Here in the UK we’ve made last-minute shopping for Christmas gifts into a bit of an art haven’t we? And I’m pretty sure 2014’s going to be no different… No one’s judging you here though (mainly because I’ve still got presents to buy too…). We’ve all been there; it’s gotten to Christmas Eve when you realise that, oh no, you haven’t bought a present for one (or all!) of the people you’re going to see tomorrow. Don’t panic, there are still so many things you can get in time for the big day, and I’ve popped all the best last minute Christmas gift ideas below so you can quickly find the best one for you and your budget.
Yep you can breathe a sigh of relief knowing that you won’t have to fight through the crowds and battle for the last must-have gift. Every single one of these last minute Christmas present ideas can be bought online, or sourced from your very own home. If you have more than one day to get your present though, you might want to check out our Ultimate Christmas Gift Guide or our 11 Awesome Secret Santa Generator Gift Ideas.
So let’s take a breath together, calm down, and start the list.
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7 Of The Best Last Minute Christmas Gift Ideas
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1/ Money – The Christmas Gift That Keeps On Giving
Let’s be honest for a sec. If you’ve bought a God-awful Christmas jumper, tie, or socks for anyone this year they’re not going to be used. They’re going to be bunged into a drawer of other tack, thrown away, or given to charity. Know what that person really would’ve appreciated? Some dosh.
Money is not only one of the best last minute Christmas gift ideas, it’s the absolute ultimate gift, in my opinion. People think it’s thoughtless, and I really can’t understand why. I get more excited when I open a card with money in than any other present – because I know exactly what to buy myself. Now the person you’ve gifted it to can treat themself, their family, or even use it to go towards boring adult things like bills. And they’ll appreciate that.
Get out of the habit of thinking money’s thoughless. It’s the most thoughtful gift you can give – it’s giving them the ability to buy what they truly want.
2/ Food Of Any Kind
Are you a master baker? Well get to that kitchen quick, and start making something. Anything at all that you have the ingredients for. You could give them a cake, cookies, muffins, brownies, whatever it doesn’t really matter.
It’ll look like you’ve spent a whole bunch of time thinking about them, and they’ll mistakenly think you’re so organised that you managed to plan baking into your schedule this close to Christmas.
The best thing about this gift is, if you’ve forgotten to buy for quite a few people, if you have the supplies you can make this in bulk and give them all the same thing. Just hope they’re not going to talk to each other any time soon… As far as last minute Christmas present ideas go, this is a good’un.
3/ An Amazon Gift Voucher
Amazon is where most of us buy from nowadays, so an Amazon Gift Voucher will always be well received. Again, this works a lot like money in that they can buy their own thing. They might not appreciate it right away, but come the next time they go to checkout they’ll celebrate when they remember their awesome last minute Christmas gift from you.
You can make it look even more thoughtful by making a card and putting it in an envelope. On the card, write how much you’ve gifted them, give them the code, and list some ideas for what they could get.
Point out that you didn’t buy any of these things NOT BECAUSE YOU WERE TOO LATE TO GET THE LAST DELIVERY SLOT. Oh no, that wasn’t the reason at all. It was entirely because you wanted to give them the power to decide what they wanted, and not just buy them something for the sake of it. Because honestly, you do NOT want to be one of those people who buy tacky Christmas presents… Because you already know what we think about them.
4/ A Bottle Of Alchohol
If this applies to you, then it’s an awesome last minute Christmas gift idea. Most people have at least one full bottle of alcohol in their home (if they drink it), and whether this is wine or a bottle of spirits it’s fine. Just wrap that baby up, slap a tag on it, and pretend that was for them all along.
I don’t think I have to point out that this is only an okay present for fellow alcohol drinking adults. Parents (and people in general) across the country will judge you if you try this out for a kid’s present. Not right. Their parents will never welcome you into their home again.
Because alcohol is a typical Christmas present anyway, your gift will go down a treat. And hey, if you’re not a big alcohol drinker yourself and you just have previous alcohol bottles that you got as presents in the past, just make sure you don’t give them back to the same people and you’ve finally found a use for them!
5/ A Monthly Giftbox
Monthly subscription boxes have sort of exploded this year. I don’t know anyone who doesn’t have one, or want one. And the beauty of them is – you can’t physically give one as a gift, you can only sign the recipient up for one (and print off a little card telling them what you’ve signed them up for and how many boxes they’ll be getting.)
And don’t bother panicking if you don’t have their address. Tell them you’ve ordered the box to your own address so you can give it to them in person each month. The majority of these subscription services let you choose whether you order one box, three, six, or even a whole year’s worth of boxes. If the one you’re looking at doesn’t, and it’s just a one month rolling subscription, you can always tell them they’re going to the get 3 or 4 boxes and cancel your subscription after that.
To get you started, here are some of the popular ones that deliver to the UK:
- Subscription box for beer lovers: Beer52 – these received a glowing review from Kelly over on Adventures In Tea And Cake. They send you 8 small craft beers a month from all around the world.
- Subscription box for beauty lovers: GlossyBox or Birchbox
- Subscription box for geeks: Lootcrate or MyGeekBox
- Subscription box for foodies: FlavourFullStop
- Subscription box for no particular type: Not Another Bill (if you choose the gift option, you can cater it to the person you’re sending it to)
- Subscription box for coffee lovers: Pact Coffee (and your first order from them is half price at only just over £3! The perfect budget Christmas present).
What’s the absolute best thing about a Subscription Box Christmas gift? It looks like so much thought’s gone into it! You’ve picked the one that you think would suit them the best, you’ve filled in a little form about their preferences, and you’ve given them something new to try. They’ll never believe you ordered it on Christmas Eve…
6/ A Regift (I know you’ve got one of these knocking around)
You never get exactly what you want at Christmas, do you? Some of the things you’re given are shockingly bad, and that’s not even considering how much was probably spent on them! If you’re smart, you’ve hoarded them away in the back of a cupboard somewhere, waiting for a day like today.
For future reference – always leave a little note next to each gift you hate with who bought it for you. I’m going to go ahead and assume you haven’t done that for this year though, so take a moment to really think hard back to last year. You really don’t want to give this present back to the person who gave it to you.
I’ve heard mention that this practice is rude; but I find it no ruder than returning the item to the shop, or giving it away to charity. If you’re never going to use it, it’s better to hand it on to someone who will. And as far as last minute Christmas gift ideas go, this is one of the easiest to prepare.
7/ A Magazine Subscription
A magazine subscription is just like a gift box – a welcome little surprise you can give to someone for months after Christmas Day itself. So again, your gift recipient will think you’ve put in way more thought for this than you actually have, and they’ll continue appreciating it well past January.
If you don’t know what kind of magazines they read, hopefully you have a general idea for the types of things they’re into. Girly girl? You could go for Cosmopolitan or Company. Into celebrity culture? Maybe Heat or OK. If they’re a gamer, there’s always the Xbox magazine or PC Gamer. And if they’re into cars, you can’t go too far wrong with WhatCar?.
Hopefully this list of last minute Christmas present ideas has got you started, but if you need any for a specific person let me know in the comments below or over on Facebook or Twitter and I’ll help you out ASAP!
SEE MORE: 7 Mistakes You Make When You Buy Cool Gifts For Guys >>
Pictures: 59937401@N07
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