Gift Advice: Second-hand gifts

Second-hand gifts may be the best gift your recipient has ever receives. Tips on shopping for different types of occasions.

It is time to buy a gift for a friend or family member. It might be a holiday gift, a birthday gift, or simply an “I’m thinking of you” gift. Suddenly, we’re thrown into a panic wondering what on earth to buy for someone who appears to already have everything.

At this point, we can decide to obtain possibly the best gift our recipient has ever received as an adult. How do we accomplish it? Give a gift from their childhood or their past! Yes, that means it will be second-hand, but you will discover that the possibilities are virtually endless.

The answer? An antique mall or an online auction such as Ebay. Until a place like this has been experienced, it is difficult to describe. Nearly anything from the past is found for sale at any given time.

Your first step will have to be a bit of “snooping” if something doesn’t come to mind automatically. What is it from your gift recipient’s past that he or she regrets having given up, or losing?

It might be a particular toy or lunchbox. A piece of jewelry, perhaps? Again, the possibilities are endless. Was there a favorite childhood book that they now wish they could read to their own children or grandchildren? Does Grandma’s old tin pie plate bring beloved memories flooding?

A second idea is to look for a magazine or newspaper from the day or week of the lucky beneficiary’s birth, marriage, graduation, etc. Many things like this are available on Ebay.

Still another possibility is in music. What songs and groups were popular when the gift receiver was a teenager? Many of the old classic albums are now being made into the more modern compact discs. Or perhaps they still have a stereo that can play those ancient vinyl albums? If this is your decision, however, record albums are one thing that need to be checked very carefully when buying second-hand.

So when it’s time to get busy with fact gathering, have some leading questions on hand. What did Mom’s favorite doll look like? Which bands did Dad most enjoy? If you intend to look for a magazine or newspaper, what is Grandpa’s most memorable year? You will want to also be blunt and ask directly what item that had been owned in the past is now most missed. You might be astonished at some of the answers.

Shopping will never be the same when you realize that the best and most cherished gift you can give is actually a fragment of your loved one’s long lost past!