QuickOverview

by Sarah E. White of The Complete Writer's Resource

Are you looking for a gift for your sister's birthday or a for a friend who just got a promotion? Or maybe you forgot it was Father's Day and you need to send a gift fast or you're looking for the perfect housewarming present for a coworker? Whatever the occasion and whoever the recipient, if you need a cool, thoughtful gift, you can find the perfect thing with a little creativity and a search on the Internet.

There are numerous sites on the Internet devoted to gift-giving, which usually provide the basic suggestions such as golf toys and money clips for the men in your lives, picture frames and scented candles for the women and monogrammed blankets for babies. All of these are great general gifts, especially if you aren.t particularly close to the person you are buying the gift for. But a gift is so much better if you put a little thought into the person you are giving the gift to and the occasion you are celebrating. Here are some ideas to get you started on finding the perfect gift for everyone on your list.

That's Interesting

The most basic way to come up with ideas for gifts for a friend, family member or coworker is to think about his or her interests and buy a gift related to that. Of course this requires you to know something about the person you are buying the gift for, but you should probably only buy gifts for people you really know (gift cards were made to give to people you don.t know very well but who you feel obligated to give a gift to, like your brother-in-law from across the country at Christmas time).

When you come up with an interest you know your friend has (gardening, NASCAR, dogs, reading, hunting) do a search on the Internet for that interest and the word gifts. A search for 'hunting gifts,' for instance, brings up more than 1.6 million sites you can look at to find the perfect present for your uncle you never see because he.s always in a duck blind.

Your gardening friend would love a collection of pots, a decorative watering can, a small hand shovel or a new set of shears. NASCAR fans are big on memorabilia (it helps if you know the fan's favorite driver), while readers will always appreciate lovely bookmarks, clip lights or reading journals. For the dog lover, consider gifts that are both for the person and the pooch, such as a new dog bed, chew toys or a kit to make dog treats.

If you know the person you are shopping for collects something, the Internet will make it easy to find the perfect strange thing for them to add to their collection. A recent search on an auction site for pig collectables, for example, offered advertising signs with pigs, a set of ceramic pirate pigs and a pig corkscrew. Collectors will love something off-the-wall and appreciate that you took the time to hunt for something different than the standard collectables you can find anywhere.

What's in a Name?

A fun idea for a birthday or wedding gift is something that has to do with the recipient's first or last name. Perhaps you can find (on an auction site or doing a web search) a company with the same name as the person you are looking for a gift for. You could then buy them an old advertising sign or a product with that name on it. I have a friend whose last name is the same as a magician who worked and sold magic supplies in the 1920s and 30s. One year for his birthday I found an old catalog from the magician's company on an auction site. It illustrated some of the products and even had instructions for magic tricks inside. My friend loved it and even tried out some of the tricks.

Or you could search a book site and see if there is an author anywhere in the world or in history with the same name as your friend or relative. It's funny to see what another person with the same name has done with his or her life, and the person you gave the book to can put the book on his or her shelf and pretend to have written it.

Special Gifts for Special Times

Sometimes gifts don.t have to be specifically suited to the recipient to be special. Pampering products, for instance, are always a hit no matter the occasion. Search the Internet for pre-assembled gift bags or baskets, or make your own with manicure and pedicure supplies, an at-home facial kit or a selection of bath goodies.

To celebrate a new pet, buy a selection of pet toys, treats and grooming tools. To welcome a new neighbor or recognize a friend's purchase of a home, buy them a great bottle of wine, a handmade candle, a nice houseplant or a book about gardening in your area.

And as for that baby shower present, you could go for that personalized baby blanket, or you could go for something a little more special, like a handmade toy or rocking chair, a soft robe or a silver cup, something for mom like a stylish baby bag, or something in the color used to decorate baby.s room that the child will want to keep as an adult.

The Gift of Food

A special food treat is a great gift for a birthday, housewarming, promotion celebration or other holiday. Almost everyone loves trying new foods, and on the Internet you can find all kinds of food baskets, from ethnic ingredients that the person could cook up into a tasty meal to gourmet chocolates, imported teas and selections of snack foods. For a special birthday treat you can order retro snacks from different decades.

A gift of food can revolve around a person.s favorite meal (pasta and sauces, ingredients and tools to make pizza, Asian spices and sauces) or encourage a courageous home cook to try something new. Food baskets can run on a theme such as small-batch cheeses, Australian wines or Californian specialties.

In fact, almost every state and nation has a company that sells food baskets, which can be a great gift to give to someone homesick for the food from a region where they no longer live. You can get maple syrup from Maine, smoked salmon from Alaska or citrus fruits from Florida. There.s almost no end to the variety you can cook up with food-related gifts. Of course you won't want to buy candy or high-fat foods for someone you know to be on a diet, but other than that, gifts of food are very popular.

Gifts in a Flash

Sure, it.s nice to search for something meaningful that is perfectly suited to the person you are giving the gift to, but sometimes you need a gift now. Or sooner. Maybe you forgot one of those holidays that are only important to the people getting the gifts, or maybe you.ve just never been any good with dates and you always forget your brother's birthday. Or maybe you just need to send some kind of gift to someone overseas and it.s too late to ship something to them.

The Internet comes to the rescue yet again with electronic gift certificates. These paperless gift certificates are available from all sorts of web sites (for brick-and-mortar stores as well as Internet-only shops). Search the Internet for electronic gift certificates, with or without a specific type of store, to find sites where you can buy certificates in any amount and send them via e-mail to anyone anywhere in the world.

This is a quick, convenient option for anyone on your list. You can still personalize the gift by picking a certificate from a store you know they'll love (a sporting goods store certificate for the athlete in your life, or one from a clothing store for the clotheshorse). Or pick a more general store, such as one that sells CDs, DVDs and video games, where the recipient will be sure to find something he or she will enjoy.

With a little imagination and a little time surfing on the Internet, you are bound to find the perfect gift for anyone, no matter what the occasion. Remember to keep the recipient in mind, buy something you think they will enjoy and give with an open heart, and you're sure to become quite a gifted gift giver.