The Easy Evergreen Guide to Birthday Gifts They'll Love

Thinking of unique birthday gifts for your family and friends year after year can be difficult. Even though spending money on others has been shown to make you happier than spending on yourself, that doesn’t mean inspiration for what to buy comes easily. If you’re looking for gifts that are guaranteed to impress, read on. We have a tried and tested method of gift-giving which always lets the recipient know how much they mean to you. 

Create lasting memories by gifting experiences

Buying items like clothes or housewares can be subject to changing fashion trends, and trinkets and keepsakes quickly pile up. Admit it - there are probably old birthday gifts that you are holding on to that have no real place in your home. A lot of the time there is an unfair focus on gifts being useful in an attempt to avoid unnecessary clutter. But gifts are meant to bring joy, and there is an option that lessens anxiety for both the gift giver and the birthday boy or girl - an experience.

Research from the University of Texas at Austin has shown that people “derive more happiness from their experiences than from their possessions”, even if that possession is something they use every day. Giving a shared experience as a gift will also strengthen your relationship, and give you memories you can look back on together.

The reason for this response is that people are more likely to feel intense emotions when experiencing something special than they are when receiving or using a material gift. Researcher and assistant professor Cindy Chan of the University of Toronto uses the example of the differences in feeling when using a wallet versus watching a comedy show. The wallet may be a gift that you appreciate and treasure, but the laughter and joy felt at a comedy show are stronger emotions that create more of a lasting impact. 

LA has enough experiences to last a lifetime

If you’re an LA local you’ll know that there’s never a shortage of things to do here, no matter the time of year. Here are some examples of the different kinds of experience birthday gifts you can find nearby:

 

• Once in a lifetime - tick something off of their bucket list. You could try skydiving, a helicopter tour, or visiting their favorite film or TV studio. 

• Competitive - if they’re a winner and they’re not afraid to prove it, pick something competitive. Axe-throwing, working your way through an escape room, or paintballing are great choices.

• Creative - make something more than memories, and potentially learn a new skill to boot. You can find classes for things like pottery, cooking, life-drawing, or even glass-blowing.

• Sensory - something that stimulates the senses. Unique dining experiences, galleries, and live performances add an extra layer of excitement with their interactiveness. 

• Recurring - a subscription or membership counts as an experience; in fact, it’s an experience that will repeat itself regularly for the birthday boy or girl. A club membership or subscription for monthly goodies such as food, drink, or fresh cut flowers will keep those feel-good chemicals coming.

 

There are experience-centered gifts to suit all tastes and lifestyles. If you know the recipient loves spontaneity, you can bring them straight to their experience as a surprise and enjoy the look on their face when they realize what you’ve done for them. If you know they’re a person who likes to be in control, give them the option to book when the experience will take place, or if it’s a subscription, when it will begin. 

Flowers & plants improve emotional health

Here at French Florist we might not know how to fly a helicopter or blow glass for your loved one’s birthday, but we do know how to make people happy with flowers. Being given flowers is proven to have a lasting impact on the recipient’s mood, with participants in one study reporting “feeling less depressed, anxious and agitated after receiving flowers”.

Perhaps this is part of the reason why giving flowers as gifts is a tradition that has persevered for so long. Flowers have managed to bridge the gap between a material gift and an experience - because being given flowers is an experience that comes with ceremonial connotations. Since the COVID-19 pandemic more people have been sending each other flowers than ever before, without needing an occasion, acknowledging the “sense of theater” when a floral delivery arrives. 

Whether it’s birthday flowers, or a bouquet to say I’m thinking of you, flowers are an experience that is easy to share with your loved ones, and one that we love to play a part in providing. Order flowers from French Florist by 2pm for same-day local delivery across Los Angeles.