Time for a giftavention

‘Tis the wonderful season of giving for your family and friends.

It’s also best time to see if your friends have been thinking of you for the whole year and got you the best present, or if they forgot about you all together by giving you the gift you gave them last year.

This year, however, it’s time for change.

Say no to gift cards, socks or “combined Christmas and birthday” presents. This year, it’s time for you to give the gift that keeps on giving…brutal honesty.

Here are some gift ideas that will definitely send a subliminal message to your recipients.

We all have that one friend who’s a major distraction when you’re studying because they keep playing with their pens or getting up to walk around.

This Christmas, tell them it’s time to sit down and to stop distracting you by giving them the Fidget Cube, the result of a successful Kickstarter campaign that helps fidgety people have something to play with.

The knobs and clasps are sure to keep your friend entertained for at least a few minutes, and you can have a peaceful study session without having to tell them to sit down yet again.

You can also give this to people who won’t stop talking. Maybe their brains will have something to concentrate on, rather than trying to tell you the same story over and over again.

If Alice and the white rabbit lived in modern Singapore, you’d be sure that Alice would give the rabbit a Kan Cheong (high strung in Hokkien) Spider clock as a nice touch to his 15-storey burrow.

More than just a subtle message, this clock will remind your friend of how panicky they are and that they should stop and smell the roses once in a while. Alternatively, you can give it to your friend who’s too chill for comfort and needs to be a little more kan cheong.

Just remember to label your gifts properly or you might just end up giving this clock to your arachnophobic friend instead. Whoops!

Know of a friend who likes to come to potluck sessions armed with only a bag of chips and a one-litre bottle of soft drinks? This gift will be sure to cut their lazy habit.

Quell their excuses with this apron that not only gives you the recipe for Singapore’s most famous dish, but also protects them from the splatter of the sauce whilst they cook.

The recipe is printed upside down for easy reference while you cook, a thoughtful gift for your friend who won’t cook.

You can get this Chilli Crab apron from any Museum Label store.

We all know Singapore is a stressful city.

This Christmas, give your friend who’s shaking from all the stress she’s bottled up over the whole year, a box of flavoured tea.

Paired with a card that says, “You were tea-riffic this year, don’t stress out too much!”, this gift is made for friends who may be pushing themselves past their limits.

If they’re still stressing themselves out till their hair turns all 50 shades of grey, throw in a box of hair dye! You may get a few shocked and possibly angry reactions, but it will be worth it when you see your friend’s mental health improving over the next year. And you can take credit for it.

If any of these gifts fail, fret not. You can still donate them to charity or keep them for yourself; it’s a win-win situation.

Happy holidays!