Here are a couple of sweet and cute gift ideas for your special someone, whether it would be for Valentine's Day, Anniversary, or just for the heck of it. This list would no longer include the usual stuff, like flowers, perfume, chocolates and a Teddy. Some of these you may have already heard of, still they are good ideas.
Message in a Bottle
Select a good quality paper, a parchment paper perhaps. You can hand write your letter or the poem you made using a good pen on that paper. If you don't trust your handwriting you can just print one out using your PC. If you're not much of a writer, you can search for poems online or in poetry books. You can also put in your song. Just think of something sweet that can be put to words.
Now, choose a good clear bottle. You can buy one or you may have one sitting at the back of your house. Make sure to have it crystal clean and clear. A bottle of wine (or rum) you shared with that person would be a very good idea. Then, have a bottle stopper. You can buy them at wine shops, or you can use a cork. If that would sound too fancy for you, you may still use the original cap of the bottle; just paint it black or any other color that would cover the brand name.
Roll tight the letter you made. Make sure it would fit in the bottle's mouth. Secure the paper by tying a ribbon around it. Put it inside the bottle and there you go!
Name a Star
If you have seen "A Walk to Remember", this was the gift of Landon to Jamie when they went star gazing one night. It's actually possible. If you have the budget you can have star named after your loved one. You can even put adjectives together with the name, like "The Sweet Elizabeth Star" or " The Luscious Jake Star". Just Google "name a star after someone" and it will return a lot of links that would offer this service. The name would be recognized by the International Star Registry, although scientific institutions will continue to refer to the stars by their coordinates only. If you don't know which star to pick, because of the billion of stars to choose from, you can pick from available coordinates. You can have the special number combinations of your lives as the coordinates. It can be the recipient's birthday, your anniversary or the first day you met.
You will be receiving a certificate with the date of registration and the unique coordinates of the star. Some stores offer other items together with their package.
Since this could not be done locally, you would need to spend a little more than the Philippine peso could handle. But what the heck, seeing the smile on the person you love's face, priceless!
My Last Peso
This can be your last anything. This is a funny, sweet and cute gift, plus it can be cheap! If you'll remember the Fita Biscuit commercial before, with the famous line, "Last Fita q n 2!" (Hey! No actual Filipino word there!), the same concept applies. Isn't it sweet to know that a person will be giving you his/her last something, and knowing that that something has been saved, and has been very difficult for that person to consume himself/herself because it's his/her last piece, and he/she will be just giving it away… and of all people, to you!
This can be anything under the sun! If you both smoke, it can be your last stick of an expensive imported pack of cigarettes. That might be as simple as the last peso in your mobile's prepaid account. You could even put in the message that, 160 characters may not be enough, but you'd rather spend your last peso on her than wait for another chance to say… something cheesy… might be too much for me to take. If you use your imagination, it can be something you almost got for free, like the last ride for those who buy the Stored Value Card of MRT. If it's food or something that would spoil after sometime, you could do a replica of it then put on the pedestal. For candies or chocolates, you can take the wrapper and wrap it on something that won't spoil and can take the shape of the real one, clay would be good. Then, put in inside a glass casing and put an inscription at the bottom, like "My Last Chocnut."
Just explain why you're giving it, in the most creative and sweet way you can think of, so that, instead of being mad at you or insulted, he/she will just probably laugh because of the irony of things and would still find it sweet. You may also use cute packaging that would make it look priceless, which could still be true. Think of something that you both like or at least something that that person knows you really want and won't even make other people go near, and you can start from there.
The list and ideas could be endless. But the formula would still be the same. Start with how you really feel; think of the person you'll be giving it to; work on a budget or the lack of it; be creative; use your imagination; personalize the gift to show your sincerity and have fun!
When you think about it, it's really better to give than to receive, and whatever you may receive, what counts is the thought! *wink*
