Gifts for someone who has everything: 40 ideas they can't buy themselves
When they already own everything they want, give them what money can't buy: words, memories and your time.
40 ideas ·
Some people are impossible to buy for. They have the gadgets, they've read the books, and if they want something, they buy it the same day. Ask them what they'd like and they say "nothing," and they mean it.
The way out is to stop shopping for things. What someone who has everything doesn't have is proof, in detail, of what they mean to you, or more time with the people they love. That's what this list is made of: 40 ideas built from words, memories and experiences, with sections for the man, the woman, the mom and the dad who have everything. Most cost very little. All of them take thought, which is the part money can't buy.
If you choose a gift made of words, you'll need the words. The free reasons generator turns a few true things about them into ten reasons you love them, and our deep reasons why I love you has plenty more to borrow.
Gifts made of words
Nobody has too many of these. People who have everything rarely hear, in detail, why they're loved.
- A book of reasons you love them: fifty of them, one per page, written from your memories, with the two of you illustrated on the cover.
- A letter for every decade of their life, each one about who they were then and what you love about who they became.
- A jar of 365 folded notes, one for every day of next year: memories, reasons and small jokes.
- Letters from the people who love them, collected in secret from family and old friends and kept together in one folder.
- A set of open-when letters for the days they'll need one: open when you're stressed, when you miss me, when you've had a win.
- Their life story told back to them: the stories they always tell, written down properly at last.
- A framed copy of something you once wrote each other, like the first message you ever sent or a note they left on the fridge.
Memories they can keep
- A photo album of one year, with a handwritten caption under every picture.
- Old family photos, scanned, restored and printed, with the names and dates written on the back before anyone forgets them.
- A print of the night sky over the place and the date that matter most to them.
- Home movies rescued from old tapes, converted and shared with the whole family.
- A map with a pin in every place they've lived, and a line about each one.
- A recording of their parent or grandparent telling the story they always tell, so the whole family can keep it.
Experiences instead of things
Experiences don't take up shelf space, and the good ones turn into stories.
- A day doing the thing they've talked about for years and never booked.
- A class in something new, taken together: pottery, sourdough, salsa.
- Tickets to see the band they loved at twenty, if they're still touring.
- A trip back to the town they grew up in, where they get to show you everything.
- A weekend with nothing on the calendar, with the chores, the kids and the dog all handled.
- Dinner with their oldest friends, organized behind their back.
For the man who has everything
A man who has everything usually bought it himself. These are the things he wouldn't.
- A book of fifty reasons you love him, which he'll pretend not to reread.
- Something he's had for years, restored: his old leather jacket, his dad's watch, the record player in the garage.
- A day out with his oldest friend, arranged by you and paid for in advance.
- A framed ticket or program from the best game he ever went to.
- Lessons in the thing he always says he'll learn when he retires.
- A handwritten note about the moment you knew he was the one, tucked into his wallet.
For the woman who has everything
- A book of reasons you love her, about the things she does that nobody thanks her for.
- Her mother's or grandmother's recipes, collected from the family and printed as a little cookbook.
- A piece of jewelry engraved with a date, a word or coordinates only she would understand.
- A trip with her sister or best friend, with everything booked and everything at home covered.
- Flowers every month for a year, so the gift keeps arriving long after the day itself.
For a mom who has everything
A mom who has everything usually still wants the same thing: to know it all meant something.
- A book of what you love about her, from the packed lunches to the advice you ignored and later took.
- A day with just you, like when you were small, doing whatever she wants.
- A family photo shoot with everyone in it, including her for once.
- Her handwritten recipes, framed or printed onto a tea towel.
- A letter about the moment you realized how much she'd done for you.
For a dad who has everything
- A book of fifty reasons he's the best dad, terrible jokes included, for the bedside drawer.
- Something he taught you to make or fix, made or fixed by you and given back to him.
- A round of golf, a fishing trip or a ball game with you, the whole day, phones away.
- A photo of his first car, tracked down and framed, with the story he always tells written underneath.
- A trip back to the place he took you when you were young, this time with you driving.
Whatever you choose, add the words. A gift for someone who has everything works when it says something about them that no shop could, and a note saying why you chose it does half of that on its own.
If the words are the gift, a book of reasons is the simplest way to give them: fifty things you love about them, one per page, illustrated to look like your people. Make one for a partner, a mom or a dad, or see our Christmas books if it's for this Christmas. Short on time? Here are last-minute Christmas gifts that don't look last-minute.
Questions people ask
What do you get someone who has everything?+
Something they can't buy for themselves: words, memories or time with you. A book of reasons you love them, a restored family photo or an experience you share all work, because they're about the person rather than the price.
What is a good gift for a man who has everything?+
Something he'd never buy himself, like a book of reasons you love him, a day out with his oldest friend, or something he's had for years, restored. Most men who have everything bought it themselves, so the gift has to be personal to stand out.
What do you buy a mom or dad who says they don't want anything?+
Take them at their word and give something that isn't a thing: a day with you, a family photo with everyone in it, or a letter about what they've done for you. What I Love About You, Mum and Why You're the Best Dad turn that letter into fifty reasons.
What are good Christmas gifts for someone who has everything?+
The same rule holds at Christmas: give the thing they can't buy. A Christmas book of reasons, an experience to look forward to in January or a photo album of the year all work, and they'll still have them long after the wrapping paper's gone.
