20 Unique Christmas Gift Ideas for Your Special Man
Are you looking for gift ideas for the man in your life? Is he a hard person to shop for during the rush of the holiday season? Fear not! Our list will cover some of the best gift ideas geared towards your man. We’ll cover different areas like indoor trinkets, outdoor tools, personal hygiene and grooming, fun toys, and some basic essentials for every kind of man. Hopefully, this list will give you a gift idea of something he would love, or at least spark some alternative ideas for you!
Without further ado, here’s our 20 gift ideas for him!
Kitchen Essentials
There's a few items that some men would love to have in their kitchen. Men love to cook meats, and some of the best presents revolve around those long smoking days, roasts in the oven, and pan-seared filets. Read on to see what we've included in our kitchen section below!
Cast Iron Pan
One of the best gifts I’ve ever received (and given to a fellow man) is a cast iron pan. Every household should have at least one cast iron pan, and gifting one to your special man is a great idea. You’ll reap the benefits of his cooking, and its great multi-purpose functions allow it to be used in baking and on stovetop. It’s the perfect gift!
This pan from Sur Le Table is a reasonable price (under $50!) for a 10-inch pan. They also often come in 8-inch and 12-inch varieties! Williams-Sonoma offers this 12-inch pan for less than $40!
Large Wooden Cutting Board
If you’re cooking some top-notch meats on your cast iron pan, you might want a top-notch cutting board to accompany it! Large wooden cutting boards are a stunning gift to give – and it’ll make him want to cook meats *just* so he can use this cutting board. Whether it’s made from oak or walnut, a board with personality is just what he might want!
This acacia cutting board by Williams-Sonoma is just under $60. There’s also this dark walnut cutting board by Crate and Barrel that sits just under $100. Remember, these boards are built to last, so they’re going to be pricey!
Steak Knife Set
Need a new steak knife set, or a first steak knife set? This creates the perfect trifecta of gifts, with our cast iron pan and wooden cutting board. Often, knife sets come in packs of four, six, or eight, and they can be many different styles and prices. If you’re considering the wooden cutting board, a nice compliment to the cutting board is wooden handled knives!
This $100 8-piece set from Williams-Sonoma would pair nicely with a cutting board if you wanted the knives to match. Alternatively, this stainless-steel 6-piece set is clean and sleek; it all depends on what you think your man would like best!
Copper Bar Tool Set
Does he like to make mixed drinks, whether cocktails or mocktails? If so, consider getting him a bar tool mixer set! This is a great gift idea for those who like hosting parties, who want to learn a new skill, or for someone who just wants to make better mixed drinks. It’s a beautiful set, especially for the man who is hard to shop for.
This 9-piece acacia wood and copper bar set from Sierra is $60 and includes all your necessities for starting to make mixed drinks – and at a reasonable price!
Outdoor Needs
If your man is an avid outdoorsman, there's a good chance he'd love more than a few trinkets or tools that he just isn't willing to spend the money on. These four ideas below are some good items for him and range in price, but it's sure to make a lasting impact on his life outdoors! Added comfort and added ease are two things men love the most.
Hatchet and Knife Set
If he likes camping, he probably likes making fires, too. Something essential for starting fires is making tinder! A good hatchet and knife set can help ease that process of making tinder from larger logs. If you’re in an area where you can collect dead-and-down logs, the hatchet is great for hacking off tree limbs!
This set from Sierra is a great deal – less than $20! There are other sets online, but none appear to be as good of quality and price than Sierra.
Camp Chairs
Possibly one of the best investments for an outdoorsman is a camp chair. These camp low chairs are great after a long day of hiking, fishing, kayaking, or roasting marshmallows on the fire. The main caveat here is buying two – one for you and one for your man! The reward will be well worth it, as these chairs are far comfier than higher chairs!
Eddie Bauer has some of the best camp low chairs on the market – and they’re a pretty good deal most of the time! They typically go for around $60 but Eddie Bauer frequently runs sales; sometimes these chairs go as cheap as $30!
