Audrey's Christmas Gift Guide!

[ 30 November 2007 ]

And lo, the time of year has come again where all the female friends of mine come and pick my brain about what to buy their other halves for Christmas. And while I in no way advocate the notion of changing someone, I still understand when they say they’d like to give their boys a little nudge in the right direction as far as grooming and sophistication goes.

So here you have my top tips on what to splurge your money on for maximum points for both you and him.

My top tip is a magazine subscription. Especially for Men’s Style Australia or GQ — in my opinion, essential reading for every guy, and a good way to get his brain moving on the important topics of grooming and taking care of himself. I mean, you could leave dog-eared copies of Vogue Homme around the apartment and hope he’ll morph into some catwalk model, but that’s not very realistic now, is it? At least with these, he still gets to look at boobies and cars and the latest gadgets, but I think these two publications have a perfect balance of that stuff and really good, high-brow (yet still accessible and realistic) fashion and style tips. And besides, no matter how manly your man might be — I guarantee EVERYONE loves the excitement of getting mail every month!

Another great idea is to take him beer tasting. Not all presents have to be wrapped (but write “beer tasting” on a card or something if he needs that ‘something under the tree’ thing). Keep in mind, if you want to ease your boy into some culture and different things, you have to bridge some gaps too — and this is such an easy, obvious way to do it. It won’t be hard to Google a few good places that offer it in your area (aim for a sophisticated, cool bar instead of a pub. Trust me), and it sounds like an awesome idea to even get the most blokey of blokes into a collared shirt, a nice bar, and a bit of culture. There are so many different kinds of beer from all over the world, and you’ll be surprised how many places near you actually carry some exclusive, exotic tastes.

Get him a book. Sounds lame but actually isn’t. Obviously don’t get the latest Tom Clancy thriller if he’s not the kind of guy who’s going to actually READ it, but there are lots of cool ‘coffee table’ books that could be great if you take notice of his interests and use a bit of thinking. Lots of guys like things like war or sports, so why not a cool photo book on planes or a biography of his favourite sportsman? A travel book if he’s fascinated by a particular city or you know he’s flirting with the idea of planning some travel. If he’s all about having drinks with his friends the second the work day’s over, why not get him an excellent cocktail recipe book so he can impress them with his knowledge over summer and STILL manage to get munted — just in a more sophisticated way. Try though to find an independently owned bookstores near you, instead of one of those mass-market chain stores. In Melbourne, I recommend Polyester on Brunswick St for something fun, or head down to the NGV Giftshop for some excellent art and travel books.

Buy him clothes. Typical boys are simple and easy to work out. They just have an attitude against shopping, and that’s why they’ll wear the same stretched out tee shirt or underwear with the hole in the waistband because something in their brain just doesn’t seem to click and say “Oh no, this just won’t do. Off we go to the store!”. For centuries, Christmas has been the ace up every woman’s sleeve to get her other half into some more respectable duds. But tread careful. Splurging on things he just won’t wear is going to be costly, and instantly get his back up. Just because you think he’ll look darling in a salmon coloured, french cuff shirt and some better fitting jeans, if you blindside him and just get them and demand he wear them to your family’s roast turkey feast, they’ll be relegated to the back of the closet (or worse yet, you’ll be fighting the hoards of post-Christmas Sale shoppers trying to return them for store credit). Maybe just buy him a couple of new tee shirts, or some new board shorts for the beach.

Girls like nights in with bottles of wine and candles and blankets and a big comfy couch. The big secret is — guys kind of do as well. Maybe not the candles, but there’s something awesome about just kicking back at home and not having to worry about going out, lining up to get in somewhere, lining up for drinks, lining up to pee, lining up for a cab and heading home. The problem is, most of the time it’s assumed a girl’s going to pick out Pride and Prejudice from the local video store and guaranteed he’ll end up snoring by the second scene. The solution? Get him a box set of his favourite TV show on DVD. Scrubs. Lost. Heroes. Futurama. DVD sales are sky-rocketing these days (that’s actually what the Writers Guild strikes in America are loosely based on) and with good reason — watching and re-watching your favourite shows is awesome fun!

Honourable mentions: iPod or mp3 player, get your house hooked up with cable TV for the summer, tickets to a band or sports event he really wants to see.

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Tags: consumption, inspiration, monsieur