Finding the right holiday gifts for seniors often seems like it should be easy, but it rarely ever is. Many seniors already seem to have everything they need and simply don't want anything else.
Others might feel reluctant to ask for anything.
That's where entertainment and hobbies come into it. Hobbies are a fantastic way to pass the time, helping people to find new passions. Many hobbies even have a social component. They can help people find connections with people who have similar interests.
In this list, we're examining some of the best holiday gifts for seniors in 2022. Many of these are items that seniors won't expect, but will still be overjoyed with. Check them out!
Our Top Holiday Gifts for Seniors
- Gifts That Support Hobbies
- For the Gardeners
- Relaxing Gifts
- Memory Making Gifts
- Treats for Foodies
- Practical Items
Gifts That Support Hobbies
Hobbies are amazing. They're ways to stay entertained that also support people's creative talents. Plus, there are countless options to choose from.
There are two general approaches to take when looking at hobby-based holiday gifts for seniors.
- The first is to look for gifts that relate to a hobby your family member already has. This might involve finding better tools or buying materials for them, particularly ones they wouldn't buy for themselves.
- The second approach is to introduce them to a new hobby.
Hobbies have another advantage too - they can help promote a sense of direction or purpose. Doing something with a goal, even if that is as simple as knitting a sock, can help to reduce any sense of helplessness and boredom. The gifts below are perfect ways to support a hobby or encourage a new one.
Singer Vintage Sewing Basket Kit
This large sewing kit contains everything that your family member needs, along with plenty of space for more items. You could even add extra pieces to it to create an even more amazing gift. It comes from Singer, so you know you're getting decent items.
DIY Handmade Greeting Card Kits
These simple card kits are fun gifts on their own or as part of a large collection. Each kit includes 3 different cards, 3 envelopes, and various items to add on to them. Many seniors will love the idea of making their own cards to give to family members.
DIY Candle Kit
If your family member loves being creative, why not give them the tools to do so? The kit allows people to make their own candles. There are enough ingredients for 4 distinct candles, each with a different scent and color. These aren't just cheap candles either. You end up making something that's just as good as what expensive stores sell.
DIY Goat Milk Soap Making Kit
This soap kit provides all the items that you need to make 12 moisturizing goat milk soaps, flavored with rose and coconut. The included mold also means that you could make other soaps later on.
The Adults & Crafts Crate
This is a subscription box, one of many craft-related subscriptions that is sold through Cratejoy. This one focuses on craft projects for adults. The subscription provides a new craft project each month (like the one in the image). All tools and instructions are provided as well.
Holiday gifts for seniors can't get better than this - as the type of craft changes from month to month. There's always something new to learn.
Sticker By Number: Nature
This Brain Games book takes the paint by numbers idea in a new direction. This time, the numbers correspond to individual stickers, which users need to peel off and find a place for. The end result is a collection of beautiful images. The gift is very suitable for seniors, as it helps to keep them mentally engaged.
Art Supply Case
This set of art supplies is a good way to foster a senior's imagination, allowing them to draw or paint as they choose. The set includes 24 colored pencils, 24 watercolor cakes of paint, 24 oil pastels, along with related items like paintbrushes, a sharpener, and a sanding block.
Paletteful Packs
This is a subscription box that provides a wide range of art supplies, including pens, paint, paper, and more. There are three versions of the subscription to choose from: Monthly Premium Paletteful Pack ($33.50), Monthly Paletteful Petite Pack ($22.50), and Monthly Young Artist Paletteful Pack ($28.50).
Each month's box has a different theme, such as watercolors, acrylics, or pastels.
Bracelet Making Kit
This kit provides all of the materials to make 16 individual bracelets, as shown in the image. The bracelets simply use an elastic thread and the beads can just be strung on. As such, the kit is perfect for any skill level.
Knit-Wise
This subscription is perfect for anyone who likes knitting or crocheting. It delivers beginner or intermediate/advanced projects for knitters and crocheters. These boxes provide all the instructions, tools, and materials that they need.
And there's a new project every month!
For the Gardeners
What could be better than spending time outside among the plants? There's something about the gentleness of gardening that makes it incredibly good for the mind, body, and spirit.
If you have an avid gardener in your life, why not surprise them with a gardening-related gift?
Gardening Tool Set with Seat
This tool kit makes gardening much easier, giving seniors a place to sit when they need to. It also comes with a removable tote for storage, making it a very practical choice.
Ukoke Garden Tool Kit
This tool kit is a more comprehensive choice, designed for people who are serious about their time in the garden. The orange and green item is an apron that can also be carried. The style provides plenty of flexibility and would be enjoyable to use too.
