Christmas gift giving

Mistletoe, silent night and a star topped tree embellished with an assortment of presents has become the Christmas picture, but where does this tradition originate from? St. Nicholas’ gift laden sleigh? The three wise men’s offerings of frankincense gold and myrrh? Or perhaps Ancient Rome...We here at Gifts2TheDoor decided to find out...

The practice of exchanging gifts with ones nearest and dearest’s does in fact originate back to Ancient Rome. Early historical records specify that back then, senior officials were required to bestow gifts upon the Emperor. Whilst they were not quite up to our extravagant modern day standards, they were Christmas gifts none the less. Christmas gift giving also began to take off at various Roman festivals; initial typical presents would include blessed tokens, such as a branch from a sacred grove. The aforementioned branches soon developed into more sizable gifts such as food produce, precious jewellery and aromatic candles. The Church at this time considered this tradition as pagan, and consequently discouraged it. However the masses adored it and it was here to stay. So come the Middle Ages, it was accepted, and gift-giving became an annual customary tradition. 

So now the origin has been clarified, just what makes a good Christmas present? Well we think that a multitude of factors can affect this, such as the age, gender and relation of the recipient. It is also worth bearing in mind at what level you know them personally; if for example it for the boss, or a distant relative one of our straight forward Christmas hamper such as our ‘White Christmas’ or ‘The Night Before Christmas’ hampers. If it is, on the contrary a best friend or perhaps a younger brother, their present choice may command a little more thought. Consider their pastimes, personalities and things that they generally enjoy doing.  For example, if you know someone who has a penchant for Pete Murray why not send them one of our ‘Pete Murray: Summer at Eureka’ CDs, a treat for the ears indeed! Or for the boy that never grew up (and let’s be honest, that includes most men) how about treating them to one of our ‘Remote Controlled Micro Combat Helicopter’ sets?

Whether you want to look after the pennies this Christmas or go a little crazy, you are sure to find something absolutely perfect at gifts2thedoor, because remember we have made present buying our business!