to clean a little spot here and there. This actually encourages me to clean more than lugging out my large vaccumm or broom.
9.) Step Stool
The first Christmas after we became home owners in May 2017, my mom bought us a step stool, which I didn’t realize how often I’d actually need this thing. It’s a little more sturdy than just using a dining room chair to reach things 🙂 . I keep this in my garage and pull it out as needed…it’s definitely something I wouldn’t have bought for myself (hello, dining room chair) but I do find it useful!
10.) Luggage
New luggage is a great gift if you have a family member who hasn’t updated their suitcases in a while. A few years ago I bought my mom and step-dad a 3 piece suitcase set from Amazon and they are used all the time. I even borrow there luggage when I travel because it’s so good. This is the exact set I bought them, and I’d consider us average travelers. We don’t travel weekly, but definitely a road trip every month and at least 2 flights a year—these suitcases have been easy to maneuver and held up really well.
11.) Portable Phone charging case
If you have a friend or family member that forgets to charge their phone on the regular, or never closes out of their apps and sucks out some much of their battery life, a rechargeable phone case is a great gift! My parents have these and because they do not have the ability to charge their phones in the car (don’t ask lol), this case has really helped with keeping their phone alive to serve as a GPS. It makes your phone a bit heavier and thicker, but is awesome to keep battery life running longer in between full charges.
12.) Smart outlets
I have an Alexa and I just found out about these smart outlets to have Alexa help with turning things on and off. I think this is awesome for Christmas lights where it can be a pain to plug in the tree lights (first world problems), and I think I’d also use this for our lamps. What would you use Smart Outlets on?
Well, there you have it–12 practical gifts to consider for your holiday shopping! What’s your favorite practical gift you’ve ever given or received???
Thanks for reading!
Xo
Laura
