Gift Giving Tip # 1

Our first gift giving tip addresses a common mistake many gift givers make. When shopping for a gift, they look for products they themselves like as opposed to gifts the recipient will enjoy.

The best gifts are well thought out and have something personally appealing to the person receiving the gift.

Things to avoid are art related in nature such as sculpture or large paintings unless you know for certain they enjoy the artist or genre. Art is very subjective and a tricky call to make for others in relation to gifts. For instance if they have a painting by a certain artist on their wall then it's a safe bet they will like other works by the same artist.

By all means do not give a photo frame with a picture of yourself in it. That gives the impression that the present really isn't about them, but more about yourself. And that's not the purpose of gift giving.

Or if your favorite color is red and theirs is blue, then you go with blue if given an option. Sometimes it's harder than you might think to remember these things in the middle of a busy department store.

Things to look for are items related to their hobby or interests. When visiting the person whom you are shopping for make note of what they have around them. Those cute kitty oven mitts might mean they are a cat lover. The color people use to decorate their kitchens tends to be their favorite color. These are just a few things to help you plan your next gift giving experience.

The last hint is to plan ahead, don't wait till the last minute to grab what you can. What really matters most when giving a gift is how much time and thought went into it.