Have you bought all your girlfriend holiday gifts? I haven’t!

Wow! The holidays are here! It’s a busy, BUSY time of year so we thought we’d try to assist you in finding the perfect gift for that perfect friend – the thoughtful, wonderful, maybe even creative way of showing how much her friendship means to you!

We totally believe in gifts for women that reflect her personality, likes/hobbies, activities in their lives, etc. – something possibly personalized and perfect just for her. Often that requires some thought, and maybe some additional shopping or planning time.

But, isn’t it worth it? To give a great girlfriend gift? To share something that makes her happy and that reminds her of how wonderful it is to have you as a friend?! Maybe even to go out of your way to make her holidays special with the gift of time with you or planning something for the future that you  can enjoy together? Here are our ideas for perfect presents for your best girlfriends:

• THE GIFT OF TIME – Without a doubt, my favorite gift for, or from, a friend is to spend time together. No matter what we’re doing – shopping, walking, driving somewhere, going to an art show or sharing a meal or glass of wine, the best gift comes in minutes and smiles, hugs and hanging out time. Why not give her a ‘gift certificate’ (you made) for taking a class together? (Like yoga, scrapbooking, beading, gourmet cooking?) Or make her a gift box with a beach towel and tote with a promise to hang out together at the pool or Bermuda (for our girlfriend cruise!) next summer? Commit to meeting for dinner, coffee or to having a happy hour with friends at least once per month. Plan anything that will allow you time together – it’s the perfect gift!
• MAKE HER LIFE EASIER – As a girlfriend, we should want to do whatever we can to make her life less crazy-busy, stressful or even a little happier – right? Help her out! Run errands for/with her, wrap gifts or clean her house, bring over cookies before she has company or dog/cat sit for her if she’s traveling or has guests. My friend Becky has a ‘gift’ for entertaining so she has offered to help her girlfriends over the holidays get ready for company by making food, cleaning or whatever – isn’t that sweet?! That’s a wonderful gift – because not only is she giving of herself but she’s also making her lucky friends’ lives easier and possibly even doing so while spending time with them. (See our first favorite girlfriend gift!)
• PASSIONATE PRESENTS – What is your girlfriend totally passionate about? Yoga, being a mom, cooking? Does she love to knit, write or travel? Identify what makes her happy, then find the perfect gift to go along with her hobby or creative calling. For example, I’ve taken up yoga and pilates lately so I kinda want some yoga clothes. If she’s a gourmet chef, buy her a subscription to Cook’s Illustrated or some fancy gourmet spices. If she’s a blogger or just loves to write, check out friend C.C. Chapman’s new book, Content Rules (written with Ann Handley). (I just ordered it for me!) There are magazines for about every hobby and interest, and they continue all year as a reminder of your friendship and girlfriend gift. Whatever you find, just make it special and custom to her. She’ll love it – and you!
• GIVE GREAT HAND-MADE GIFTS - If you’re a knitter, you’ve no doubt got a few scarves created for your favorite girlfriends, right? Well, a little insight from this girlfriend … we love handmade gifts from you! Whenever I wear a scarf my friends Dana or Barb made me, I feel like they’re right there by me. Make her a necklace or earrings, create a  or a creative card or sew her a coffee cup sleeve. Combine your creative skills, her favorite things (jewelry, accessories, etc.) and your girlfriend gratitude and you’ll no doubt come up with the perfect, special, one-of-a-kind girlfriend gift for your one-of-a-kind girlfriend(s)!
• GIFT BASKET OF LOVE - And, even if you’re not ‘that’ creative to make a handmade gift, you can easily make a special gift just by some selective shopping (and who doesn’t love that?!). Come up with a theme that she’d enjoy – like ‘beach stuff’ if she’s a Floridian-at-heart, or cooking tools/spices if she a gourmand (la de dah!) (-: , or maybe some girlie-girl gifts like nail polish and make-up, or lotions and sprays (like from our girlfriend Robin at Supernatural Botanicals). Wrap them up individually for a bunch of gifts to open and then place them in a fun container – like a basket or decorative box that she might reuse. Just make it a fun ‘gift basket of love!’
• MAKE IT SPECIAL - Yes, what’s in the gift box is the ‘gift’ but the presentation also counts. Make your gift to your BFF even more fabulous with special packaging. For example, use yarn to tie-up your knitter friend’s gifts or wrap a gift for a fashionista friend in a gorgeous scarf. Create wrapping paper out of printed photos of her and you together or make a special bag tag just for her gift (with an image that makes her smile). Sending a package? Decorate the mailing box with happy faces, hearts or silly words. Make it special just to receive the gift (like her friendship is to you!).

What’s your favorite holiday girlfriend gift to give or receive?

Image by Shutterstock.

Tags: christmas gifts, gift ideas for women, Girlfriend Gifts, holiday girlfriend gifts

This entry was posted on Saturday, December 11th, 2010 at 11:26 am and is filed under Be a Better FRIEND, Girlfriend Gifts, Shopping. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.