Shopping for a gift for Dad
Father's Day Top Gifts from eBay and Wishlist
 Jet Boat Sydney - Corporate Charter $1,730.00 Available at Wishlist |  Boat Hire With Half Cabin - 1 Hour $75.00 Available at Wishlist |
 GQ Magazine Subscription $69.00 Available at Wishlist |
Over the years I've had some hits and some misses with the gifts I've chosen for dear old dad.
I know in the early years he just "loved" the six beer glasses from K-Mart my brothers and I seemed to always give him, along with a consistently burnt-toast breakfast in bed.
It was easier then, with little money and little access to shops to buy a gift for Dad than now, with so many shops, online and at the local shopping centre, and the brands and options are enormous. Add to that the need for the gift to say thank you for so many years of help, six beer glasses just doesn't seem like it cuts it anymore.
Two hours at Chadstone shopping one Saturday before Father's Day found me a rain jacket that I think he liked (he still wears it at our family holiday each Easter). But then there were the years I ordered him a caravan magazine subscription only to find out that he'd stopped reading it after the first year when they stopped taking the caravan out (and the stories kept being rehashed).
It seems a lot of people have similar issues, or lack of interest, with buying a present for their fathers. Interestingly enough an article ran in News
that quoted a Visa survey's results showing people spend less on their Father's Day present than they do on Easter eggs.
Another excellent read about Father's Day Origins and gift spending fromNational Geographic can be found here...
Possibly Father's Day falls during a bad time of the year when people are caught too up in work and winter blues to be out shopping for gifts. Or that marketing for Mother's Day makes it easier to buy carnation flowers as a gift? Or another possibility is the "Hallmark-holiday" thinking is more prevalent for Father's Day than Christmas or Valentines Day, and that people do not want to get caught up in the commercialism of showing appreciation to their dad by spending money.
Possibly the idea of a catch up and spending time with Dad (free and away from the shops and receipts) is more appealing to children than buying a gift of chocolates or beer.
It is said that men are notoriously hard to buy for. I don't believe that. Or that they "have everything" or they like to shop for themselves. More plausibly is that the gifts that would truly make Dad happy to open are not bags of licorice or a bottle of bottom shelf liquor.
No, gifts to make dad smile are shiny and new or go very fast. Cars, boats, planes, LCD TVs (as the article states) and big-boys-toys. Unfortunately we just can't afford them. But because we can't afford the shiny gifts doesn't mean we have to go straight for the socks and jocks (although most men do need a new set of both). There is no rule that says we can't buy men some pamper products or a spoil me gift of Black label scotch or whatever tickles his fancy. Or even though we can't afford to buy him the new boat or plane, we can possibly find a local charter company to hire a boat for an hour or two in the bay.
And Dad's do their research
on purchases, when they buy a TV they have read up on what brands are best and what are the new features. An hour in Chadstone will most probably not provide you with the same research. So when you give your dad the electric shaver the shop assistant told you to buy, and your Dad doesn't praise you profusely, it may be because all his research beforehand told him he really wanted another brand.
So Dads possibly stop smiling and praising the cheap glasses and wrong brands earlier than Mums stop heaping praise onto the children's gifts of cheap perfume and plastic jewellery. And as I can't buy my Dad the 1969 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray Red Roadster he's always dreamed of (and I've already given him the gag Matchbox Corvette and a number of Corvette calendars for his garage), I've narrowed the gifts down to a few top of the range items within my budget that will hopefully at least be used as often as the rain jacket and bring a smile as broad as the beer glasses and burnt toast...
- Mason Pearson Hairbrush . His hair might not be as thick as it used to be, and his hairline might be receding a little, but he should enjoy the feel of brushing his hair for as long as he has it. The Mason Pearson Boar bristle brushes are made by hand, surely Dad has to appreciate the craftsmanship that goes into making each brush. And the brand has been around for over 100 years. The pure bristle brush will be kind on his thinning hair.
- Choice Magazine . I know my dad loves to do his research and get the best for his buck. For those Dads not so tech savvy you can just give the printed magazine subscription, however for the more tech savvy Dads that love their research you can give the magazine AND the online subscription so they can view the articles whenever and where ever they are.
- New Squash Racquet. I am ashamed to say that a few presents over the years have just been new squash balls. I know I'd struggle to make a fuss over opening that present, so I'm looking in to some of the new squash racquets. And maybe I'll head out on to the court with him for a match on Father's Day.
- Beer Brewing Kit . Now we've all moved out of home the time Dad used to take up fixing our cars and driving us to sport and the train stations is free. So, I figure a fun and productive way to fill that new free time is by brewing some tasty beers. Give him a gift that turns in to a hobby and a topic of conversation for years to come. Brewing beer has become popular and a topic of conversation online and at work. Microbreweries have popped up and brewing shops selling a myriad of brew enhancers, malts and sugars will keep him busy into the new year. And he'll always have a cold beer in the fridge for when you visit.
- Pool table . I know as children we might not have treated his pool table as well as we should have, with chalk marks and rips in the fabric. And although I can't afford the brand new ones, I can get very clever and find a good quality one on eBay, or in the Trading Post. I know he's got the space in his garage now that my car isn't always in it.
- Bonds Hoodie I love my hoodie and so shy shouldn't my dad be able to kick around home in something stylish and warm?
More Gift Ideas for Dad available at eBay:
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