Ouch, anniversary gift shopping time again… probably one of the toughest ones to do right. Especially if you’ve known the person celebrating the anniversary for a while and you’ve depleted every possible “perfect present” in his or her past years’ anniversaries. It’s inevitable that you start lacking anniversary gift ideas after a while: you’ve bought him the cool T-shirt he wanted 4 years ago, the MP3 player he was constantly talking about 3 years ago, the original Shakira CD 2 years ago and barely pulled a great gift last year, buying him that book he couldn’t find anywhere… but what now, how are you going to pull through this year? Let’s shed some light on this whole anniversary gift ideas problem, shall we?
Well, the example above was for a birthday anniversary gift idea, but it could very well fit in a wedding anniversary, a “day-we’ve-met” anniversary and so forth. The bottom line is that with any kind of anniversary, you’re most likely in a very close relationship with the person celebrating it, so you need to be original and thoughtful of your gift so that you don’t offend him, potentially damaging your relationship. Let’s discuss each of these situations, one by one…
Birthday/Name Anniversary Gift Ideas
A birthday or name anniversary has less tight “gift rules” than a wedding one for example, hence you’ll have a larger selection pool for your anniversary gift idea . Still, you’ll want the one celebrating it to feel the love, so getting him something funny or symbolic or simply something that will last the test of time is more important than getting something of value that doesn’t touch these emotional borders. Actually, the receiver is bound to appreciate something with a sentimental value or with a hint of fun to it, than a valuable piece of crap he won’t ever make use of.
Another great strategy when dealing with an upcoming birthday anniversary is to try and “test the ground” in a very subtle way, spending some time with the person celebrating it and trying to find out what he’d like. Don’t be too straightforward, asking for what he wants as a gift though, as you’ll be likely getting a negative response. If they spot you’re trying to pull an anniversary gift idea from them, back off or you’ll be in trouble. Would you tell your friend that you want a specific gift before your anniversary, or would you prefer to be surprised? I guess it depends on each person’s character, but most people will prefer the surprise.
Wedding/Day-we’ve-met Anniversary Gift Ideas
Well with a wedding or a DWM anniversary, you can’t be as relaxed in what you choose as with the birthday anniversary of one of your friends or relatives, simply because there are some stronger emotions involved in such a relationship. It’s a bit easier for men to choose a wedding anniversary gift idea, since they can always take the traditional basket’o’roses or favorite artist CD, or even choose more original “tactics” such as arranging for a 1-day trip to a day spa or something similar. Women however, have a harder time. Most women tend to get something “useful” as a wedding anniversary and it’s very likely that your man will appreciate it, but something with a more subtle, romantic touch could also do the trick. A personalized, engraved piece of jewelry or having a photo of you two, on your wedding, printed on a canvas are also good wedding anniversary ideas.