Outdoor Coffee Makers
Camp coffee on cold mornings is possibly one of the best joys in life! There are a variety of ways to make coffee while camping, so here’s a few of the best options! This Eddie Bauer French Press rings in at $75, which is a lot; however, it has a capacity of 1.4 liters, which is enough to satisfy a family – or two people multiple times! Another option is a Mocha Pot offered by Backcountry. At 739mL, it’s half the size of the French Press, but it’s also only $50; you’ll need to decide how you like to brew your coffee! Finally, the Stanley pour over takes the morning pour over coffee to a new level. This solid design is $45 when not on sale, and it comes with a cup as well!
Solar Powered Light
A cool and inexpensive lantern makes a great functional gift. A light powered by the sun us even cooler! This light is powered solely by solar power, you can place it on your dashboard as you drive to your destination or hang it off your backpack while you’re hiking to your campsite. It’s ultralight too, which means it takes up minimal space and weight in his backpack. It’s also cheap and expandable! Keeping once of these in your car means you always have light if you’re ever caught in the middle of nowhere at night.
Both REI and Sierra sell this specific solar powered lantern but Sierra has it for much cheaper.
Clothes and Outerwear
Men are sometimes picky about their clothes but some men also don't refresh their closet often enough. Sometimes, it's up to their significant other to keep their style up-to-date and dress them. It's something they appreciate (and may never tell you they appreciate) because it shows you're looking out for him and his image! These are just a few ideas, but hopefully it helps you think of even more ideas!
Golf Shirt
Golf shirts are great for a number of reasons! They're good for casual events, perfect for the office, and formal yet athletic enough for, well, golfing! He may have a few golf shirts already but he may not have one real nice shirt. Consider spending a little more money on a nicer shirt he can feel proud to wear to events and with his friends!
This shirt from Callaway gets discounted pretty frequently and is formal enough for office wear and golfing alike. Another more expensive option is the Bonobos golf shirt, ringing in at just under $90.
Cold Weather Baselayers
If you’re living in a cold weather environment, cold weather baselayers are necessary! Consider investing in some nice baselayers for him – he might have some, and he might not. This kind of gift shows you care for him, and that you don’t want him to freeze out there on the ski slopes or hiking trails!
Eddie Bauer carries solid baselayers for both tops and bottoms. These pants and this top are a set, and are sure to keep him warm during those cold winter days. Another option is this looser-fitting quarter zip that could go over other baselayers!
Sun Hoodie
These lightweight hoodies are all the rage for a number of activities, including hiking, backpacking, climbing, fishing, paddling, and just about any other outdoor activity! Many companies make their own version of a sun hoodie with varying degrees of weight; for the most part, they’re no lighter than a regular shirt! These hoodies will be a go-to for him when he has long days outside and he doesn’t remember to lather up the sunscreen.
As stated before, there are so many options. Here’s some from Eddie Bauer, REI, and Backcountry. If you know his favorite store, head there instead!
Flannel Shirt
Wearing a flannel shirt in fall is quintessential to most men out there. Nearly every man has a flannel shirt and most have plaid because it’s the most common! However, there are other options out there he may not have previously discovered. These other designs will make him appreciate it more than the rest, especially because it was gifted to him!
These flannels from L.L. Bean, Wrangler, and Eddie Bauer all come in patterns other than plaid. While they’re more expensive in price, these are built to last and he’ll be able to wear it for many years to come.
Games and Toys
Men will always be boys; it's just a fact of life that the bigger the man, the bigger the toy! They have unlimited energy, a yearn to play (and play hard), and to do this, a man needs some fun games and toys. We've got ideas for both indoors and outdoors down below!
Board Games
Find a new board game for the two of you to play together! This can be a two-player game, or allow for more players in the event you two host family or friends with some frequency. Options range from easier games like Scrabble and Uno to more complex games like Settlers of Catan, Beyond Balderdash, and Ticket to Ride. Your options are nearly limitless!
