Help Please - to you ladies out there - Advice on XMas present for my wife

He he .... I waited until the last minute .... any advice on what to buy my wife (she is Chinese if that matters) for XMas?

YK

Forgive me; I can't remember if you're in China or not.  If in China, do you have a Watson's nearby?  They're good for lots of beauty products.  Feminine stuff she might not spend the money on to buy for herself - bubble bath, moisturizers, perfume...  Depends on what she likes.  I always enjoy receiving books, but I'm a reader.  DVDs of Christmas movies.  Munchies make good stocking stuffers - again, depends what she likes: chocolate, other candy, peanuts,...  A gift for both of you - lingerie    If money is an issue, coupons for future favors (bedroom favors  , or more mundane like washing the dishes, painting the living room, a trip to the zoo).  If you are good at matching sizes, colors and styles - new clothes like a sweater or blouse.  My dad always copped out of this one.  He gave my mom money and told her to go buy what she liked.

So subjective.  Without knowing your wife it's really difficult.  I like to receive new stuff for the kitchen, but my former sister-in-law would have killed my brother if she received a gift for the 'house'.  Had to be just for her.

Easiest thing since you're in Shenzhen, buy perfume (the real kind, not the tons of fakes floating around the city) and take her out for dinner at Focaccino (I assume the one at Coastal City is still open).

Ouch ....

A new husband?  One who KNOWS her, her interests and what she would love, and who plans ahead??  Preferrable young, handsome ....

 

I like to think that I am such a great husband that she already has everything she could want .... he he .... and here is the problem

1) she does not wear jewelry except for her wedding ring (even though she has other semi-decent pieces)
2) she has 3 or 4 bottles of perfume and doesn't use them (we have a 10 month old baby)
3) she is relatively small so buying clothes for her never works
4) she has membership at the local yoga gym
5) she does shop at the local watson's as well as the local department stores and buys some horribly expensive soaps already (I still don't know who taught her about those soaps ... she sure did not find out from her home town friends in Hubei) .... I have my suspicions that a friend's Hubei wife was involved!

<sigh>

Maybe a day at a local spa ....



We live in Shenzhe by the way ....

YK

Amazon has the Nikon d90 + the 18-200mm VRII lens for $1333 shipped...

Too late for the 25th, but it'd be a nice personal gift for yerselfs & next year can give pictures 


or...
I'm sure she'd love a new car... 

I've got loads of great suggestions, but seeing as i haven't bought anything for my wife yet i need to keep the ideas for myself.

That's obviously a load of bull, its gonna be some last minute panic buys as usual, but i work well under pressure.

3) she is relatively small so buying clothes for her never works

A scarf or wrap is pretty much one-size-fits-all. Belts or leg-warmers are close to that. For a hat or purse, it might be harder to judge her taste, but size is not a huge issue.

Luggage? Anything from a good backpack to suitcases to a camera bag would work for some women.

Accessories for something? A tripod if she's into photography, a motorcycle helmet, good maps for someone who likes to travel, ...

Offer to take her shopping, even give her a certificate she can cash in for a luxurious lunch and an afternoon in a good shopping area?

Luggage? Anything from a good backpack to suitcases to a camera bag would work for some women.

Especially, for Chinese women, if it's an LV.   

Actually, the spa idea is what first occurred to me when I saw the original post. And you came up with it yourself, Yokie. 

Easy! Give her a nice, fat HongBao.

I like giving scarves, as Pash suggests. Problem is, I did that for her birthday and before that last Christmas. This time around I'm thinking of taking her out shopping with me on the 26th to get her what she wants. Most liekly another sweater, but maybe a blouse. That's not an ideal Christmas, but at least I'll be spending some time with her, which is something I haven't done much of recently.

Things to give if you don't want to worry about needing a gift for your wife next year.  

A mop
A bowling ball with your name on it
A book on how to overcome obesity

<caution, old Henny Youngman joke coming up/>
This year I think I' take her somewhere she's never been before. I think I'll show her the kitchen
</caution>

Yes, getting a cleaning lady would be wonderful. Who that would be a gift for is an open question.

How about organising for a professional photo session for the family - go get some nice portraits done of her, you & her & the little one. It's a fun couple of hours, lots of make-up and dressing up (for her) and you'll have some great pictures for the house and to send/give to family.

Pictures are not a bad idea.  Even though after the kid being 10 months old, we have a couple of thousand already ..... thank the lord for digital pictures and large hard-drives!