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It can be quite a quite a challenge to find a gift for a person with a minimalist mindset. It may not bring an abundance of joy for a recipient to receive a new item while they have just got rid of or are in the process of getting rid of other stuff from their life. We have listed to this article a plenty of options for gifts that a minimalist could possibly appreciate. We have listed the gifts into two main categories: physical gifts and service & experience gifts.
However, it´s good to remember that gift giving is not a necessity. By not giving gifts you can not only save money but also don´t consume environmental resources, as well as avoiding the risk that the gift receiver gets more headache from the gift than actual joy.
In case you still want to get a gift for the person you care for, you can also consider simply asking from them if they have need for something spesific. Or continue reading our gift guide.
Great gift, whether for a minimalist or not, takes into account the gift recipient´s individual needs and interests. When spefically considering a gift for a minimalist, a few characteristics rise to the surface. These include:
If you feel that our gift ideas don´t make the cut, you can still utilize these criteria to help you come up with the gift idea yourself.
It is also good to look into the return policy of the gift. However thorough consideration you may have made towards the gift, it still may be something that the gift receiver do not wish to keep. Related to this, make sure to keep the receipt for your purchase!
Physical gifts are tangible, visible objects and take certain amount of space. Some of the physical gifts require more care than the others so take that into account when choosing the gift. If you want to give a physical gift but are concerned if storing and maintaining may become a stressor for the gift receiver, consider gifting consumables. Consumables are items that can be eaten, drank, or they wear out relatively fast. Below we have listed a few examples of consumable gifts that could be a great choice for a minimalist.
Next we feature non-consumable physical gifts; things that last a long time, some possibly many generations.
Thanks to smartphones, wearables (such as Apple Watch) and payment cards, wallets don´t need to be as bulky as before. There are an exhausting list of companies designing and manufacturing minimalist wallets that enable you to carry what you actually need without extra clutter while maintaining a streamlined form factor. Whether you think the gift receiver would be a fan of leather or more modern materials such as aluminium, the options do not run out quickly.
Below you can find our top recommendations for brands offering minimalist wallets.
Trayvax — Founded in 2011, Trayvax´s mission is to design for longevity, inspire to action, and give from passion; o drive a greater love of the outdoors to humankind. Their products are made in USA and come with a 65-year warranty.
Saddleback Leather – This company´s products are designed and built to last a lifetime. Their products, including wallets, are made by highly skilled workers in Mexico. Each product comes with a 100-year warranty.
We are fairly certain that the person you are planning to gift uses socks. If you want to get a pair or more of high-quality socks, one of our top picks are Darn Tough Socks. Their merino wool socks are made in Vermont, USA and are unconditionally guaranteed for life. This means that if the socks rip or tear, the company will replace them for free.
Hair cutting is a great skill to possess, even if its money-saving aspect is not of an interest. If you think the special one you gift would appreciate a stylish and long-lasting tool for this trade, one of our top recommendations are Moser´s hair clippers. Especially the mains-operated models are great as they don´t have battery that could go bad and cut the device´s life short.
Our recommendation for hair clipper: Moser Primat
Brushing your teeth well is one of the best things you can do for your health. Switzerland-based Curaprox is one of the premier brands when it comes to toothbrushes. They have models that have extremely soft bristles, an important factor that should be taken into account when wanting to ensure that one does not cause irreversible gum damage while brushing.
Want to gift nicely cutting scissors that can last a lifetime? These Fiskars´ Classic scissors are a great choice. They have been made in Finland since 1967 and come with a lifetime warranty.
LEGO is timeless and long-lasting gift that can give joy and spark imagination for generations to come. LEGO are not cheap but as it is, price often is what you need to pay for quality. LEGO also have a great resale value in case one´s appeal towards bricks fade. Whether the gift receiver is into architecture, flowers, art, or vehicles, LEGO has you covered.
Our recommendation for those interested in architecture: Himeji Castle
Recommendation for flowers: Orchid
Recommendation for art: Hokusai – The Great Wave
Recommendation for vehicle: Porsche 911
A great deal of so-called successful people attribute reading as one of their most vital contributors for success. In today´s day and age one can carry a lightweight device that stores a library of books and come with an e-ink display that strain eyes significantly less than traditional displays. A couple of the most popular e-reader brands include Rakuten´s Kobo and Amazon´s Kindle.