Remote Control Car
Look, this may seem a little childish at first, but watching the sheer excitement of dads at the beach with their RC cars is a beautiful site. He probably doesn’t even know he wants one of these, so there’s no need to break the bank on this purchase. But it is something that’s sure to bring out his boyish side. Soon enough, he’ll be building ramps and going off jumps!
Here’s a few options from Amazon, Target, and Walmart. Again, there’s no need to spend massive amounts of money on this – but if he likes it, that’s a win!
Video Games
This is a hard one because there are numerous game systems he may play on, but a good rule of thumb is to take an interest into what he plays, and perhaps consider what you may like! Get a game the both of you can play together, or something he may like but doesn’t want to shell out extra money. If those options are gone, there’s always the option of paying for a Game Pass or an online multiplayer pass for a few months! And, if you’re unsure, a gift card always works, too.
Beach Toys
Yes, we mean beach toys. From footballs to frisbees and Raquetball to baseball, these toys are only limited by your imagination! Some guys like to be active, so help them indulge in their guilty pleasures and get them something that will help them run around. All that energy needs to get out somehow, and this is a great way to keep him young while still showing you care about him.
Personal Hygiene
The personal hygiene world for men has always been pretty limited and often features the same scents over and over again. Within the late 2010s, companies started to recognize this and catered some products specifically towards men, offering new soaps, shampoos, conditioners, lotions, grooming tools, and everything else that comes with being a man. Gone are the days where there's only three choices; now, he can level up his game with some (or all!) of these personal hygiene products!
Hand Lotion
In desert climates, lotion is important to prevent cracked skin and keeping yourself moisturized. There are many different lotions, but not many geared towards men with manly scents. That’s where Dr. Squatch comes in! Their hand lotions have scents fit for men with scents reminiscent of forests, bourbon, and waterfalls. Another option is Duke Cannon! They have face and hand lotions fit for men. Both companies offer products on their websites and in common stores like Walmart, Target, CVS, Walgreens, and more.
Toiletries Travel Bag
If he travels frequently (or even if he doesn’t), most men don’t have a nice travel case to store their toiletries. Their combs, toothbrush, toothpaste, and deodorant all go into a gallon sized sip-lock bag, and for most men, that’s good enough! However, those get holes in them, start to leak and won’t last forever. Having a small travel bag that holds all of his toiletries and tools is a gamechanger!
This small travel bag (or something similar) ought to do the trick. It has different compartments for necessary items and will keep his belongings organized neatly. No more plastic bags!
Electric Beard Trimmer
If he hasn’t hopped on the electric beard trimmer train yet, now might be the perfect time to gift him his own trimmer. These are great in a pinch or for regular, weekly or everyday use. Trimmers vary in price and quality, so you’ll want to choose your product carefully. Generally, most of the trimmers on the market will get the job done!
The Phillips Norelco beard trimmer has been around for quite some time. It’s been tested and proven as one of the best beard trimmers out there. Another top candidate is the Manscaped Beard Hedger series. This trimmer is more expensive, but offers more lengths and includes a travel bag.
Natural Soaps
One of the best products out there are natural soaps, including bar soaps, shampoo and conditioners. These have taken the personal hygiene market by storm recently and customers rave over the scents! These soaps and personal products are more expensive than your average bar of soap or 2-in-1 shampoo and conditioner combo, but it’s sure to make an impact on him.
One of the most popular soaps on the market is Dr. Squatch, which went viral a few years back from Super Bowl Ads. With scents like Wood Barrel Bourbon, Pine Tar, Birchwood Breeze and more, these soaps are among the most popular! Another popular brand is Dapper Yankee with scents like Citrus Blonde IPA, Fireside, and Rodeo Man. Both brands also carry their own shampoo, conditioner and deodorant.
This completes our list! Hopefully, your brain has started turning with some great ideas for your boyfriend, fiancé, husband, or that other special man in your life. He’s sure to like any of these options, but most of all, will appreciate the time and energy you’ve put in to thinking about a gift for him. Ideally, this helps cultivate your relationship even deeper than before!
If you’re looking for ideas for ‘her’ this holiday season, you can find that blog right here!
Happy shopping and we'll see you on the next one!