Gift Guide 2025: What to Get the Hardest People On Your List

CHRISTINE: Hey there, it’s Christine. This season we’re dropping a series of gift-giving episodes. You should check out the last one that we dropped, all about gift suggestions from our expert staff. These are items that they really loved in 2025, and you know it’s their job to find great stuff, so everything is awesome in that episode. Today we’re focusing on potentially one of the most challenging scenarios in the gift-giving space or world, and that is people who are hard to shop for. We all probably have someone like this in our lives. Maybe it’s somebody who’s really picky or they have really excellent taste, or maybe they just never seem to be quite happy with what you’ve given them.

So, we’re going to take on this challenge today and try to come up with great ideas for people who are hard to please. Whatever the conundrum, Wirecutter usually has someone on staff who can help. And in this case, we have the perfect person. Hannah Morrill is a supervising editor on our gifts team. She joined us last year to talk about affordable gifts and today, she’s going to answer your questions about what to get people who are just really challenging to buy gifts for. Stay tuned to hear Hannah’s expert advice to get great Gifts that will impress be right back.

CHRISTINE: Welcome back. I’m here with Hannah Morrill, supervising editor of gifts coverage at Wirecutter. Hannah leads a team of gift writers who spend all year searching high and low for amazing gifts. They look on the internet, they look in real life. They scour Wirecutter’s other product recommendations to handpick items that they think will make great gifts. Welcome to the show, Hannah.

Thank you, Christine.

CHRISTINE: It’s so great to have you. Okay. If somebody is thinking about a particular person that they want to buy a gift for, they know that they’re hard to please, they’re going to start the shopping journey. What are the questions that you recommend people ask themselves, or maybe some parameters that people can use?

HANNAH: I really try to think back on my relationship with the person as of late and think about conversations we’ve had or texts we’ve exchanged, or links they’ve sent me and things that have energize them in the most recent correspondence that we’ve had together. My friend Lee is always texting me stuff about jewelry, right? She’s always like, “Do you like this? Do you like this? How about this? What about that?”

CHRISTINE: Is she dropping you hints?

HANNAH: But that’s like an interest for her, right? She has a lot of energy around that. My partner, the only thing I can get him to really engage with me on conversation these days is about his garden. You will see no one more enlivened than Jim when his garden is at hand. People give you hints. People tell you what is it that they’re interested in. Then that helps me to narrow in on, okay, Jim’s feeling this garden moment. How can I support that? How can I acknowledge that? How can I show that I’ve been listening to you over the past year or whatever? And you’d be surprised, even people that you’re not in touch with so much. I think people do tell you what they’re interested in and tell you where their hearts lie at the moment.

CHRISTINE: That’s so thoughtful. I think that’s just a good general tip for any gift giving to be thoughtful. All right, so this is where we get into the really fun part of this episode. We have some listener questions.

HANNAH: Oh, I love these.

CHRISTINE: I know you do, and I know you’re going to have some great suggestions-

HANNAH: I am.

CHRISTINE: … for these folks. So, let’s listen to this first question from Sue.

SUE: Hi Wirecutter. I would love to have some gift suggestions for my daughter. My daughter is an Olympic sailor. She sailed at Tokyo and Paris and is hoping to qualify for Los Angeles. She doesn’t like a lot of things. She doesn’t like a lot of stuff because she has a small apartment and she’s traveling a lot. She travels and sails in a lot of foreign countries. So, she’s got access to all that and I certainly can’t afford to buy her a new boat. So, I’d love some suggestions. Thank you very much.

CHRISTINE: Sue, your daughter is fascinating. I want to live her life a little bit.

HANNAH: Me too and I hope my daughter is sailing the world in 18 years.

CHRISTINE: Okay, so Sue’s daughter is an athlete, travels a ton, very into sailing, does not have much space. What are some things that come to mind?

