Cutting it a little close aren’t we? 6 last-minute gift ideas.

Posted on December 24, 2020December 24, 2020 by Matt Todd

This post about last-minute Christmas gift ideas contains affiliate links. That means I will be compensated if you make a purchase after clicking on the appropriate links. You can learn more in my Disclosure Policy. As always, thank you for your support.

One of my uncles was a longtime bachelor. I could be wrong, but I think he didn’t get married until he was in his 30s. Every Christmas, he’d show up with gifts wrapped in the Sunday comics section that he’d saved for the last few weeks. His running joke every year was that he’d have to shop at one of the 24 hour places like the nearby pharmacy or a gas station to get our gifts because he didn’t start shopping until late Christmas Eve.

Did he really do that? Probably not. But That’s what he kept saying every year. That was back in the ancient times before the big box stores staying open 24 hours. This was back in the day when the internet was some kind of weird thing people would use to play roleplaying games. Or War Games.

Maybe you’re like my uncle and you have waited until the last-minute to start your Christmas shopping. Or maybe you forgot to get something for one particular person. Or maybe you just flat-out ran out of time. Whatever the reason you’re making a last-minute purchase, you might be out of luck if you’re hoping for a stress-free trip to the store. Fortunately, the internet is here to save you!

Here’s 6 last-minute gifts you can buy right now and look like the hero tomorrow morning:

1. Give an experience.

From memberships to tickets to a fundraising event, your local museum or cultural attraction probably has some kind of memorable experience available that you can purchase online right now. You can give a unique gift and help out your local cultural attractions, which is a huge help during these crazy times.

Looking for ideas? The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis, where I work, has these five experiences available for purchase right now.

2. Buy local.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Buying gift cards help your local small businesses. It’s like you’re giving them a no-interest loan. And, your giving your loved one access to some pretty cool stuff. Here’s a few places in the Indianapolis area that you might want to consider:

Ash & Elm Cider Company. Hard cider. Amazing food. Great people. Buy a gift card here.
Teal Canary Art Studio. Amy, the studio owner, has a heart of gold and a passion to help people. Buy a gift certificate here.
A local restaurant. Not sure if your favorite local eatery offers gift cards? If it’s not listed in the menu (like they do at Jockamo Pizza), you can usually search the page by typing in the web address in the address bar, then typing in gift cards after the URL. It’ll look like this: “https://bluebeardindy.com gift card” then when you hit enter, Google does the work for you and points you to a page like this: https://bluebeardindy.com/gift-certificates/

Pretty simple. Right? I know this works on chrome browsers. I’m not sure it works on Internet Explorer. That’s OK, though. You really shouldn’t be using Internet Explorer anymore, anyway.

If you do buy from one of these local places, tell them I said howdy. I don’t get any kickback from them or anything, I just want to give them some love.

3. Donate in their honor.

Like small businesses, nonprofits are struggling. Big-time. They were struggling before the pandemic. It’s even worse now. Donating to a cause your gift recipient cares about will make a huge difference for that organization. Here’s a few to consider:

Gateway Services in Johnson County, Indiana (donate here)
World Vision
Marine Discovery Center in New Smyrna Beach, Florida

4. Give a scone subscription.

Seven Sisters Scones was recently highlighted in a Holiday Gift Guide on The Today Show. They are super popular now and a subscription that starts in January would be the gift that keeps on giving all. year. long. Order a subscription here.

5. Give a gift card.

You can always buy a gift card to somewhere like Amazon. If you have a sports fan in your life, you might want to consider a gift card from Fanatics. Especially if they’re an IU fan.

6. Give entertainment.

Prepaying for digital entertainment? Gold. Pure gold. Here’s a few you might want to consider:

Play Station gift card from GameStop
CBS All Access – sports, shows, movies, live CBS TV…subscribe here
A GameStop gift card provides access to all your gaming needs

It’s that simple, really. Pay. Print. Viola! Your last-minute Christmas shopping is complete! Now that this is off your plate, you can go back to a stress-free holiday season!

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Matt Todd

Howdy. I'm Matt. My wife, Christy, and I have four kids and two dogs, I'm passionate about orphan care. I'm a die-hard fan of the Evansville Aces, the Indiana Hoosiers, and Star Wars. I'm trying to live life by the Todd family motto: "It behooves us to live!"