Personalized Gifts
Give someone a personalized gift and you take away the guessing. There is no wondering if they’ll like it. No concern about sizing. No fear that they already have one. You picked something, added their name or a date or a line of text that no one else would understand, and now it is theirs in a way that nothing else can be. It’s simple and it’s beautiful.
The problem is that personalization has also become an industry built on shitty objects given a hint of uniqueness by the addition of someone’s name. Someone’s name engraved on a cheap keyring does not make it a worthwhile keyring. Your wedding date stamped on a poorly made print does not make the print something you’d want to hang on your wall. We have brainstormed a lot and our stance on personalization is this: The personal touch should enhance an object that was already gift-worthy. Not bear the burden of making something mundane special.
So that is our logic for each pick here. We looked at the item first and decided if we would give it to someone with no plans to personalize it. If we wouldn’t give it as is, we didn’t consider it any further. That leaves you with products that we think are good enough to give as-is, with personalization serving to make it just that little bit better.
Some of these are perfect for that moment when someone’s life changes in a major way. Welcome a new baby. Celebrate a milestone birthday. Get married. Buy your first home. Others are less about the occasion and more about the individual. Gifts that say not only did I think of you, but I know you well enough to have picked this. Both are important. Neither is more considerate than the other.
We have paid attention to lead times as well. A personalized gift that doesn’t arrive on time is easily one of the worst results when it comes to gift giving. Either we’ve tested these entries and can vouch for them ourselves or we’ve researched them enough to feel comfortable recommending them. If we know time is an issue we will let you know.
A great personalized gift shouldn’t feel like a gimmick. It should feel like evidence that someone was paying attention.
