Yes, that would be the best Christmas present: Another year of free time in good health!
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Luthiers / Woodworkers Christmas Present Poll
- Thread starter Dark Horse
- Start date
Yes, that would be the best Christmas present: Another year of free time in good health!
I’m like the kid in the old song wishing for his two front teeth, but I’d like to regain the use of my right hand. Herniated disks in my neck have put my right arm out of commission. hopefully it’s temporary and or repairable by Christmas.
Oddly enough, I have all of the equipment and tools I need for the moment. Santa can give my gift to someone that really needs it, and I'll take a rock 
My wife and I have an excellent gift idea system worked out: we put stuff in the Amazon cart "save for later". Hints about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but it's effective. The big downside of course, we have a pretty good idea what we are getting. I should open my own account so she cant see what I'm buying her.
This year I'm going to be tricky and buy her stuff with cash. The truth of the matter: I don't really "need" anything, I just WANT stuff.
This year I'm going to be tricky and buy her stuff with cash. The truth of the matter: I don't really "need" anything, I just WANT stuff.
I’d like Santa to send the elves over to insulate and heat my shop, rewire it, and improve the drainage so it doesn’t flood every other spring. But I’d settle for good noise isolating Bluetooth headphones.
Experienced woodworkers that visit my cramped shop almost always make a comment of the form: "You have some of the nicest tools I've ever seen, right next to some of the most crappy tools I have ever seen." This is absolutely true, and the explanation is that pretty much all of the really nice tools were presents from my wife. So, I definitely can see the utility of a thread like this!
On the subject of tools which I would have never bought for myself before I received them as gifts, but which now I would have a hard time doing without, please let me recommend hand stitched rasps. Mine are from Liogier. Absolutely fantastic.
On the subject of tools which I would have never bought for myself before I received them as gifts, but which now I would have a hard time doing without, please let me recommend hand stitched rasps. Mine are from Liogier. Absolutely fantastic.
We do that as well, makes gift giving MUCH easier, and everyone gets what they want (and in the sizes they want)My wife and I have an excellent gift idea system worked out: we put stuff in the Amazon cart "save for later". Hints about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but it's effective. The big downside of course, we have a pretty good idea what we are getting. I should open my own account so she cant see what I'm buying her.
My wife and I established pretty early on in our relationship that we both prefer knowing what we're getting and that it's exactly we want over receiving a surprise gift of uncertain desirability. It's made birthdays and Christmas much easier to navigate.My wife and I have an excellent gift idea system worked out: we put stuff in the Amazon cart "save for later". Hints about as subtle as a sledgehammer, but it's effective. The big downside of course, we have a pretty good idea what we are getting. I should open my own account so she cant see what I'm buying her.
I think this goes hand-in-hand with the more general rule that you should never surprise someone with a gift of something relevant to their expertise or hobby. The recipient tends to have a more fixed idea of what they need than the giver can ever guess at. Every on-topic gift that the giver happened to be lucky with will be diminished by the many failed guesses. When in doubt, give an adult socks. Everybody can use some good socks.
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There are some obvious edge cases that fail this test... If your spouse always buys the same strings for their instrument, surprising them with more is cool. If you find a brand-new color of fountain pen ink, don't bother asking me if I want it, just get it. There are certain consumables or types of things that are fairly easy to guess at: They're not particularly special, you're just sparing the recipient the chore of resupply, which is also a nice gesture. But you have to be confident you're getting the right ones, otherwise you're going to be reenacting one of those scenes from "The Simpsons" where the kids are disappointed by what Homer picked out for them.
Exactly!!! Considering I’m still trying to find time to finish my build-off entry that started 11 months ago, I’d like to enter into a new category:
“Nicest instrument that can be made in seven-minute increments.”
I asked for socks one too many times. I got banned from asking them ever again.
Freekmagnet
Commercial User
Yeah, I’m just trying to make Christmas easier for everyone else. What could be easier than knowing that every year, I want socks and underwear?
A riving knife for my old Jet tablesaw. I missed my chance to buy a removable one years ago, the “removed for clarity” bolt-on one that came with it sucks hard, can’t be used with a crosscut sled, easily knocked out of whack, etc. I’ve been looking at the Micro-Jig deluxe splitter system that sockets into a zero clearance throat plate. Of course if Santa REALLY dug me, he’d get me a Sawstop.
Oddly enough, I have all of the equipment and tools I need for the moment. Santa can give my gift to someone that really needs it, and I'll take a rock
Santa should give you a challenge. A simple idea for a new project that you realize you must build. That would bring you a new year of fun and fulfillment.
Christmas/end of the year means time to restock on all my sandpaper/belts/sleeves as well as change out the dust collector bag. Could probably use a little restocking of tapes and glued too.