HANNAH: The first thing that came to mind for me was, I’ve done this with this family cottage we have, is commissioned a little portrait of her boat. I was thinking about maybe a really special boat to her that she won a big race on, or just maybe her first boat. I’m sure you have some photographs kicking around and there’s this service called MyDaVinci, and the website looks like it hasn’t been updated since 1996, but the service is incredible. They employ the stable of artists, can choose watercolor or charcoal, whatever your vibe is.

And within, I mean, I feel like I got mine in 36 hours, you’ll get a proof of this portrait of your… Like I said, I did a cabin, but you could do her boat and you could give feedback like, “Oh, you know, there was bushes that were overwrought or whatever.” And I gave that feedback. They adjusted a little bit and then two weeks or a week later, I got this beautiful watercolor portrait of a family cabin that’s so treasured now. I feel like that would be great for your daughter. It doesn’t take up a ton of space. You could frame it. The cool thing is you also get a digital proof of it.

So, you could use that on, you could make her a set of postcards or you could use that image elsewhere in your life after you give her the original.

CHRISTINE: That’s great.

HANNAH: That’s one idea.

CHRISTINE: I love that.

HANNAH: Yes.

CHRISTINE: Okay, any other ideas for Sue?

HANNAH: I guess it also comes to mind like her traveling so much and being just almost living out of a suitcase. I think you could update some travel stuff. There’s these really expensive and amazing, they’re called cadence capsules and it’s for decanting your toiletries into. And they’re this beautiful matte texture and they tessellate together and they have this satisfying magnetism. So, I think she might love those cadence capsules. I also think we have some really good Cotopaxi packing cubes that come in these really bright colors and are pretty affordable. I would love to receive them. I have packing cubes, mine stink. Maybe she has packing cubes and hers stink too.

So, I think those could be awesome. So, thinking around supporting that travel lifestyle that she lives.

CHRISTINE: I love those two. For anyone who likes to travel, those are great gifts. And for people who aren’t familiar with packing cubes, they’re basically like these little zippered pouches that you can put your clothes and your toiletries and all the various things that you travel with and keep all that stuff organized in a suitcase or a duffel bag or whatever.

HANNAH: And it compresses them a little bit. So, I like to travel with no checked luggage. It just helps you to make that happen in an achievable way.

CHRISTINE: Yeah, I love those. That’s so great.

HANNAH: Okay, yey.

CHRISTINE: Okay, so we have a similar question from a listener RM. I’m going to read this one out loud. “My sister retired after making Fat Bank on Wall Street and wants for nothing as she loves personally handcrafted gifts. I’ve given her glassware, I’ve hand blown a quilt. I stitched more than one photo album with hand calligraphy, even a full dinner with a main requiring laminated dough. This year, I’m unlikely to have the time to create the leather sling bag I envisioned despite having already bought the necessary accoutrement. Any ideas for a gift that’s at least pseudo-personal that might suffice? FYI, she herself doesn’t care for taking craft lessons or classes.”

HANNAH: Okay, this one’s tough.

CHRISTINE: I know.

HANNAH: I like it though. The first thing that came to mind was we have an Etsy seller who if you have a little piece of handwriting from someone special, you can have it engraved onto a silver or gold cuff.

CHRISTINE: For your wrist?

HANNAH: For your wrist. It’s a little cufflet and the interior would have this script of whatever handwriting you want on it. Maybe something funny from their mother or from their father that could be really meaningful on the interior of a bracelet and has that handmade feel because it is handmade. This one is not handmade, but it’s personalized back to plastic that isn’t total junk. Maybe you have heard of these things called Funko pop. We’re always recommending Funko pop. Funko pop are these little trinkets you can get in the mall, but you can go online and they have this really great interface where you can personalize a Funko pop.

CHRISTINE: And for listeners, give us a picture of what a Funko pop looks like because I don’t think everybody knows what they are.

HANNAH: I think they’re like three inches tall. They have a little squat round little faces.

CHRISTINE: They’re like a little doll.

