buying gifts for women
If you are a guy, buying a gift for a woman, this may be of some help... good luck!
If you are a guy then there are a few differences in buying for women that you need to be aware of.
The first is that this present will be read as information about your feelings and intent to her. yeah, i know you guys dont always do that, but trust me its pretty much habit for women. This is why a gift certificate is actually kind of tricky, because which store you gave her a certificate to is being read as a "message" about how you feel. The fact that you gave her a certificate instead of a gift is being read as a message too...... so you darn well better think about what message its sending before you choose that option!
second point: If you want this to be a "romantic" gift (and valentines day it bloody well better be, you have more leeway on Xmas) then you need to do some homework. romantic gifts are appreciated, but often .. umm. well... guys dont seem to pay much attention, and its the attention that is romantic. Buying a woman who does not have pierced ears, pierced earrings, is guaranteed to be good for 6 months of frostbite.... after all, the woman knows that every other woman in her office knows she doesnt have peirced ears, so she expects her husband of ten years to know it too.
(ladies, i used to run a gift store... they dont.)
Women generally pay attention to dress and style more than men. (yes, i said "generally", there are exceptions) so most women are baffled when you bring them something in a color, size or style they wouldnt wear. YOU are buying "something pretty" THEY are wondering if you are commenting on their choice of clothing? or just clueless?
now, on to some suggestions
If you know the answers to some of these questions, any sales woman can probably help find you a nice gift for her.
If you are a guy then there are a few differences in buying for women that you need to be aware of.
The first is that this present will be read as information about your feelings and intent to her. yeah, i know you guys dont always do that, but trust me its pretty much habit for women. This is why a gift certificate is actually kind of tricky, because which store you gave her a certificate to is being read as a "message" about how you feel. The fact that you gave her a certificate instead of a gift is being read as a message too...... so you darn well better think about what message its sending before you choose that option!
second point: If you want this to be a "romantic" gift (and valentines day it bloody well better be, you have more leeway on Xmas) then you need to do some homework. romantic gifts are appreciated, but often .. umm. well... guys dont seem to pay much attention, and its the attention that is romantic. Buying a woman who does not have pierced ears, pierced earrings, is guaranteed to be good for 6 months of frostbite.... after all, the woman knows that every other woman in her office knows she doesnt have peirced ears, so she expects her husband of ten years to know it too.
(ladies, i used to run a gift store... they dont.)
Women generally pay attention to dress and style more than men. (yes, i said "generally", there are exceptions) so most women are baffled when you bring them something in a color, size or style they wouldnt wear. YOU are buying "something pretty" THEY are wondering if you are commenting on their choice of clothing? or just clueless?
now, on to some suggestions
If you know the answers to some of these questions, any sales woman can probably help find you a nice gift for her.
Pay attention to whether she wears only Gold, or only Silver, or both.
Be able to tell us what colors she wears, both for every day and for “dressy” (Earth tones? Brights? Nothing but black?) I wear blue jeans most days, and favor greens and purples, for example.
Know if she has pierced ears. (That means little holes in the ears that the earrings hold onto. If she doesn’t have those she either doesn’t wear earrings or she wears “clip” earrings)
Does she like delicate little jewelry, or big bold stuff, or both (Look at what she already owns for clues, and what she owns but never, ever wears.)
If you want to buy a ring for her, see if you can get hold of a ring of hers that fits! We can get the size from that. (If you want to try it on one of your fingers, do NOT wedge it on; they do not come off as easily as they go on!)
If she likes sexy and romantic type presents (and many of us do) then try adding candles, incense, bath salts, or a bottle of massage oil to your gift list. You can package this with a pair of earrings if you are not sure.
Before buying anything that has strong scents, know if she has allergies! Do not buy rose oils, rose incense and etc. for a woman who is allergic to roses.
Unless you are 100% percent certain you know her size, do not buy her anything with sizes, like a skirt, a dress, etc. get her a gift certificate instead, you can always point out "i thought you would like this". If she asks "why didnt you just buy it?" you can honestly reply "well, i know you always tell me how different styles fitt differently, so i figured i better let you try it on first". You see, if you buy one too small, she will be upset because she has "gained weight" if you buy one too big she will be upset because "you think i am fat" trust me, it is NOT worth it.
If you are buying a general type of gift certificate, it is often a good idea to add in some small personal item, like earrings, or a carved stone heart, or almost ANYthing, just to prove that this was a deliberate thought out present, and not a copout.
If you are completely stuck, ask her girlfriends, confess that you are trying "really hard" to find a good present, but she already HAS everything you can think of. her friends know what to get her.... unless they are all straight guys...in which case you are sooo toast, cause they dont know either.
Are there catalogs she gets? even if she never buys anything from them? maybe she likes their stuff but thinks they are "too expensive" if its for luxury versions of stuff she already does, BINGO! get a gift from that, or a gift card. (like, if someone got me a gift certificate to almost any of the high end knitting or spinning shops..)
Women really like "pampering" presents. like massages, real massages, with a serious professional. or a manicure (only if she doesnt bite her nails!) or better, a pedicure! at a nice salon. If she is on her feet all day a foot soak massage thingie would be great.
anyway, thats a good start.
you would be shocked at how many men came into my gift store. who said they had been married for ten years or more... who couldnt tell me if she wore gold, or silver... or if she had pierced ears... you MUST know the answer to these two before walking into a jewelry store!