Help! My brother-in-law is dating a woman and since we live out of town, we just got to meet her recently. We don’t know her at all, really, and with Christmas coming, we need to try to figure out a gift for her. I would like to buy her something nice but not spend a ton of money because (not to sound cheap or mean) I’m not sure how serious this relationship is.
Any suggestions for a nice meaningful gift that isn’t too expensive? Also, she’s 28. What do 28 year olds like these days? :shrug:
You could make her a little ipod cozy.
Lotion or candles, or if you want something a bit nicer, a gift basket from a lotion or candle store. Lotion can be iffy if she’s allergic to scents (I always get all my mom’s lotion. :happydance: )
Or a pretty scarf that’s mainstream–from a common store, so that she can return it on the sly if she doesn’t like it. (Same with the lotions and candles.) And gift receipts are always good for people you don’t know that well. I wouldn’t knit a scarf because if she doesn’t like it, she’s stuck with it, and you spent all that time on something she doesn’t like.
Good luck!
I’m 23 and would vote for candles or lotions or , oo you could get her a gift card to a local spa? Most places will give you a gift receipt, esp if you ask for it.
Maybe a nice house plant or a picture frame she could put his pic in for work or whatever.
I vote for a gift card. I love gift cards. 
Me, too, but then you have the whole, “Where does she like to shop?” thing, unless you go for something really useful (but then less “nice.”)
true. I was just thinking the same thing. maybe cookworm can ask her brother-in-law where she likes to shop? :shrug:
I think you ought to buy her a few books. “Planning the perfect wedding in 10 days or less” and “Raising perfect children”. Then you’d find out how serious the relationship is…
:teehee:
I would go with a Visa gift card. She can spend that pretty much anywhere and buy what she wants. I was going to agree with the others and say candles also, but if she is like my dd, who has allergies, scents of any kind start her sneezing. You can get the gift cards usually at your center court of your mall or almost all banks handle them. Check with your own bank, you may be able to get one for free. My bank charges $2 for up to $500 I think it is. She will love being able to pick out exactly what she wants, or add it to what she is saving for. It is the only thing my dh ever wants for Christmas.
The gift card idea seems to be very popular. She said she didn’t want to spend much, though, which makes me wonder whether it would be worthwhile if the amount is small. I’m still going to lobby for the ipod cozy idea (doesn’t necessarily have to be used that way) because it’d cost next to nothing if she used stash or leftover yarn – and the time it would take her to knit it would probably be less than driving to the store to buy something. Plus, it’s personal and hand-made. JMO.
Will you be seeing this woman in person at Christmas? Not to sound like the Grinch, but is a gift really necessary? I would talk to your BIL and get his opinion. Sometimes I need a reality check as to who I “need” to give gifts to.
candice
Oh, I thought of another one. A small box of truffles (the candy; not the fungi), is almost always well-received. There are very few people who don’t like chocolate. You can check with BIL to make sure she’s not one of those poor, unfortunate souls who’s allergic.
Chocolate is always good.
Can you ask your brother a few questions about her likes and dislikes? That’s what I would do.
And if you don’t give it to her, you have chocolate for yourself. 
Candi–you ask a very legitimate question which isn’t “grinchy” :teehee: . I do believe we will probably see her at Christmas, so I wanted to be prepared with something thoughtful yet relatively inexpensive, and not too personal because I didn’t want her to get offended or scared off if we were too personal. I didn’t want to knit anything really major because she may not like it (I don’t know what her favorite color(s) is/are, or what her taste is) and I didn’t want to go through the time and trouble of knitting something if she wouldn’t like or appreciate it. Some people just don’t like handmade gifts (I’m not one of them–I LOVE handmade gifts!!!) and don’t appreciate the time and work it takes to make something handmade.
These are all really great ideas, and I appreciate all of your responses.
At this point, based on the responses, some bath/body products with some candles, maybe topped off with a small box of chocolates might be a nice gift I think. We have a nice chocolate factory here nearby where I live that has awesome chocolates; maybe that would make it a little bit more fancy-schmancy? Plus, I can pick up something for me too while I’m there! ha ha ha :twisted: :drool: She’s a single mom so I think it might be nice to get something a little bit pampering for her. Thanks everybody! 
Carmen, that’s very bad! :teehee: They haven’t been dating very long at all, only a couple of months, but things seem kind of serious. I just didn’t want to get anything too major because I didn’t want to assume that they were more involved than they really are, and then I’d either wind up embarrasing her or embarrasing myself by my assumptions.
not to add on more for you to buy, but you said she is a single mom, will her child/children be coming also? if so, have you gotten them something? you wouldn’t want them to feel left out, especially at christmas. I have a stepsister who is always dating someone new so we always keep a few gifts around in case the person has kids and they show up so they asre included also. just a thought.
Lisa, I’m sure her daughter will be coming too, but she’s be easy to buy for because she’s pretty little…I kind of had some ideas already in mind for her but was unsure of what to buy for her mom.
Another versatile gift is a nice teacup with an assortment of teas, coffees, or hot chocolate mixes.
Hmm… not to be a downer on everyone else’s ideas, but I have enough smelly lotion to last a lifetime.
Do you know if she drinks coffee? You could always get her an electric grinder and some yummy coffee beans.
Warning: if she’s a serious coffee drinker, a grinder might not be a good idea – true coffee geeks use mills. If she happens to be an espresso afficianado, an “acceptable” electric coffee mill will start at close to $300, though a decent manual one can be gotten for under $70. I’d stay away from coffee for that reason. It’s something that some people take very seriously. Anyway, if she’s a coffee geek, she’ll already have the gear, and will have her favorite beans, if she doesn’t roast them herself.
I was thinking the same thing about the lotion, but didn’t know whether I was typical or not.