HANNAH: A little doll, a little figurine, but they really spark joy. I can’t explain it. That is not what I’m here to do is explain why they spark joy. I will just tell you that they do. They’re so cute. So, this module that they have on the Funko Pop website, you could recreate a little figurine of your sister, or of her family and they are just so charming and so delightful. They come in a great box that says her name on the outside. I’ve really never seen one of someone that I know. We’ve done a few of them in the office for staffers and I just love them when I see them.

So, the other thing I like about the online module is that it’s not so many steps that you’re going to get bogged down and be like, I actually can’t do this. You could make an absolutely adorable one in five minutes flat.

CHRISTINE: I love that. That’s super fun. I think that would also make a great, maybe a little bit expensive, but a great Secret Santa or a gift little bit.

HANNAH: I think that is so fun. Yeah.

CHRISTINE: Yeah, they’re super fun.

CHRISTINE: We have got a great question from Mike in Maine who is shopping for a couple who are at once very generous, but don’t want or need much of anything. Let’s listen.

MIKE: Hello Wirecutter. I have these wonderful friends, a terrific couple, and we are very, very close. Buying them gifts, however is one of the most difficult things I’ve ever had to do. They are incredibly well-off, totally unpretentious, and when meeting them, you’d have no idea of their wealth other than they are well-dressed and well-groomed. And they are very, very generous to me. It’s not unusual for them to spend $800 or more on me for Christmas or a birthday. And by the way, they’re also incredibly charitable and very generous to causes they believe in. I’m nowhere near as well-off as they are. I need to be frugal. I try to come up with things that they wouldn’t think of for themselves or things that are unique for them.

I have to do this three times a year for his birthday, her birthday, and for Christmas. I’m running out of ideas. Please help.

CHRISTINE: This is such a challenge, Mike. I actually identify with this one a lot. I have been in the situation where I’m gifting something for somebody who makes a lot more money than me or they don’t want for anything.

HANNAH: We get this one a lot. So, I’m happy that Mike called and I also am from Maine, Mike, so if you want to introduce me to your friends at any time, I’m really down, that’s no problem. We can just get together. So, we’ll start with that. So, a couple things come to mind here. Thinking about really trusted heritage brands is a really good starting point when you’re gifting someone who has more money. So, I’m thinking Pendleton, I’m talking L.L.Bean, I’m talking these really trusted brands that you can go to and you could get a smaller item that still really has that quality and value that people could really trust. I think another thing to think about is the material of the gift that you’re giving.

So, like we’re talking wool, we’re talking cotton, we’re talking copper, we’re talking enamel. Think about things that will last a really long time that have an inherent value to them, but those things don’t have to be expensive. For Mike, I was thinking about Pendleton has a really nice a hundred dollars cotton throw that we were testing this year that we really like. It comes in a couple of great patterns. I was thinking about that. I love the Falcon Enamelware pitcher and tumblers. So, if Mike finds himself having get togethers with these people, they’re not expensive and they’re so lovely to behold and he could bring those over, and it could be for lemonade in the summer or it could hold flowers.

The other thing, Mike, being from Maine, obviously L.L.Bean, I can’t think of anyone who couldn’t use another boat tote with a…

CHRISTINE: You’re required to have at least three or four as Mainers, rights?

HANNAH: That’s correct. It’s like when you come into the state, they give you, and then this really weird one came to mind, Mike, that we’ve seen this year that we have in a couple of gift guides, which is the Maine Shakers make a handmade parlor broom. So, it’s just a beautiful handmade broom. You can buy it online. I think it’s around a hundred dollars and I just think it would make the most lovely gift. Someone gave it to me a couple years back. It is. So, it just makes like an arduous task into something, I don’t know, elevated. So, Maine Shaker Parlor broom. And then another thought, Mike for you is this Brahms Mountain brand, which comes from Maine. They make cotton blankets as well.

Their base level throw is really, really lovely. If the people that you cherish so much don’t already have one, I think they’d love one.

CHRISTINE: I like that you focused on some Maine gifts, so that might also be an idea because pretty much any state is going to have some kind of-

HANNAH: Oh, of course.

