The Official 2007 Christmas-Shopping-For-Your-SO Thread

[Clive]

Alright, bitches, let's hear how you go about shopping for the Significant Other.

1. Do you think of gift ideas all by yourself?  Do you solicit hints?  Does your SO give you a list of hints?  A list of specific items, including prices, photos, and commercial locations?  Do you buy things as you see them all year, just in the latter half of the year, or all in a crunch in December?

2. And on the flip-side, how are you bought for?

3. And finally, do y'all impose a budget or spending limit?  If so, do you both actually follow it?

Inquiring minds ...


Here at Clively Manor:

1. We've fallen into exchanging suggestion lists.  She stays pretty close to what's on mine, whereas perhaps only a third of what I get her appeared on her list.  I may grab stuff for her that I see and think she'd like, this phenomenon usually occurring within the last three months of the year.  The rest (bulk?) of the shopping occurs between Thanksgiving and, say, December 23.

2. I generate a list most years, but she uses it more to pass on to her relatives than as a guide for herself.  She's pretty good at picking nice things for me without help, though.

3. We agree on a spending limit.  She adheres to it, whereas I wave to it as I rocket past.

[spacey]

Typically I come home with some big ticket item and say "look what you're giving me for Christmas." I've requested she do the same, but she refuses to comply. So generally I spend months carefully handpicking items I wrongly think she'll like and/or use. She acts excited as she ponders where I might have kept the receipts. There is no official spending limit, but a "soft" limit is usually understood. I nearly always spend quite a bit more on her than myself. Not always.

[Fuzzy]

Alright, bitches, let's hear how you go about shopping for the Significant Other.

1. Do you think of gift ideas all by yourself?  Do you solicit hints?  Does your SO give you a list of hints?  A list of specific items, including prices, photos, and commercial locations?  Do you buy things as you see them all year, just in the latter half of the year, or all in a crunch in December?

2. And on the flip-side, how are you bought for?

3. And finally, do y'all impose a budget or spending limit?  If so, do you both actually follow it?

Inquiring minds ...

1. Usually by myself due to observations through the year of things she says or looks at. iPod was a huge hit last year for her. Totally unexpected but the most used item I've ever given her. Rarely will I buy her gift before Thanksgiving.

2. I give strong suggestions when it comes to brands/models/colors etc. when asked specific questions. It seems I usually know what I'm getting but I always get a little surprise gift that shows some thought. I don't hand out lists per se, but I will point out a lot of things this time of year.

3. We're pretty conservative but we don't set a limit. The aforementioned iPod was the most I can remember spending. That being said we did buy a desk armoire and chair one Christmas. But that was the two of us shopping together.

[Jules]

I've have been wondering what to buy for the family as well.

Russell, I have no idea, he has everything.  I think I will go to a few golf shops and see if I can possibly fine something golf related that he dosen't have.

Georgia, well she has told me she would like a new computer game, Hanna Montana and HSM2 CD's etc.  I can get away with anything girly for her.
My big problem is that it is her birthday on the 12th of January so I have to look for another "big" present for her as well.
I know I should wait for after Christmas for the sales, but the truth is I couldn't be bothered driving down to Cairns to do the shopping.

[Uisce Beatha]

1.  Ask for suggestions.  Use half, throw half out and come up with a surprise or two.  I'm good at surprises.

2.  Provide my Amazon wishlist link plus a few other assorted items.  I don't need stuff and keeping it down for me is the best way to keep $$$ side of things under control.

3.  Limit.  Always ignored.

[Walfredo]

1) I use a mixture of my own ideas and her subtle or not so subtle hints.  I have a pretty good idea of the things she likes and what I can actually choose for her on my own.  I also try and pay attention to her looking at InStyle for other ideas.  There are a few stores that sell cool sleepwear and stuff that I usually check out.  Basically, I try and get special things she wouldn't buy for herself.  And I only buy in December as her birthday is in January so I kill two birds with one trip.

2)  I give her suggestions but they are mainly relayed to her parents and my parents for them to buy me.  She doesn't need any help picking out stuff for me.  She has already vowed to never buy me golf stuff again because she for some reason gets her feelings hurt when I ho it.

3)  We set a limit that I know she has no intention of following so I don't either.  This year we didn't even bother to set a limit.  

This year is a little different because I'm getting her a big ticket item that she wants and needs.  Her wedding ring is a marquis diamond set on a band with diamonds.  It is kind of bulky and impossible for her to cut hair in so she doesn't wear it while at school.  To my surprise there are some straight guys at hair school and one dude in particular has been hitting on her despite her telling him she is married.  I guess this guy doesn't believe it since she doesn't wear a ring.  Her wedding ring is like cock repellent and tells the other dudes don't bother.  But now I can't stand her not having it on while working.  So I'm getting her a band with diamonds in it that is less obtrusive but should still repell the cock quite nicely.  So I'm set with Christmas shopping.

[Blader]

My approach is pretty straightforward.  I'm going to keep on doing David Yurman until he stops working.  Besides, I figure there is the remote possibility that in another $10-50K or so, Mrs Blader might end up looking exactly like this:

It is a risk I'm willing to take

For me, I don't drop hints because I don't really think about shopping until way too late.  Besides, it wouldn't matter what 'hints' I drop her, she'll get me whatever the hell she feels I need irrespective of what I might need, which is actually very little.

[Walfredo]

My approach is pretty straightforward.  I'm going to keep on doing David Yurman until he stops working.  Besides, I figure there is the remote possibility that in another $10-50K or so, Mrs Blader might end up looking exactly like this:

It is a risk I'm willing to take

For me, I don't drop hints because I don't really think about shopping until way too late.  Besides, it wouldn't matter what 'hints' I drop her, she'll get me whatever the hell she feels I need irrespective of what I might need, which is actually very little.

Wise man.  Can't go wrong with David Yurman, John Hardy, etc.  I'm sure you already know this but throw in a Marc Jacobs handbag and she'll turn into a nympho at least until the spring collection hits the market the following month. 

[stroh]

I use a gay concierge.

[Jules]

Russell needs to use a gay concierge.

You know what the buggar brought me last year.
A freaken fluro light and fitting.
I had mentioned that I wanted a light put above the mirror in our bathroom, and he thought that it was a good idea for a christmas present.

[spacey]

Russell needs to use a gay concierge.

You know what the buggar brought me last year.
A freaken fluro light and fitting.
I had mentioned that I wanted a light put above the mirror in our bathroom, and he thought that it was a good idea for a christmas present.

Dumb bastage. There really ought to be a seminar or something.

[Clive]

You know what the buggar brought me last year.
A freaken fluro light and fitting.
I had mentioned that I wanted a light put above the mirror in our bathroom, and he thought that it was a good idea for a christmas present.

Stroh's gay concierge would have suggested the same gift.  But he would have made it a black light, and had Russell write suggestive things all over the walls with fluorescent paints/markers.

[Blader]

or use it to detect post-coital santori(um), you know, a cleanup tool