Christmas presents are normally anticipated by husbands and wives and a dud gift can cast a gloomy atmosphere over the home. While each person has individual tastes, there are certain rules that apply to gift-giving in most marriages. With a little foresight and planning, couples can give presents that are meaningful and appreciated.
Gifts That Wives Don’t Like for Christmas
Women are not as practically-minded as men and often prefer a gift that is romantic rather than useful. Men often find this concept hard to understand and may end up making a big mistake. Other problems include buying the wrong size clothing or inappropriate items. Here are some things for husbands to look out for:
- Check your wife’s size. Do this by checking clothing labels while she is not around. Never buy too big as she will be offended. It is better to buy too small and always ask the store if the garment can be exchanged.
- Don’t buy any items for the home or kitchen unless she has specifically asked for it. Irons, toasters, food processors and vacuum cleaners do not make good Christmas presents.
- Don’t give her a present that you like and can use such as a music CD or a gadget for the computer.
- Don’t give her tacky underwear or lingerie that may be more suitable for use in a brothel.
- Don’t give her the same perfume every single Christmas.
- Do take care when choosing her gifts and don’t buy them all at one store on Christmas Eve.
- Do wrap the gifts with ribbons and bows to make them look special.
Gifts Men Don’t Like for Christmas
Husbands often get the same old stuff for Christmas and by the time they’ve been married for 20 years, it gets boring. Gift buying for men is different to women and they like practical gifts. What they don’t like includes the following:
- A dozen pairs of socks in business grey or sporting white.
- A six pack of underwear with slogans on.
- A garden tool that means doing work their wife wants done in the garden.
- Books and novels if they don’t enjoy reading. Having a book sitting next to the bed is not going to change them.
- Some men enjoy gifts that need some assembly. Others hate them.
- Men may prefer one large useful gift rather than several smaller ones.
Christmas gifts are more important to some spouses than others but most married couples anticipate what their partner will give them. With a little planning and forethought spouses can choose suitable gifts and avoid buying inappropriate ones that will cast a shadow over Christmas celebrations.
Debbie Roome - Debbie Roome is an award-winning freelance writer, journalist and novelist with over 25 years experience.
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