Are you wondering what to buy a hoarder for Christmas? Maybe you’re facing the dilemma of what to get for the person who has three of everything.
When choosing what to get a hoarder for Christmas or any other occasion, it helps to keep a few key characteristics in mind:
- Invisible
- Consumable
- Doesn’t take up (too much) space
If you can select a gift for a hoarder that fits any of these three criteria, you can be relatively comfortable that you aren’t going to make matters worse for your friend or loved one who struggles with hoarding tendencies.
Let’s take a look at each of the 3 hoarder gift qualities in more detail:
Invisible
As in, it’s not an object that you can hold or hoard. Think of experiences, sensations, and happy emotions conjured by the hoarder getting to spend time with people that they love (e.g., you). For example, you can take them to a holiday musical event, drive around to see Christmas lights and stop off for cocoa and s’mores afterwards, teach them how to knit so they’ll actually be able to use those 50 skeins of yarn they bought with the intention of learning someday., or join them for an exercise class, massage, walk in nature, or whatever else their favorite activity may be.
Consumable
This refers to good stuff that can be consumed, such as a shared meal, delicious homemade treats, candy, lotion, or self-care products. Avoid items that are in collectible tins or packaging that might be too tempting for the hoarder to recycle or throw away. (Keep in mind you never know what a person who struggles with hoarding may hang onto, no matter how worthless it may seem. Anything decorative or sentimental may be kept and you may not be able to prevent it, and that’s not your fault. That recycled newspaper you used to wrap last year’s gift may still be in the house.) Etsy has some great items in their Holiday Shop that you can still have shipped to arrive by Christmas, if you’re like me and STILL haven’t gotten gifts for people yet. Plus you’ll be supporting small businesses and artisans in the process.
Doesn’t take up (too much) space
Usually a person with hoarding tendencies doesn’t have much free space to spare. That won’t stop them from wanting to save an item anyway, but your goal as a conscious gift-giver is to not burden someone with excess items when you know they struggle with acquiring too many things or not being able to let things go. Items in this category can include things like gift cards for a meal or a movie, a digital book, digital photos, or a digital certificate or one-page printout about a donation you made in their name to a charitable organization. Charity Navigator has a handy list of charities whose donations signify a tangible item. That is, “You donated $x and bought a goat for a family.”
Or how about this for a creative, totally last-minute gift? You can buy your hoarder friend the “Most Hilarious Gift of 2022” (according to Established Titles anyway) by purchasing them a personal Lordship or Ladyship Title Pack with dedicated land in Scotland. In addition to making your friend feel fancy as hell, you’re also preserving some Scottish woodlands. It takes only a matter of minutes to buy your friend their title and print out their certificate or email a PDF to them.
If you want other specific gift ideas, you might take a look at my holiday gift guides for 2021 and 2020, as the principles are still the same. You might also take a look at my favorite organizing and storage products or my list of handy books about hoarding and decluttering if your friend is ready to start making changes and needs some additional help or guidance.
Hope and joy and holiday cheer,
Rachel
