Hellobee Boards

I feel like I photo gifted my family out! So one year I did two months worth of beer of the month club for my in laws. HUGE HIT!! They have other clubs like the wine or flowers! It's nice because the gift doesn't end right away!

Take this with a grain of salt because I am a bad gifter, however I am loving the coffee mugs from Anthropologie and World Market. For a coffee drinker add a bag or two of coffee and packaged breakfast pastry and boom just gave them a blissful morning.

Gift cards!
I know, you feel like you are cheaping out, I get it. But I LOVE them because I get to spend the money after the holidays on clearance items and get twice the bang for my buck.
If you don't want to feel cheap:
bundle Movie Gift cards with gourmet popcorn,
Coffee Giftcards with mugs or travel mugs (maybe custom ordered photo ones!)
Clothing store cards with a nice scarf or funny socks

A gift I've been meaning to make is a family cookbook, gather all the recipes, and over the course of a year or two, take photos of the finished meals and of family members cooking or enjoying the meals, and then give a copy to everyone!
easy to make at a photobook company like Shutterfly.

My parents are so hard to shop for, but last year I got them a ubiome kit, so they can see what kind of bacteria is in their stomach, and they loved it. This year I got them a 23 and me kit so then can explore their ancestry and health.

I was coming to suggest Penzey's but gingerbee beat me to it

Young 20-something: Makeup gift sets from sephora, special sauces or craft beers, anything to help them in their career, travel amenities

Mom: I look through all my amazon purchases of the last year, find my FAVORITE useful items, and buy those for her (pyrex mixing bowls with lids, tinted lip balm, magnetic jar opener, 3D mascara, OXO kitchen stuff)

Dad: gourmet popcorn, firestarter stuff, Golf rounds

Grandpa: smartwool socks for grandpa, coffee, photo mug with coffee

Generic: new cell phone batteries, Anker portable chargers, hot chocolate kit (Ghiradelli, candy canes, mug, marshmallows), Passes to local fun things

I look on their pinterest and find something that I can buy.

Vintage maps of places that are significant to them (my husband has a side business selling vintage maps ready-to-hang)

Scratch-off travel maps

Handwritten journals about them (Amazon has ones for moms, dads, siblings, and spouses)

Good pillows or slippers/moccasins

@DesertDreams88: Yes to LL Bean slippers. Weird, but my favorite surprise gift from the year LO was born!!

@Pancakes: We have done this too! Big hit with the inlaws!

@lawbee11: Thank you! I feel like I have liked your advice in the past Totally getting this for DW right now.

If I'm stumped, I give art, or Christmas ornaments. DH likes to give books, but that's a hit and miss gift. I also got my dad some amazing tea one year, but somehow it's still in the cupboard. Even though the whole family knows how good it is.

@Foodnerd81: I have a SIL and a cousin I'm not super close to but have to get gifts for at the holidays because of family politics.

This year, I got my SIL and brother 2lbs of our favorite organic local coffee (i.e. they can't get it where they live), a bottle of very high quality Northern CA olive oil, and I'm also getting my SIL and cousin these eyeshadow sticks. They are my ABSOLUTE favorite thing personally and only $10 a pop:

http://a.co/5PsnVQb

K-Beauty is so en vogue these days (altho less special to my family because I already am Korean), but I've never had anyone say they didn't love those sheet masks (Laneige water masks are fantastic) and TonyMoly brand makes lots of small, cute things like hand cream and eye cream that are super cute in terms of the packaging and smell great. Its also all small so it can ship or pack easily.

@SweetiePie: Oh yeah, cosmetics bags are good. I got these for some folks a few years ago (not this brand, but the same idea) and got one for myself bc its so convenient!

http://a.co/iR7tc5n

Also, PACKING CUBES! I love them so much and its something you hate spending money on even though after you have them, its amazing.

Purse organizers are also in that category.

Oh also, DH and I both switched to credit card holders for our wallets last year. We hardly ever carry cash or coins and its all cards, so why bother with traditional wallets? I have a Lodis one which I love, but Amazon has a zillion kinds that are cheaper, even in leather.

http://a.co/b6qJoRY

@SweetiePie: For men, I have done a toiletry type bag from Rawlings - the baseball leather company. Not too cheap, but an awesome gift that everyone has generally liked a lot.