Sir James Dyson, the founder of Dyson went through 5 127 prototypes before he introduced the world´s first bagless vacuum cleaner to the market in 1993. Since then, Dyson´s bagless vacuum cleaners have come a long way, one of the most important imrpovements being the freedom of movement provided by the rechargeable battery that eliminated the need for a cumbersome power cord. Also by using a Dyson, the user instantly see the results of one´s cleaning offer by looking at the transparent dust pin that is also easy to empty after use and isn´t left to stink like traditional vacuum bags. Check Dyson´s lineup of vacuum cleaners here.
Hunching in front of a laptop for an extended period of time doesn´t do any good for one´s health. One of the best ways to combat this is to use a height-adjustable laptop stand. Many consider US-made Roost laptop stand as the best when it comes to portable laptop stands.
Apple is more than well known for its minimalist design language in both their software and hardware. As both of these aspects are largely developed in-house, they generally provide quite a seamless experience.
AirPods Pro are one of the best wireless earbuds on the market. They adapt into your unique ear shape and provide a great sound for their size. AirPods Pro help you to stay more aware of your surroundings, while also block the unwanted noises around you.
The series of Apple Watches are a great option for fitness tracking, time keeping and fitness and health tracking. Please note that Apple Watch requires a new enough iPhone in order to work. You can learn more about Apple Watch from our article.
AirTag is a handy little accessory for keeping track of your belongings. AirTag utilizes the worldwide network of millions of Apple devices that help you to find your lost items easier while keeping your privacy intact. iPhone is required to set up an AirTag.
Apple Pencil turns iPad into a great note-taking device and drawing tablet. Currently there are two models of Apple Pencil available. Check which model works with the gift receiver´s model before purchase.
There are many minimalist travel gear brands that can help to streamline one´s travel setup. Here we give a few examples of great products for this category.
Nope, we aren´t going to list all the books here. However, here is our resource on books about minimalism.
Generally speaking, repairing your electronics has been made increasingly more difficult by the manufacturers. One of the most common ways to make repair tasks more challenging is the use of specialty bolts. Luckily companies such as right-to-repair advocate iFixit has come up with a toolkit that include the most used tips for removing those specialty bolts. The Pro Tech Toolkit also includes items such as prying tools and a suction cup, latter of which can be used to deattach the screen which is usually needed in order to change a battery from a modern smartphone.
Luckily there are also companies of which their competitive edge is based on their products´ high level of repairability. Fairphone was founded in 2013. This Netherland-based company offers phones and headphones that both are made from responsibly sourced materials, are made to last and offer high degree of repairability.
Check Fairphone´s phone lineup here.
Check Fairphone´s headphones here.
If you think a repair-friendly laptop would be a great gift, we recommend looking into Framework´s products. Headquartered in San Fransisco, USA, Framework is focused in showing the consumer electronics industry a better way by offering higly repairable and customisable laptops that are also good-looking.Easy to repair doesn´t mean that the product has to be ugly!
Check Framework laptops here.
Want to upgrade your close one´s phone while at the same taking making smaller toll on the environment? Nowadays there are many companies that sell refurbished second-hand phones. One of them is Swappie. This circular economy company founded in Finland is focused on selling used iPhones. Before ending up on their store, the phones go through a 52-step testing and refurbishment process. The phones bought from Swappie also include a 12-month warranty.
If you know a person that has many battery-operated devices but don´t power them yet with rechargeable ones, maybe it is time for you to suggest a change by gifting a high-quality set of them. Our recommendation is Panasonic´s Eneloop line of batteries that are designed, manufactured and tested in Japan. If you want to learn more about rechargeable batteries, their benefits and also cases when not to use them, check this article from us.
No matter whether being a digital nomad or a weekend traveler, power bank can quickly prove its worth when running out of juice and there are no outlets to charge your device. Power banks come in under many, many brands and models. In our opinion, one of the best power bank manufacturers is Anker.
Clothes manufacturing is a resource-intensive industry. According to European Union, fashion industry is estimated to produce around 10% of the CO2 emissions worlwide. Not only the clothing production is a significant factor when it comes to carbon emissions, EU also estimates about 20% of the clean water pollution can be contributed to dyeing and finishing of clothes. According to WWF, the production of a single cotton T-shirt consumes around 3 000 liters or 793 gallons of water.
Acquiring clothes used significantly reduces the demand for new the production of new clothes and thus also greatly reduce pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Used clothes are not only better alternative for the environment but also for the wallet.
