13 ‘add-ons’ to make pre-loved gifting easier
22nd April 2023 - 3.5 min read
Pre-loved gifting can be a bit scary to start with. You might feel like people will judge you. Giving something extra, preferably consumable, with your second-hand present can be a good way to ease into pre-loved gifting.
Here are some ideas to get you started:
1. Money or gift voucher
Easy. Give your pre-loved gift and pop some cash or an interest-related gift voucher into the card.
2. Food and drinks
The more sentimental and personal, the better. Eg favourite lollies, chocolate, chips, craft beer, nice wine, a favourite spirit for adults or a four pack of a favourite drink for kids.
Our latest present was three pre-loved Halo books, a baguette (their in-house joke!) and a packet of Doritos for one of Will’s mates. He loved it.
3. Your time
Time is one of the most precious and valuable gifts Eg. A pre-loved game plus a lesson on how to play, a pre-loved book read to a child, a game at the oval with the gift of a good-quality pre-loved ball. There are so many possibilities here so get creative.
4. A set of pre-loved tools with consumable materials to make something
Is someone showing interest in an activity you do? Give them some of your tools and some materials to get started. Eg. Air dry clay and some pre-loved tools, pre-loved cake making supplies and ingredients to bake, pre-loved sewing tools, some wool or fabric and a pattern (preferably from your own overflowing knitting/sewing stash!).
5. An adventure or outing
The adventure could be related to your pre-loved present or not. A fun day out is usually more memorable than anything else. Eg. movie tickets, exhibition, theatre show, theme park etc (Related to #3 ‘Your time’ but this one is more likely to cost $)
6. A special card
Don’t underestimate the value of beautiful, thoughtful words in a birthday (or special occasion) card. You don’t need to be a poet, just think about the person and write from your heart.
One of my favourite things to do is to take the age the person is turning and write “(eg Thirty-three) things I love about you”. Challenging? Yes. Time consuming? Yes. But it will likely be one of the most cherished presents they ever receive.
7. Something homemade
For the right person, a homemade gift is highly valuable. Eg. food, clothing, something related to what they love.
As a joke, we recently made a customized, knock-off version of Prime (YouTube influencer energy drink!) for my nephew who is obsessed with it and can’t, for love or money, get his hands on it… we wrapped and painted Sodaly cans to look like Prime. He said it was the best birthday present and tasted better than Prime anyway!
8. A kit to grow something
This could involve something to grow plus some pre-loved elements such as a drink dispenser to brew Kombucha, a seed strainer for growing sprouts or a plant pot. Eg. Kombucha scoby, mushroom growing kit, flower or vegie seeds, kefir starter etc.
9. A new gift AND a pre-loved gift
If you feel really uncomfortable giving pre-loved presents but want to try it out, why not give one of each? This method will help build up your pre-loved gifting confidence.
10. An Annual pass to explore a fun place near their home
Annual passes are gift that keeps on giving. Eg. Zoo, museums, fun parks, trampolining or rock climbing etc
11. A course or online class
This could relate to the pre-loved gift you’re giving or it could just be something they love or have always wanted to do. Eg. Yoga or exercise, art and crafts, music making or learn an instrument, brewing, meditation etc
12. An Egift
This is an environmentally low-impact add-on. You can make it more personal and choose the book or subscription, or you can give a voucher and let them choose their own. Eg. Ebook or emagazine subscription, movie, music or tv subscription service.
13. Plants or flowers
Bought or home-grown bunches of flowers, established indoor plants or plant cuttings make beautiful presents.
There are also subscription services which deliver flowers or an indoor plant each month.
If you’re not a confident pre-loved gifter yet, get creative with these add-ons. You could simply jam some cash into a card or you could take it up a notch and mix several of these add-ons together for a really special experience, for example, some pre-loved knitting tools, a trip to the wool shop and then a knitting lesson over a cup of tea and cake.
(Note: We’re trying to avoid burdening the planet with unwanted stuff so make sure your add-on is something the person will actually want and use.)
If you need a little bit of extra confidence to help you give pre-loved, hopefully some of these ideas will help you. Remember, a definition for gift is “something that is bestowed voluntarily and without compensation” so if you’ve put some thought and effort into your present, you should feel proud of it, whatever it is.