CHRISTINE: … heritage brand coming out of it. So, I think that’s nice and thoughtful too. …What do you do in the scenario when somebody just absolutely says, “I don’t need anything, don’t gift me anything. I’m good”? Do you listen to them? What if you feel compelled to give a gift still? I think a lot of people struggle with that where someone’s saying, “I don’t really need anything.” Maybe it’s like an in-law or their parent or something, but then they still feel this, I don’t know, societal expectation to give a gift.

HANNAH: I do go back into really good listening, hearing what they’re saying, and I also go into another level of that, which is power of observation. So, if you’re in their home, I’m looking around, I’m seeing what they have, I’m seeing what maybe we could do a little upgrade on something that they have, but we could do a little better. If you’re having dinner at their house and there’s a serving tray and it has a chip in it, are we getting a new serving tray? Have they noticed something that you have and been like, oh gosh, I love your bag. Try to get into upgrading things that they might already have.

And then I also really, for people that say they don’t want a gift, I think an upgraded staple is another great idea. Things that absolutely everybody uses, but you could get them the very best version of that thing.

CHRISTINE: Give me some examples.

HANNAH: I just feel like I see my sister, bless her little heart, they have so many junky coffee tumblers in their house. It’s a whole cabinet of horrible, horrible coffee tumblers that I think have been gifted through work and through, I don’t know. Wouldn’t my sister love a beautiful, perfect non-leaking coffee tumbler that could just be perfect fit in any couple not falling over every two seconds? So, things like that where you could just get them the Wirecutter pick of a everyday item and just give them the absolute best one.

CHRISTINE: Hannah, we have one final question. So, this one is from Dawn who is asking about gifting for her colleagues. Let’s listen.

DAWN: Hi, I’m Dawn from Seattle, Washington. When I was doing sales, my manager always sent a gift around the holidays and it was something like a cake from Gold Belly or a Harry and David gift box. Something that just felt like it was out of a corporate giving catalog. And I always assumed that it was paid for by my company. But now that I am a manager, I’ve learned there is no budget for gift giving and anything I want to send comes out of my own pocket. But we’ve also had some changes at work and where my previous managers have had eight to 10 people that they manage and I manage 30 and it’s just not reasonable to send them all an $80 gift basket.

I feel stuck because I know everyone’s expecting something and anything that I do that’s less than what they’ve had before, they’re going to feel like something is taken away. So, any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

CHRISTINE: Okay, Dawn, we first need to talk about why do you have 30 reports? That’s way too many reports, first of all. But we will skip over that and get to the real problem. So, Hannah, what do we do for Dawn?

HANNAH: I’m so glad that Dawn called. As Dawn brought up, you don’t want it to feel generic or from a corporate catalog, so I hate to give this advice, but we’re talking name brands, Dawn, we’re talking Baggu, we’re talking Stanley Hydro Flask. A recognizable brand could be a really nice thing for people. I do think that Baggu makes pouches and everyone can use things like that. I have already mentioned coffee tumblers and water bottles, but I do think people appreciate high quality versions of that. I also think about tech in this moment. There’s this really great travel charger called the… you know this. I just love it. It’s a great gift and if Dawn hasn’t heard of it, she should do it. I think it’s a sharp price…

CHRISTINE: What is it called?

HANNAH: The travel card one word Charger, I believe plus is the version that they’re using now. It comes in a range of colors. You can charge a range of devices. It’s thin as a credit card. That would be an awesome gift. So, thinking of small little things like that could upgrade everyday lives.

I also think that travel is a really nice thing to think about when you’re thinking about the people that work for you, because I think it acknowledges a life outside of your day-to-day with work. Years ago, I was gifted by the editor in chief of magazine. I was working a passport cover, a leather passport cover, and we recommend it to this day at Wirecutter because I still carry it. The brand is Tusk, comes in again, a range of colors, nice luggage tags, universal travel adapters, little travel doodads that are lovely, I think are also a really good vein of awesome gifts.

