GIFT GUIDE: My Favorite Unique Gift Ideas + Personalized Gift Ideas

Happy GIFT GUIDE MONTH on CUR! Today’s Gift Guide is always one of the most requested + one of my personal favorites. 🙂 It’s full of unique gift ideas and personalized gift ideas for a more meaningful present that won’t break the bank! This is one of the first dropped guides since custom pieces can oftentimes take a bit longer to create and ship, so they’re better to order sooner rather than later. SO many of these ideas are things you’ve heard me talk about before because I own many of them myself + lovelovelove…hence why I’d recommend them to you. 😉 There are a few items listed out below not in the collage, so make your list but check it twice! Cheers to getting everyone crossed off with something they’ll lovelovelove.

– These are SO stinking cute! A very colorful, fun way to stack her wrists with her favorite people + words.
– Such a sweet gift for littles – any/every little on my list would love something like this.
– A Stoner Clover-inspired pouch at a fraction of the cost – Olivia’s turned out so cute! I got her one for storing her Tonies for travel, but really, it’s good for anything…can be a good underwear/socks pouch for kids traveling, too, or your own anything bag for skincare, makeup, hair stuff, the works!
Custom SM trek tumbler – Everyone’s favorite better-than-a-Stanley-cup tumbler, but personalized with her name!
Initial beaded necklace – A sweet personal option for a pre-teen
Face heart mug – A baby’s mug shot on a mug – nothing cuter! But lovelovelove this because it’s versatile – you can get your own face as a funny gift to your significant other, or even your boss’ face as a Secret Santa gift for the office…sentimental & sweet OR super silly!

Birth month wildflower bouquet – Such a cool way to gift a bouquet that doesn’t die. 😉
Pearl name necklace – I bought one for Olivia AND myself as a cute matching moment that’s still personal to the person – super cute!
Baby name puzzle – A classic…I feel like EVERY baby nowadays needs one, right? Lovelovelove that you can customize every detail of this one, from the letter coloring to any added figures, pegs on the pieces – even adding a stand so that it doubles as decor!
Tiny Tags – My Tiny Tags are some of the most meaningful jewelry I own and what I wear every single day. I made mine to stack together lengthwise and have this one with my own name, this one to represent my marriage, and mini dog tags with the kids’ names and birthdays.

Acrylic family calendar – One of my personal favorite pieces in our house! I knew I wanted a big way to organize as a family without feeling cluttered or tacky, and this just takes the cake. It’s so chic + changes every month obviously, and has helped our coordination and planning tenfold. Makes a great family gift, especially if someone just moved!

Little Words Project bracelets – One of my FAVORITE gift ideas (+ favorite things!) ever. These are the cutest customizable bracelets. You can opt for any of their pre-made bestsellers or completely personalize your own; I’ve done both options and both are fabuous. I’ve gotten girlfriends their power words or phrases – I’ve also made some with my favorite life Bible verses which I am OBSESSED with as a meaningful, super personal idea. + get 15% off right now with code CUR15 at checkout! Bless up!

Initial cosmetic/toiletry bag – Such a popular, classic bag – a bit like the expensive Stoney Clover look, but for less!
Personalized wooden spoon – If your recipient loveloveloves to cook or runs the kitchen – this is a special idea that’s under $20.
Monogram family doormat – Especially great for anyone who might’ve moved recently!

Monogram door mat – Another classic, chic gift idea for anyone who has everything.

Monogram hand towels – A simple, chic upgrade to a bathroom space – also great for the new homeowners!
Mejuri diamond letter charm – I have this and am SO IMPRESSED with the quality – it’s truly stunning. A great option because she can add it to her choice chain regardless of metal, length etc, so it’s impossible to mess it up.
United Monograms – They make such cute monogrammed pieces and have matching mommy and me options, which I lovelovelove. Discount code ERICA10 works for 10% off your whole order!

Personalized Twas the Night Before Christmas book – Because the kids need some personalization, too. This is such a keepsake – the classic story with their name on the cover!
Personalized gold ornament – Another cute custom ornament option!
Personalized face mug – My personal favorite of every season. 😉 The sweet shop owner was so bombarded with these orders she had to temporarily close shop to fulfill everything for the holidays! They’re seriously perfect. Get for somebody’s kid, pet, spouse – can be sweet or funny! (As seen in Cool Sh*t I Lovelovelove here!).

