10 Things to Buy Your Auntie for Cheering Them Up

Buying for your auntie goes the same way most years: you get to the week before, panic, and buy the safe thing she already has three of.

These ten are here because they either get used weekly or they mark something. UK prices, one pick from our own range, and the card sorted at the end.

10 cheering her up gifts for your auntie

1. A tote she'll take to the shop weekly instead of buying another bag for life. Totes get used weekly, which is more than most gifts manage.
2. A print for the kitchen or hallway. Kitchen and hallway walls get seen daily by everyone who visits.
3. The good version of her regular tea, coffee or chocolate. Buying the good version of her regular is a small luxury she'd never buy herself.
4. A plant rather than cut flowers. A plant keeps going long after flowers have been binned.
5. A framed family photo she isn't in enough of. She's usually the one taking the photos, so put her in one and frame it.
6. A book by the author she keeps recommending to you. Going with the author she recommends to you is the easiest win here.
7. Something for the garden if she has one. Garden gifts get used every spring rather than once.
8. A voucher for a local independent she already uses. A voucher for a shop she already loves feels personal, not lazy.
9. Something that needs no reply. A parcel that arrives without asking anything of them is the whole point when someone is flat.
10. Our pick: the 'Ride Your Own Way' canvas tote - designed in house, printed in the UK, and used for the weekly shop rather than kept for best.

How much to spend

• £15 to £30 is plenty, and something usable beats something decorative.
• Pooling with siblings or friends on one bigger present beats three separate medium ones.
• A £15 thing used weekly beats a £60 thing kept in a cupboard.
• If money is tight, give time with a date attached instead - it isn't a lesser gift.

What to avoid

• Bath sets. She has a cupboard full.
• Ornaments she'll have to dust.
• Anything that's really a hint.
• Gift sets you'd be embarrassed to receive.

Getting the timing right

• Send it in week three, not week one. Everyone shows up at the start.
• Small and soon beats big and late.
• Say when you'll next be round, and then turn up.

Don't forget the perfect card

• The gift gets opened in a minute. The card sits on the shelf for weeks and in a drawer for years.
• Write something only you could write about your auntie - one specific thing from this year.
• Sign it properly. A name and a real sentence beats 'love from all of us'.
• Every card we make is designed in house and printed in the UK, and it posts in the same parcel as the gift.

Key things to remember

• Specific beats expensive - the best gift is the one only you would think of.
• Order the card with the gift so they arrive together.
• Write the card before you wrap, while you still have something to say.

Frequently asked questions

What should I buy your auntie for cheering her up?

Something she uses weekly or something with a date attached - a print for a wall, the good version of an everyday item, or an outing already booked. All three beat a gift set bought in a hurry.

How much should I spend on your auntie?

£15 to £30 is plenty, and something usable beats something decorative.

What should I write in the card?

One specific thing from the last year, then how you actually feel about it. That single line is remembered long after the present has been put away.

What is a good example of 10 things to buy your auntie for cheering her up?

"1. A tote she'll take to the shop weekly instead of buying another bag for life. Totes get used weekly, which is more than most gifts manage." is one of 25 examples on this page. Pick the one closest to the tone you want, then add a specific detail of your own - a shared memory, a date, a name - so it reads as yours rather than copied.

Where to shop next

• Our pick: 'Ride Your Own Way' canvas tote bag
• Shop cheer up gifts
• Shop all cards
• Posters and prints
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• 10 things to buy your auntie for Christmas
• 10 things to buy your auntie for her retirement
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