Why I won’t be doing a Holiday Gift Guide this year

Well, sorry to disappoint, but the title is true – there will be no Creativity and Couture Holiday 2017 gift guide (not that there was one in either of the three other Christmases this blog has been running…). Before you overcome your shock and dismay and start scrambling to start your Christmas shopping following the wake of this news, let me share why exactly I won’t be doing one. To put it succinctly, I’m not personally a huge fan of gift guides. I’ll list the reasons below shortly, but let me also say this: I’m also not vehemently opposed to them. I think they can be really helpful for some shoppers and I’ve even enjoyed perusing a few of them with fun themes, like this one for gift exchanges, or this one for moms and dads, or this one with beauty products. But back to the reasons why I don’t typically love them:

 

1. They are impractical. This is really the main reason. I look at these gift guides put out by other fashion bloggers and they feature really expensive items, or at least, overpriced. There is a letter board on the gift guide for gift exchanges, and for a moment I thought it was the same one that I currently own, but it’s not – it’s $30 more expensive. For the same identical item from a different retailer. Case in point. Another way they are impractical is that the average person is never going to spend $120 on a new sherpa coat for a family member – or friend, or anyone for that matter. Most of the items on these gift guides are quite expensive, and while I’m sure there are a privileged few who do spend that type of money on Christmas gifts, my guess is the majority of readers don’t.

2. They promote materialism. If you read my blog post last Tuesday or are familiar with my view on shopping in general, then you know that I typically go with the less is more mantra. Now, this doesn’t mean that I don’t buy gifts for others at Christmas (I most certainly do and I love doing it!), it does mean that I don’t go bananas and give people more things to show them how much I love them or try to impress them with my so-called “generosity.” Instead of spending $85 on a pair of Ugg sweatpants for my husband, I’ll spend less money on something else that he will actually like and enjoy, even if it might not be as trend-forward.

3. They promote anxiety. At least, they have in my case. I’m finished with Christmas shopping, which is an awesome feeling, but if I spend too much time looking at gift guides, I might second guess some of what I bought. And there’s really no good reason for this, to let some overpriced gift guide challenge my heart-centered giving.

4. They leave out something important. That’s right, gift guides never include what is, in my opinion, one of the greatest gifts you can give someone: a gift card. You might call this impersonal but I call it extra-personal. I love giving and receiving gift cards. You’re giving someone a gift and also an experience by allowing them to spend a set amount however they please (preferably at one of their favorite stores). So instead of letting gift guides sway you from your own thoughtful gift ideas, go Christmas shopping and enjoy it, knowing that you know the recipient better than any fashion blogger ever could.