Game used baseball bat bottle openers – I picked up one of these for my dad last year and it was such a fun, unique gift. They use actual game-used baseball bats from the MLB to create beer bottle openers, and it says on the opener which team’s bat it was. Then, when it arrives at your house, there’s an insert in the box to tell you all about the specific game it was used in – so freaking cool, especially if you’ve got a baseball fanatic on your shopping list!
Long distance friendship mug – For the cross-country besties!
Portrait cartoon – Special option for turning any favorite photo into something more, whether it’s for a significant other or best friend, parent, etc.
Shutterfly photo book – My top recommendation always for unique gift ideas AND personalized gift ideas because it’s just so good – perfect for the sentimental type. I’ve been making one for J for 8 years now and it’s ALWAYS his favorite gift – plus it makes a great family keepsake as years go by! I set mine up as “remember when?” books, documenting every date or event or memory we’ve shared together through the entire year. I include pictures plus a little note on what we did, what we ate, etc. And it’s the absolute PERFECT way to commemorate things that might otherwise get lost through the years – the little things. To this day we lovelovelove pulling out our first books from our first years together and remembering our favorite date nights or fun little adventures!

Nursery name blocks – How PRECIOUS, amiright?? I first saw these in a nursery as shelf decor, but they’re also functional for learning the letters + spelling of your kiddo’s name. Customize for whatever color scheme you desire!
Storm cloud – This falls under the “unique gift ideas” category and is just so dang cool! It’s a glass cloud that has this special liquid inside that crystalizes different patterns with changing air pressure. For the science buff (or the person who has everything else already!) – totally neat gift!
Monogrammed multi-level cheese board wheel – I MEAN. Multi-level cheese board? That’s monogrammed?? Say no more!
Personalized photo stamp ornament – If you’ve been on a trip together, get a postage stamp with a photo from your vacation!
Monogrammed hand towel – SO classic and chic for the lady who has everything.
Artifact embroidery – OK SO this is the St. Louis-based small shop that I bought our cat memorial embroidery pieces from when Moose and Pumpkin passed away last year, and they were simply stunning. This is both personalized and they’re definitely unique gift ideas, but so, so meaningful. Forever keepsakes!

Photo Booth strip photo frame – We have one of these in our living room with all of the strips from wedding photobooths during our time as wedding dates together – it’s SUCH a sweet way to store photostrips, and I’ve never seen anything else like it! Makes a good gift by itself, or fill it with photostrips from the start for the recipient to commemorate memories together!
23andMe DNA test – I was skeptical of DNA tests for a long time (maybe a conspiracy theory? HA), but I got one for J for his last birthday because this one in particular also shares health profile information, so you can see what you might be more prone to genetically! But especially since J never knew his grandparents on either side and had pretty limited knowledge of family history, so even just knowing more about where his ancestors were from (and with that, Liv’s) was eye-opening and cool to know!
Under star map – A girlfriend gifted us one of these when Liv was born and it’s one of the most sentimental, meaningful things shelved in her room!
Personalized book stacks – Ours are some of our favorite pieces of home decor! Makes a GREAT gift for a family, especially if they recently moved or added a family member since it can double as housewarming AND can include pet names + paw prints! BONUS: The sweet shopowner passed along code ERICA to give you 10% off your stack!

Handwritten letter blanket – If you have older kids that you’re helping shop for parents or grandparents, how cute is this idea?!
Monogram cheese & crackers board – Because nothing says MERRY CHRISTMAS like monogrammed charcuterie. 😉
5-piece whiskey decanter set – For any whiskey-loving gent – the perfect man cave accessory
Soundwave print – I got J one of these for our 5th wedding anniversary since the theme was “wood” and they make signs on mixed media. It turned out *beautifully* – you can opt to get the little QR code printed directly onto the piece so that the recipient can just hold their smartphone up to it and it will play the voice memo or song soundwave instantly. (I played the piano and sang and recorded that alongside one of our wedding photos!)
16K gold name bracelet – At under $20, this one’s a steal!
Face golf balls – For the new dad or granddad’s next golf outing – pair with a day pass to the course!

Personalized phone case – Get her name or her monogram – both so cool!
Personalized family recipe board – How SPECIAL if you’ve got a really good family recipe handed down through generations! If you’re the one handing it down, hand it down on a board like this for a lifelong memory.
Custom engraved cutting board – Personalized and pretty as an offering for a holiday housewarming or hostress gift! Under $40 with multiple patterns to choose from, too.
Initial necklace with dates – Another more affordable option that lets you layer on a few initials/dates for a few kids, family members, etc/
Photo desk calendar – I’m such a big fan of Shutterfly for gifting; this little desk calendar is such a cute personalized option for a grandparent, parent, or even teacher’s desk space.
Personalized piggy bank – Fun for the bigger kids who “get” the piggy bank concept and want to start saving their Tooth Fairy prizes in one place. 😉
Custom name necklace – My OG necklace for the OG. 🙂 Code ERICA15 should get you 15% off!

Monogram tumbler glass – Such a chic addition to a bar cart.
Monogram hooks – Cool addition to a home that already “has everything” – customize with everyone’s initials!