CHRISTINE: I love that. What about consumables for Dawn? She mentioned a range of gift baskets she’s received in the past and I think that’s a common gift in this kind of scenario. Are there any of our consumable gifts that you would recommend for her? I’m thinking maybe things that address this issue that she has of wanting to present something that maybe seems nicer and more expensive than she’s actually spending.

HANNAH: Mm-hmm, rather than going to full on gift baskets, gifting random little tins of amazing things. So, last year, we recommended this can of chips that everyone was going crazy for. This year, there’s this beautiful French can of mustard. It comes in a little pale.

CHRISTINE: Oh, I’ve seen.

HANNAH: Have you seen it?

CHRISTINE: Yeah.

HANNAH: I think the brand is Fallot. It is so delicious and layered and complex. It’s made with the press from champagne grapes. It’s really lovely and under 20 bucks, that also comes in a tube. We have these really wonderful anchovy stuffed olives that people go crazy for. There’s this brand of unbelievable macerated cherries called Luxardo cherries.

CHRISTINE: Ah, love, love that.

HANNAH: You love Luxardo cherries with cocktails. So, rather than doing full on gift basket, you could do these one-off little very elevated, very lovely little jars or cans of delightful things. I think that’s a really nice idea as well.

CHRISTINE: Hannah, your team spends all year just canvassing the world for great gifts. I’m curious if there are any new gifts that you’re recommending this year that you’re really, really excited about?

HANNAH: Absolutely, so many. I saw this Block Design is the brand reversible glass vase. So, if you sit it one way, you can put a single bloom in the little vessel down the center. And if you set it the other way, you have a wider rim with which to put a bigger bouquet. And I just think the novelty of that and the practicality of that is so great and it pretty enough that it could just sit on its own as well. I think that’s also nice with a vase is if you don’t have flowers in it, you can still enjoy looking at it. For a kid’s gift, we saw these Japanese Cray-Pas.

CHRISTINE: What’s a Cray-Pas?

HANNAH: Thanks for asking. A Cray-Pas, I believe is a smudgy material that’s sort, I think it’s like crayon and paint adjacent. Water pastels, they called them in the past. So, I think they are this Japanese brand and it’s this beautiful range of them. And I think my kids would really enjoy them, and I also think they’re great for adults. They come in a really nice little box and I think anyone that has this desire to paint or express themselves artistically, I think that it’s a really nice offering. They’re really easy to work with and forgiving and almost like anything you do with them looks really great and intentional. So, I’m really into those Japanese Cray-Pas.

Oh, I almost forgot, a thing I’m also really crazy about is this new thing called Tiny Vinyl. Tiny Vinyl or tiny little records and they’re maybe three inches wide and they play a song on each side. They just launched this year. I think they’re about 15 bucks and the catalog…

CHRISTINE: Do you put them on a regular-

HANNAH: Regular record player.

CHRISTINE: … record player? Oh, my.

HANNAH: But the cool thing I like about is the edit that this company has done is all the best classics, so Notorious BIG, Charlie Brown Christmas and Frank Sinatra. And then also like Doechii, Doja Cat, Chappell Roan, like just a really cool selection of vinyl. So, I think that’s a really fun little, nobody’s seen that before.

CHRISTINE: That’s super fun singles, that’s great.

HANNAH: Yeah, exactly, back to singles.

CHRISTINE: Hannah, these are such great, great ideas. I love all of them. Thank you so much for coming. We’re going to have you back again at some point soon.

HANNAH: That sounds great. Thanks for having me.

CHRISTINE: If you want to find out more about the gifts we talked about today, you can find links in our show notes and you can find even more great gift coverage on our website. We have gift guides practically for any occasion with tons of great ideas. And if you want even more ideas, you should definitely subscribe to our newsletter, The Gift. You’ll get weekly handpicked gems from our staff delivered straight to your inbox. You can sign up at NYTimes.com/thegift. Tune in next week for advice on great gifts for kids from kids. It’s going to be a really fun episode. That’s it for us, thanks for listening.