How to Put Together a Classy Last Minute Gift

The only thing worse than scrambling to find a gift at the last minute is having that gift look like you scrambled to get it.

Try as I might to keep a stash of ideal trinkets to use as last minute gifts, I continually find myself empty handed on the way to an event. Fortunately I have done this enough times that I'm getting pretty good at finding something quickly.

I have compiled a list of items that are:

- Quick and easy to find
- Around $20

More importantly:

- They do not appear to be last minute.
- They are classy and appropriate for nearly every situation.
- They make the recipient feel as though you really did think this through.

Here are my most successful last minute gift ideas:

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Grocery store
• OR Target
• OR Gas station
• OR Your own kitchen

1. 
    
   Last Minute Gift Idea: Coppola Wine

   Classy last minute gifts from the GROCERY STORE:
   
   - Wine: Safeway, Dominick's, and Trader Joe's have great sales in the $15-$20 range. Put it in a wine gift bag if it's for a woman; men probably won't notice or care if it's naked. Good for corporate gifts (usually) or hostess gifts.
   
   - Gift Cards: Those huge kiosks toward the front of the store will save you. You can surely find something your gift-ee will personally enjoy. Grab a giftcard holder by the greeting cards. Good for anyone, any event.

2. 
    
   Last Minute Gift Idea: Burt's Bees

   Classy last minute gifts from TARGET:
   
   - Classic Board Games like Twister or Yahtzee. For kids, families, birthdays.
   
   - Every Target has a Starbucks with lots of coffee-related gifts, gift-wrapped and ready to go. Good as a birthday gift or corporate gift.
   
   - Beauty gifts in the cosmetics aisle. Anything by Kiehl's, Burt's Bees, Bumble & Bumble, or Philosphy will be high-quality and good-looking. Good for women and teen girls.
   
   - A box of chocolate. Target has some really good ones like Choxie in darling little packages. Good as housewarming gifts.

3. 
    
   Last Minute Gift Idea: Lottery Tickets

   Classy last minute gifts from the GAS STATION:
   
   - Lottery tickets: For the person who has everything. Buy as many as you can afford.
   
   - A ton of candy bars in a bucket or mug. Good for kids or anyone with a sweet tooth.
   
   - A baseball cap or t-shirt from a local sports team. For men or sports fans of any age or gender.

4. 
    
   Last Minute Gift Idea: Double Chocolate Cookies

   Classy last minute gifts from your KITCHEN:
   
   - Cookies. Everyone loves them and if you have these 4 ingredients you can make Double Chocolate Cookies in 20 minutes, no joke:
   
   * 1 package chocolate cake mix
   * 1/2 cup butter, softened
   * 2 eggs
   * 1 cup semisweet chocolate chips
   
   1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
   2. Mix together cake mix, butter and eggs until smooth and well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips. Drop by spoonfuls onto ungreased baking sheets.
   3. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes. Allow cookies to cool on baking sheet for 5 minutes before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.

Tips & Warnings

• Always include a little card with a personally written note.
• Visualize the person's face when they receive your gift. Do they look pleased? Underwhelmed? Confused? Pleasantly surprised? This is your gut telling you whether or not this gift is appropriate.
• Don't admit you just picked this up! Play it off!

Resources

• More Last Minute Gift Ideas

[daisy1963]

on 9/18/2009 Really good ideas! Thanks so much!