Twelve Days of Christmas Gift Ideas
Looking for a novel idea for Christmas gift-giving?
How about a series of gifts on the theme of The Twelve Days of Christmas? I have selected some gift ideas for each day, based on the verses of the popular Christmas carol. The gifts range from silly to swanky, and everything in between. Most of all, this is a really fun, original approach to Christmas gift giving!
photo by Matthew and used under a CC license
The Twelve Days of Christmas: the gift list
without all the repeating lines
Day one: A partridge in a pear tree
Day two: Two turtle doves
Day three: Three French hens
Day four: Four calling birds
Day five: Five golden rings
Day six: Six geese a-laying
Day seven: Seven swans a-swimming
Day eight: Eight maids a-milking
Day nine: Nine ladies dancing
Day ten: Ten lords a-leaping
Day eleven: Eleven pipers piping
Day twelve: Twelve drummers drumming
On the First day of Christmas: a Partridge ...
Partridges are small birds such as quail, which are cute AND delicious. You can go for the real thing and give a gift of gourmet partridge. Or perhaps you'd prefer to give a more cuddly version, with a singing plush partridge quail, or an ornamental partridge. Here are some ideas to get you started!
... in a Pear Tree
If you really wanted to, you could perch your partridge among the branches of a real pear tree. Or if you just want to give a nod to the pear tree, choose something smaller, like pear scented body lotion, or a pear gift basket.
On the Second day of Christmas: Two Turtle Doves
There is a wide variety of turtle dove gifts to choose from. Depending on your budget and sense of humor, you can go with the turtle dove decoys or the Swarovski turtle dove ornament. Perhaps a plush turtle dove? Or a beautiful turtle dove ornament for the tree? Here are some great turtle dove ideas for you to consider with your other Twelve Days of Christmas gifts.
On the Third Day of Christmas: Three French Hens
Three French Hens? Yes, here are some ideas for you. You might be wondering what French Hens taste like... (you know what's coming) Chicken, of course!
Toy chicken figurines would work for your three French hens. If you want to make them look more "French," you could draw little berets on their heads.
Want to tickle somebody's funny bone? Try three rubber chickens.
On the Fourth day of Christmas: Four Calling Birds
Well, as you can imagine, a set of four calling birds is hard to come by these days, but these items will work just as well, and they won't leave feathers and droppings all over your house!
You could get some singing plush birds, which are very chubby and cute. You could get bird call device, so you can do your own impression of a calling bird, or buy a recording of bird calls.
On the Fifth day of Christmas: Five Gold Rings
Well, Five Gold Rings could really be a budget-buster, unless you're really going all-out to impress someone. Here are some suggestions for various spending levels. Fortunately, gold rings come in every design imaginable, from fine jewelry to funny costume pieces. You're sure to be able to find something suitable!
On the Sixth day of Christmas: Six Geese a-laying
All right, more birds... Unless you really want live geese -- and I'm guessing you don't -- we used to have geese when I was little, and they would chase and bite us. I had a friend who refused to get out of the car when her mom brought her over to play, until we chased the geese away. Geese can be scary! But I digress. There are some fine goose gifts that are guaranteed not to bite.
Not to mention the whole slew of real goose food products. From a whole roasted Christmas goose to goose liver pate or foie gras, if your gift recipient is a fan of fancy foods, you're in luck.
On the Seventh day of Christmas: Seven Swans a-swimming
There are more swan products than you'd think, so you have many to choose from. There are huge (larger than life-size) inflatable swan pool floats. Or you could go with a petite swan figurine.
For some reason, there are also plenty of kitchen-related swan products, such as pitchers, dishes, and aprons.
On the Eighth day of Christmas: Eight Maids a-milking
Now, I'm quite sure that it's illegal to buy and sell maids-a-milking. You'll have to use your imagination on this topic and go for something that is maid or milk related, or metaphorical, or just plain silly.
Another idea would be Milk-Maid Caramels.
On the Ninth day of Christmas: Nine Ladies Dancing
Keeping in mind that this is a G-rated page, here are some ideas for dancing lady gifts!
Ballet slippers, Dance Dance Revolution, Dance Central video game, or... the Rockettes! Of course, they are many more than 9 ladies dancing, but have you seen their high kicks? Amazing.
On the Tenth day of Christmas: Ten Lords a-leaping
Oh, the hens and swans and geese were much easier to find than these Lords-a-Leaping. Don't these troublesome Lords have anything better to do? Anyway, here are some ideas!
Lord of the Rings books or movies, Lord of the Flies (not very Christmasy, but...), Lords-a-Leaping tree ornaments. But I think Michael Flatley's "Lord of the Dance" is the best!
On the Eleventh day of Christmas: Eleven Pipers Piping
This is going to be one rowdy gift exchange, what with all the milking and leaping and piping. Here are some Pipers Piping gift ideas!
Bagpipes. Real Bagpipes! Who hasn't wanted to try out a set of these honking pipes?
A recording of bagpipe music. This would be more affordble, and probably less annoying, than real bagpipes.
A batch of old timey corncob pipes.
On the Twelfth day of Christmas: Twelve Drummers Drumming
Congratulations on making it all the way to the twelfth day of Christmas! Here are some ideas for drummers and drumming related gifts. A word of caution: never give drums to somebody else's children without permission, or you may find yourself on the receiving end of a vengeful government created killer nano-robot infection. You've been warned.
Let me know about your favorite Christmas gifts and clever ideas!
