Gifts

11/6/2012

Gifts

I just bought a magazine that features many pages of suggestions of wonderful things to buy this season.  I, of course, was interested in getting new gift ideas and well we all know how attracted I am to glossy paper.  I fast forwarded through the articles and editorials to get to the "good" part.  I quickly discovered that there was very little on the multi-page spread that I could afford.  Here's some examples let's see what you think:  14 bars of soap (obviously not Dial or Ivory) for $238.00.  While the soaps were lovely but they would be literally money down the drain.  Four tubes of lipstick for $192.00 (clearly not a product you're going to find at a drugstore).  A jewelry box for $525.00 and pajamas for $160.00.  These products all look divine and I'm sure they are; but who exactly are they marketing to?  The average woman?  Heck no.  I just bought a new coat and it cost a lot less than $160.00 and my lipstick goes for about $4.00 a tube.  If I paid that much money for lipstick I'd want to stick them in a bank vault! As for the cost of the pajamas - you know that in some stores you could buy many pieces of clothing with that kind of money.  I have never wanted pajamas to be considered one of my major investments!

Even if I could afford to buy such high end products I still don't think I'd bother.  I can't imagine anybody in my immediate circle (and admittedly most of my family are guys) who would be thrilled with designer lipstick or exotic soaps.

While I enjoyed pouring over the pages and pages of glorious and over priced items it reminded me of being a child and looking with longing at the pages from the Sears Christmas catalog.   Remember?  We used to even circle what we were super interested in and sometimes that would be an entire page!

When it comes to shopping I'm a realist.  I have a lot of people to buy for (by choice in a lot of cases) and you have to rein in the budget a bit.  So to all my lady friends or relatives - I'm sorry but you're not getting any of the aforementioned products - at least as described above.

I am an on line shopper and I'm good at it (and I do hate to brag).  I hardly ever go to malls to find my gifts.  I can find better, cheaper and more unique items if I let my fingers do the typing.  One of my favorite sites is Etsy which is mostly handmade and/or vintage items.  You can get some amazing things from that site.  And, of course, my favorite go to place - Ebay.  Admittedly, if you buy on Ebay you BUY the item - you don't RETURN it.  But I have been disappointed with very few of my purchases in the last 10 years.

There is something about being in an overheated, over crowded shopping mall that begins to make me crazy(er).  People bump into you, cut in line, dressing rooms are full, inventory is low and salespeople non-existent.  Who needs all that?  All you need is your imagination, phone or computer and a credit card.  You can even shop in your pajamas any time night or day.  How great is that?

One of the few delights in buying gifts left to me is buying for Benjamin.  He's still at that ooh and aah stage over everything.  He is not yet jaded or expecting that one certain toy which is generally made of unobtainem.  I love that about little children.  They are so easy to please.  I try and buy vintage toys for Benjamin when I can.  Why?  Well, they're made better and most of them don't require batteries.  They run on imagination!

Benjamin and I have a small 2 foot Christmas tree that we keep up all year long.  During the summer it sits more in the corner and we don't turn the lights on.  During the year Benjamin decorates and redecorates the tree with everything from his Mardi Gras beads to his latest art project.  This weekend Jeff moved it back into the living room and in the evenings we turn the lights on.  There is something so wonderful and magical about Christmas lights.  So when Benjamin comes to visit next he'll be thrilled to see his tree back in the living room ready for the season and more (or less) decorations.

Enjoy your day.

P