Nowadays there are many places to buy second-hand clothing, both brick-and-mortar and online options. Many trift shops worldwide are run by charitable organizations so getting the clothes clothes lies an additional opportunity to attribute to a good cause.
Preworn is one of the popular online options for buying second-hand clothes. They are the largest second-hand clothing reseller in the UK. Preworn, together with their customers, has so far saved over 600 tonnes of clothing from ending up in to a landfill.
Water bottles help their users to stay hydrated and more healthy while also saving money through reducing the need for purchasing expensive take-away drinks. Reusable bottles can also considerably reduce one´s use of plastic. High-quality bottles are also carefully vetted to ensure no harmful chemical leach into the drinks and they also last many years of use. Our recommended brands for high-quality water bottles are Klean Kanteen, Hydro Flask and Nalgene.
View Klean Kanteen Bottles at Klean Kanteen
Do you fancy gifting a product that is at the same time an award-winning design piece and a high-quality everyday tool that can last for generations? Then you may be interested in Chemex, the timeless coffee making carafe. You can read more about Chemex from our article.
AeroPress is a portable coffee-maker designed in Silicon Valley that debuted back in 2005 and has since gathered a loyal userbase around the world.
Working out from home has gained a lot of popularity during the recent years. Below we have listed a few examples of high quality and versatile workout equipment that don´t require a lot of space.
Kettlebell Kings 12-32 KG Adjustable Competition Style Kettlebell
Rogue Bolt Together Parrallette Set
Rogue Monster Resistance Bands
Hearing protection is a really important matter. Exposure to loud noises can cause wear and tear on the hairs and nerve cells which lead to hearing damage. Unfortunately, modern medicine has not yet found a way to regenerate these hairs and cells.
High-quality earplugs not only protect from noise, they can actually make hearing and sound quality better! Below are our two recommendations for earplugs.
Money is likely one of the most widely accepted gifts. After all, most of us find use for it. Before giving money as a gift, check your local legislation if there are tax requirements that apply.
Service and experience gifts are intangible and do not take any long-lasting space. However, they can leave a long-lasting, possibly a life-lasting memories to the receiver. Service and experience gifts often (but not always) take smaller toll on the environment than physical gifts.
Audio books are a great way to incorporate more books into one´s life as these can be consumed together with other activities. Amazon Audible is one of the popular services for audio books.
Streaming services are also a convenient way to listen to music and podcasts. We have listed popular streaming services for this category below.
Similarly, there are many options for gifting a subscription that movie and series buffs can appreciate:
If you know the gift recipient is not that much into fiction, service such as Curiosity Stream may be a good choice as it focuses exclusively on documentaries.
A sports fan instead? As you know, there are a myriad of options for them as well, such as F1 TV.
Would you like Chuck Norris to wish your friend a happy birthday? That can be made a reality through Cameo. Cameo is a service launched in 2017 that offers a possibility to request a personalized video message from a wide variety of celebrities that can give birthday wishes to roasts and a lots of between. The messages are delivered within 7 days or even in 24 hours if you pay extra.
Magazines still have their use. There is quite likely a magazine for any legal activity you can think of. Most of the magazine subscriptions nowadays have an option for physical and digital distribution, latter of which is typically more affordable.
One easy way to save time is to order groceries online. You can make this a gift by purchasing a gift card for a service such as Amazon Fresh.
Although there´s a lot of free educational information on the internet on just about any topic one can imagine, often the problem with it lies in its scattered nature. Paid learning platforms and web courses combat this problem by providing clearly-structured courses that can be gone through at own pace.
Premium subscription for Duolingo
As you know, there´s a plethora of options for gift cards. Pick the one you feel would the the most useful for the recipient. Pretty simple, don´ tyou think? Still, many gift card remain unused. In 2019 alone, US consumers lost 5.8 billion dollars by not redeeming their gift cards. Hovewer, a good thing to know that some places may accept the gift card even if its expiration date has been gone by. Also, in the state of California in most of the cases the gift cards can not expire, based on their local legislation.
You can also consider making a donation to a charity that is close to your close one´s values. Below a few reputable options.
Lots of possibilities here. For example, you can promise for the recipient to do the dishes for a year.
Great work! You reached the end of our article on gift ideas. We hope you found this piece of content useful and got new insights related to this topic. If so, we would more than appreciate if you share the article.
If you feel you didn´t get enough, feel free to go through e.g. our Minimalist Brand Directory and Minimalist Product Directory for more inspiration on gift ideas for a minimalist.
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