I think there are two important things you have to keep in mind when you are looking to buy something that is individual – firstly – think about the individual you are buying for, and then where to buy from.

You need to focus on the individual to and think about what they would think is special, which is not necessarily the same thing as you. You might have to think of some creative methods to find out what they would really like without them realizing you are planning your Christmas list. If you were to ask some people what they would like a special gift, they probably wouldn’t know what to say.  You have to watch them very carefully to try and  discover what would make a gift really special for them, and it takes time and dedication to the art of gift buying to do that

If you want to find a gift that is different, you shouldn’t look in the usual places, after all that’s where everyone else will go.  Avoid local shops and stores, they won’t have anything special unless you are very lucky.  Mainly they look to sell large numbers of mass produced ‘ordinary’ gifts.  You might find something unusual at a local Craft Fair or if there are some unique ‘artisan’ shops around you but your best chance of finding the best gift is online.

Many crafts people and artisans only sell their work and produce online, the costs of having a store are just too high.  It’s a great deal less stressful to shop this way and with careful use of the search engines you can find really unusual and unique gifts, you don’t have to battle the crowds and they are delivered to your door.

You can also use candles on your Christmas Tree, a few, strategically placed candles give a lovely gentle light and as the pine resin warms in your tree, you will get the lovely aroma of the outdoors.  Safety is far less of an issue with candles than you might imagine.  There are many specially designed Christmas Tree candles that are safe to use on your tree and you should always use those for peace of mind.  They provide a lovely atmosphere.  It is however, unwise to use them on artificial trees, even flame retardant ones.

If you have an artificial tree, then you can get Christmas Candle lights, or you can use these if you are not comfortable with real candles or don’t like the bother of lighting them all.   The most sophisticated Christmas Candle Lights bring all the atmosphere of real candles without the worry. They are much like other string lights, except that they look like candles, many also flicker just like real candles and look very effective, from a distance it can be hard to tell the difference.

For me a Christmas scene without candles lacks warmth and sparkle, I wouldn’t be without them in one form or another.