Girlfriends have dished out the presents they don’t want their men to buy them this Christmas — ranging from jewellery and perfume to the “controversial” holiday and pets.
Alex Hourigan and Sally McMullen compiled a list of unwanted items all boyfriends and husbands should avoid.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: The gifts no women want for Christmas.
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The Sydney podcast hosts of Two Broke Chicks said the presents are “only acceptable if they’re accompanied by a gift receipt” — so the receiver has the option to get an exchange or refund.
But if you want to avoid giving your other half a disappointing gift, here’s everything you need to know.
“Things to not buy your girlfriend for Christmas. F***ing love heart necklace, don’t do it,” Alex said.
Teddy bears or any “creepy” stuffed toys made the list, followed by jewellery.
“Gold or silver jewellery… They’re for two different girlies. If you don’t know, don’t buy it,” Sally said.
The pair said perfume was a “risky” gift – but if you know what signature scent your woman loves, “it can be a vibe”.
The friends stressed, “If you don’t know their size, don’t buy it”.
“We’re talking rings, shoes, clothing and lingerie. Just don’t do it because the whole ordeal of having to return and find the actual size in stock somewhere is just a headache,” Alex said.
“I would just avoid it unless you are 100 per cent sure you know their size or go into their wardrobe and look at their shoe size — but even then I found it’s so inconsistent between brands.
“Sometimes I’m a size five, and sometimes I’m a size seven. 99 per cent sure you don’t know her size either.”
Holidays, concerts or experiences
Alex said one of the “controversial” lessons she’s learned about gifting is never buying flights, concert tickets or experiences more than a year in advance.
“If you’ve been dating for less than three months, do not buy anything that is more than a year away,” she said.
“We’re talking flights, experiences or concerts because by three months, it’s still very new, it’s fresh, you’re still kind of learning more about each other.
“There’s nothing worse than booking a holiday… you’re maybe a year in and you’re kind of on the rocks… Then you don’t really want to go on holiday with this person anymore but you kind of want to break up but ‘we’ve got Bali in three months’ — the worst.”
Sally said she actually knew of someone who surprised their partner with an overseas trip — only to later split up.
“They ended up having to go on holiday together after they broke up and then the guy slept with someone else on the holiday. The ex-girlfriend caught them,” she said.
“So this could be avoided if you didn’t buy them a holiday.”
Pets
Alex said pets should never be a Christmas gift — unless you’re in a happy, long-lasting relationship.
“I know couples who were in a bit of a rocky patch in their relationship and then one of them bought a dog for Christmas,” she shared.
“Don’t buy pets in general. I know this hurts, it hurts me too because I’ve had the fantasy of getting a puppy for Christmas since I was three years old.
“But the amount of animals that go into shelters after Christmas is completely devastating.
“They’re not just an ornament to put on your tree, they are an 18-year commitment so just avoid it because it’s also something that you should really do together and really talk about what the longevity of that is.”
Gift vouchers
Alex described gift vouchers or cash as “lazy” presents — unless the person has asked for it.
“Should you gift people vouchers or cash? Here’s the thing, absolutely not because if you know someone well, they should be able to know what to get you,” she explained.
“But if they ask for a voucher or cash because they want to ‘get an Apple Watch so I can put the voucher towards that’, I think that’s fine. But I think a voucher or cash just because you couldn’t be bothered to go and get something is a bit lame.”
The pair said you should never buy gifts if it’s “just for you”.
‘We’ve all done this’
“We’ve all done this,” Sally admitted.
“Something that comes to mind for me was when, especially when you’re buying something for your romantic partner and you want them to wear something in particular… I’ll buy that for him and he’s like, ‘I’ll never wear that.’
“For a concert, you’re like ‘Babe Merry Christmas, I got you tickets to Taylor Swift.’ And your boyfriend is like, ‘Really?’”
Gifts for him
Alex said one of her favourite gifts she purchased for her tech-savvy boyfriend was a charging station for all his gadgets.
“My partner loves tech items and is always complaining because none of his things are ever charged,” she explained.
“He’s always like, ‘My phone is about to die, can I borrow your charger? Did you bring your portable charger?’
“You can get a charging tray and it’s like a flat tray that you just put your stuff on top of it – and leave on your bedside table. It’ll just charge all your stuff without having to plug anything in.”
Sally recommended buying LEGO sets for the man in your life, no matter what their age is.
“Every boyfriend is just a little kid inside,” she said.
“They never truly grow up and that’s what we love about them. And the best thing about LEGO is they do so many different collabs with films, games and whatnot no matter what your boyfriend’s interest is.
“I bet you’ll be able to find a LEGO set that is like niche to his favourite movie or car.”
Finally, Alex suggested skincare as a great gift for men.
“You might not think that your boyfriend would want skincare but if you’re sick of him using your expensive skincare in the shower, this is definitely something to get them but it’s also because they don’t know what to use,” she explained.
“Whenever I was talking to my boyfriend, I was like, ‘Do you want skincare?’ And he’s like, ‘Yeah but I just don’t know what to buy’.”
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