House Plant Box
This subscription focuses on plants that can be grown inside, making it ideal for seniors who can't get out into the garden. There are plenty of versions to choose from, including a pet-friendly box, an air plant box, a premium house plant box, and ones that come with pots as well as the plants.
Relaxing Gifts
There are plenty of obvious gifts for people who like to relax, like a good book, some bubble bath, or perhaps something that smells nice. Why not take things one step further by choosing a subscription box? These provide a selection of products each month, creating a gift that just keeps giving.
There are countless relaxing subscriptions out there, but the ones below are some top-rated favorites. You might even get one of them for yourself.
Read, Relax & Recharge
This subscription provides a book (in one of three genres), a beverage (either tea, ground coffee, or hot cocoa), and treats (including candles, bath salts, and scented soap).
Bath Bevy
Here's a subscription for everyone who loves taking baths. There are 5 to 7 items per box, including bath bombs, bath salts, and more. Don't worry if your parent doesn't have a dub, there's a tubless version of the subscription too.
HopeBox
This box is designed to help with anxiety and self-care, but could be a good gift for anyone - with a fun set of products in each shipment.
TheraBox
This self-care subscription is excellent for seniors too. It offers 6 to 8 different wellness items every month and gets exceptional reviews.
Memory Making Gifts
The gifts in this section are all focused on memory. They can help seniors to record their memories or engage with them in another way. Some gifts could even turn into projects for the entire family.
DIY Scrapbook Photo Album
This book acts as a combination photo album and scrapbook, where users can balance the different elements however they wish to. To make this an even more exciting gift, why not print out a collection of photos to go with it? Most of us have plenty to chose from, as our phones double as cameras, ones that are always close at hand.
If you don't have many photos, perhaps it's time to start taking some?
The experience of creating a photo album like this can be an amazing way to relive old memories. Making a scrapbook can even be a family activity, with everyone choosing the images that mean the most to them.
Alternatively, why not create a scrapbook yourself, then give it to the senior as a gift. They're certain to appreciate the time and effort that went into it, and you may enjoy the process of creating the book as well.
Not fond of the book we've featured here? No worries, there are plenty to choose from, including:
- Our Adventure Book - a photo journal/scrapbook in the style of the book from the movie UP.
- ThxMadam Leather Photo Album Scrapbook - this book takes things to the next level, with a leather cover, hearts, and charms. It could easily be used for scrapbooking or simply as a photo journal.
- INNOCHEER Scrapbook Classic - this one includes everything the senior needs in one place. They get the scrapbook itself, a storage box, pens, stencils, tape, and more.
- Vienrose DIY Scrapbook Photo Album - here's another album that includes accessories. There are two sizes to choose from, along with plenty of colors.
Memory Journal
This type of journal works well for seniors - or for anyone really. It provides a way to track memories across 5 years. The journal is an amazing way to keep track of changes and to look back over time.
The one line a day style is perfect for anyone who gets overwhelmed by regular journaling.
Some Lines a Day Memory Journal
This memory journal follows a similar style to the previous one. The main difference is that you're able to record multiple lines of text per day, rather than a single one. The approach may be more practical in many situations, especially as it isn't easy to summarize a day into a single line.
Regular Journals
Memory journals don't suit everyone, so why not look for a regular journal instead? The best options are often blank books with lined pages. This way the senior can write whatever they want to. They don't even need to use the book as a journal, unless they want to.
Here are some great options to consider:
- Moleskin Classic Notebook - nothing exciting here, but these journals are high quality and come in a variety of styles and colors.
- Tree of Hearts Journal - this pretty journal works well for romantic types.
- Refillable Leather Tree of Life Journal - the refillable nature of this journal is a bonus, and seniors are likely to love the leather cover.
- 12 Pack Kraft Paper Notebook - the small size of these notebooks could be perfect for many situations, including journaling, making lists, and more.
Bullet Journals
Bullet journals follow a different style. Rather than lines, they have a collection of dots on each page. The dots allow more flexibility, especially for doodling or creating tables (as you can see in the image). And they still act as enough of a guide to allow the senior to write.
The Feela Dotted Journal Kit is a fantastic place to begin, as this provides plenty of accessories as well as the journal itself.
Related Items
You can easily expand these gift ideas out by looking for related items. Pens often go down well, even if your family member already has plenty of them. Check these ones out:
- PuTwo Metallic Markers - perfect for scrapbooking and writing on black pages.
- VITOLER Colored Journaling Pens - these versatile pens can be used in countless ways, including journaling, sketching, and even intricate coloring.
- SCRIBEdelivery Subscription - this monthly subscription sends out at least one new pen and notebook each month.
