4 Gift Ideas for Your New-ish Relationship

Shopping for a special occasion can be hard, full stop. Something that can make it even harder? Shopping for your fairly new boo.

Whether you've known your partner for ages and only recently decided to couple up or they've only come into your life at all in the last couple months, it's a difficult situation to navigate when you know that you should get them something, but don't want it to seem like too much or too little. If you need a little help, worry not—we're here to help you out! So, if you're on the hunt for a gift for your recent relationship, check out some of these ideas:

1. An Out-of-the-Box Date Night

For a new-ish relationship, it's widely agreed upon that the best kinds of gifts are experience gifts. These could include anything from a cooking class or paint night to a picnic under the stars with all their favorite foods (even if it's in your backyard), just as long as it's something slightly out of the ordinary that will leave them with a positive memory of the time. That's a better gift than anything you ever could've bought at the mall.

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2. A Photo Book

This one is inexpensive, easy and perfectly just sentimental enough for the early days of a relationship. If you've been together long enough to have photos together, print your favorites out and put them in a cute photo book that they can leave in their room and flip through whenever they wish. They'll know you didn't drop a crazy amount of cash on it—which would be weird during the early days anyway—while still appreciating the effort you put into curating and printing each photo.

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3. Something Related to Their Favorite Hobby

Does your significant other have a thing for photography? Wrap them up a cute disposable camera they can bring with them on your next date night! Are they a total film buff? Find a poster of their favorite flick, or snag it on DVD and schedule a night in for you both to watch it together with all their favorite snacks. Art nerd? Try a book on art history or new paints for their next piece. Getting a gift that isn't too pricey or extravagant but relates to their interests will show them how much you pay attention to them, and that's a pretty great gift in and of itself.

 

4. A Shirt You Know They'll Love

This is the kind of casual gift that says "I know your style and what looks good on you." What's even better is that they're likely to think of you every time they wear it (or get to mention you anytime someone compliments it). Just make sure you know their size and style well before buying—you don't want to waste your money or accidentally offend them by getting it all wrong.

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While these are just a few base ideas for getting a gift for your new-ish relationship, the key is getting something that reflects how much you care about them without taking it overboard. After all, it would be pretty embarrassing if you drop all your saved-up cash on that expensive video game they've been wanting or another big-ticket gift while they just grab you a bar of chocolate or $5 Starbucks card on the way to meet up with you (fingers crossed they know better than this anyway, but still).

Need a few more ideas, or maybe think you're a bit more serious than one of these gifts would say? We've got you there, too. Just click HERE for some cute gift ideas to get your boyfriend this year.