- Penspiration and Planning + Stationary box - this impressive subscription sends between 8 and 12 planning items, plus 5 to 7 writing instruments each month.
Treats for Foodies
Let's not forget about food either. There are many delicious gifts to choose from. Some focus on treats, while others include healthier entries instead.
Urthbox
This subscription box ships out healthy snacks every month and is incredibly popular. Urthbox is a great choice for seniors, as it looks and feels like a treat, while also encouraging seniors to eat more healthily.
There are four sizes to choose from: Mini (7+ snacks for $19.99), Small (14+ snacks for $29.99), Medium, (20+ snacks for $39.99), or Large (27+ snacks for $49.99).
There are also four types of boxes: Classic, Vegan, Diet, and Gluten Free. All types focus on health, so the snacks and drinks tend to avoid additives and artificial ingredients whenever possible.
Grill Masters Club
Here's one for BBQ lovers. Each shipment contains four full-sized BBQ products and an associated recipe. Many of the products come from small-scale producers, so they're different than what's found in your local grocery store.
SnackSack
SnackSack focuses on healthy snacks, just like Urthbox. Both companies are popular and follow similar themes, although SnackSack has fewer size options.
SnackSack has four versions: Classic, Vegan, Gluten Free, and Vegan+GF. Each shipment contains between 11 and 15 unique snacks, in a variety of styles.
Like Urthbox, SnackSack focuses on healthy snacks, ones that rely on natural ingredients. The box costs a little under $30 per month, depending on the plan chosen. That's good value when you consider how many snacks are in each box.
Shaker & Spoon Cocktail Club
Retirement is the perfect time to enjoy cocktails – and this subscription ships the ingredients and recipes straight to the senior’s door. All they need to buy is the alcohol.
Mix Box
This box makes baking easy by providing pre-portioned ingredients, clear instruction cards, and video tutorials. The recipes are perfect for all experience levels.
Each box could be a fun activity for the senior on their own or something to get the whole family involved in. Plus, the company focuses on fresh ingredients, rather than pre-packaged mixes, so the finished baking should be delicious.
Phivi Artisanal Desserts Box
This subscription sends seniors 8 fully prepared handmade deserts every month. It’s the perfect treat for seniors who love desserts, but no longer bake themselves.
Wanderlust
The Wanderlust boxes show that holiday gifts for seniors don't need to be expensive or complicated. The Wanderlust Select version of the subscription costs just $8.90 per month, while Wanderlust Select Plus costs $12.90 instead.
Either way, the subscription comes with a selection of spices and a recipe card, allowing recipients to cook exciting meals with the fresh spices. The subscription is an amazing way for cooks to experiment with new flavors and dishes.
Here are some other interesting foodie subscriptions to try out:
- Marshmallow of the Month Club. This subscription really does ship out marshmallows, but not just any marshmallows – gourmet ones. Small batch graham crackers are included too, which are perfect for making s’mores.
- Celebrate States. Each box for this club is themed around a particular state. Seniors receive food, drinks, and more, mostly from artisan companies in the chosen state.
- Platterful. Platterful provides all the ingredients and instructions to build a complex charcuterie board.
- Kernel Crate. This subscription sends out exciting popcorn every month, often with unusual flavors.
Practical Holiday Gifts for Seniors
Practical gifts are often avoided, as we're worried about how they'll be received (try giving someone a vacuum cleaner for Christmas and you'll see just how badly this one can go).
The right practical gift, on the other hand, can be amazing. The trick here is to think closely about what your family member needs, what they'll enjoy, and what will help them.
Here are some examples to consider:
Smart Digital Photo Frame
This is a fantastic way to display photos. You could even set it up for the senior, with a selection of family photos that they will love.
Weighted Blanket
Weighted blankets are powerful ways to decrease anxiety and provide comfort. They may be particularly good for seniors living alone, as the weight of the blanket simulates some of the sensation of being hugged.
Amazon Echo Show 8
This product combines Amazon Alexa AI with video calling, to create a tool that's very easy for seniors to use.
Microwavable Heating Pad for Neck and Shoulders
This product is a fantastic way to relieve tension in shoulders and neck and isn't too expensive either.
Practical Gifts to Be Careful With
It's often best to err on the side of caution with practical gifts. If you think something is going to come across as insensitive or not related to the season, it may be best to wait for another time.
For example, I've seen some lists suggest items like a bidet attachment, a shower seat, or a medical alert device.
Those are all useful items for seniors. But, giving them as a holiday gift? Perhaps not. It's hard to imagine any of those going over well.
Still looking for more inspiration? Ask seniors about other hobbies and encourage them to take the next steps.
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