Shopping for the Best Gifts for Older Women (40-60 years old or older) | All You Need to Know
Finding the best gifts for older women can seem daunting. It may appear as though they have everything they already need, leaving you stuck scrambling to come up with ideas.
Whether you are looking to purchase gifts for a birthday, anniversary or Christmas, there are more gift ideas for older women than you may think.
Gifts for older women should be purchased with their personalities in mind. By the time a woman reaches 40 or 50 years old, she has clear and definite hobbies or interests that she enjoys.
Popular gifts for elderly women tend to fall into the following categories:
- Clothing
- Entertainment
- Hobby items
- Food
- Cosmetics
- Unconventional gifts
In the sections below, we’ll look at each of these categories and give you a few gift ideas from each to help you find the best gifts for older women.
We’ll also look at gifts for older women from an age-based perspective, breaking down the best gift ideas for women over 40, 50, and beyond, providing a complete and comprehensive guide to giving the perfect gift.
Clothing
Gifts for elderly women can be as simple as an article of clothing. Think back to the last time that somebody treated the woman in your life to a new outfit.
When shopping for a new outfit, focus on items that the person has shown interest in before. Elderly women already have a set fashion style and tend to not want to dress radically.
If you are unsure of the woman’s fashion style, then purses, shoes, hats, and other accessory items are safe bets. Even if the woman will not use the accessory item on a day-to-day basis, there is a good chance that she has something to match it with already in her wardrobe. Years and years of accumulating accessories means that anything you purchase will find its way to good use.
Look through the woman’s wardrobe to see if there are any brands or fashion designers that she favors. Cute and fashionable scarves from a favorite boutique can make excellent gifts for elderly women.
In the best-case scenario, you purchase a gift that she already had her eye on from that boutique or fashion designer while, in the worst-case scenario, she can return the gift to her favorite boutique and pick out something that she likes more!
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Entertainment
Depending on the amount of money you have available, popular electronics can make fantastic gifts for elderly women.
Older women are usually on a fixed budget due to Social Security or a retirement pension from work. This means that they may not be able to afford the newest electronic devices out on the market.
If the elderly woman in your life has outdated electronics, she may appreciate an upgrade. Keep in mind, however, that many elderly people are also wary of parting with their old entertainment devices because many of them grew up in a time when these devices were not common.
Electronic gifts for older women do not have to break the bank. Older women did not grow up with technology, and the vast majority do not use their electronics for fancy purposes. This means that a basic model of an electronic will usually suffice as a gift. Rather than purchasing a beefed-up version of an iPad, the basic iPad should be more than enough.
Look around the elderly woman’s house, and make mental notes on what she might need to have replaced. For instance, the television could use an upgrade from a tube TV to a modern LED/LCD television. She may also appreciate an upgrade to her radio, cell phone, headphones, tablet or laptop.
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Hobby Items
By the time that a woman reaches 40 or 50 years old, she has clear hobbies that she is interested in.
If you are unsure on what type of hobbies they prefer, a few popular hobby-themed gifts for women over 40, 50, and 60 include:
- Sewing/crocheting
- Volunteering
- Gardening
- Cooking/baking
- Exercising
- Scrapbooking
- Journaling
- Reading
Hobby items are always appreciated gifts for older women because they may not be able to justify the cost of replenishing their supplies.
For most people, their disposable budget starts to decrease as they age, meaning that it may take a lot of scrimping and saving to purchase extra items for their hobbies.
Not only will these gifts for older women save them money over the long run, but they also demonstrate thoughtfulness and care, two components of the best gifts for older women.
Although some women may have their hobbies set in stone, everybody is different. Some may enjoy discovering new hobbies, regardless of age. If this is the case, you cannot go wrong with purchasing hobby starter kits as gifts for older women
Hobby starter kits include everything that they need to get started, and these kits are also typically very affordable. As an additional benefit, if the woman chooses to stick with the hobby, these items can become recurring gift ideas for older women throughout the year.
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Food
Gifts of food transcend culture and age. People have been giving each other food as presents since the beginning of time. Rather than purchasing gifts for women over 50, you can opt to cook or bake instead!
Homemade cookies, cakes, and pies are always a safe bet since most people appreciate the effort behind homemade desserts. You also have the option to stop by a local bakery if you do not have the time or skills required to bake a dessert.
Chocolates and other candies are also common gifts for older women. Depending on your budget, you can choose to spring for high-end, expensive chocolates or stick to more affordable options for food-related gift ideas for women over 50.
No matter what you choose, you’ll want to keep in mind any allergies that the older woman may have. By the time a woman reaches 40 or 50 years old, she may have developed severe food allergies.
Wine or a bottle of nice liquor also make great gifts for women over 40, 50, and 60. However, elderly women may be on a variety of pills and supplements prescribed by their doctor.
If they are on certain medicines, they will be unable to drink alcohol. Make sure that she will be able to drink the alcohol before purchasing it as a gift.
Cosmetics
If you don’t regularly purchase cosmetics, you may be surprised by how pricey they can get. Higher-end makeup retails for quite a bit of money since it is of much higher quality than drugstore makeup.
Some makeup, such as eyeliner or mascara, needs to be replaced every one to two months in order to prevent eye infections. Because these products must be continuously replaced, they can be very thoughtful gifts for older women.
For women of all ages who appreciate cosmetics, higher-end products are always a great gift. Common gift ideas for women over 50 from this category include:
- Mascara
- Eyeliner
- Eyeshadow
- Nail polish
- Foundation
If you are unsure of what kind of makeup they might enjoy, creams and lotions can be great alternative gifts for older women. Moisturizing and anti-age lotions are usually sold in pre-packaged gift baskets by retail stores.
This would make gift giving a lot easier because you do not have to wrap the present yourself. These types of pre-packaged gifts for older women usually contain:
- Moisturizers
- Lotions
- Shampoos
- Conditioners
- Fancy soaps
- Beauty tools
- Perfume
Unconventional Gifts
Perhaps you are looking for a unique gift idea that nobody else has given. If you come from a large family, you have to get creative when gift shopping for your mother or grandmother because someone else might have already gifted her the present you had in mind.
Some unconventional gifts for elderly women include:
- Wine tasting
- Opera tickets
- Theatre tickets
- Photo album/scrapbook
- Cruise or sightseeing tickets
Even some women in their 60s are still capable of engaging in strenuous activities and would enjoy a rock climbing or river rafting adventure. Gifts for older women that allow them to make memories with their families would also be well received.
In addition, a photo album or scrapbook should be thrown in with an adventure-themed gift. The photo album or scrapbook would be used for tracking the memories made during the adventure vacation.
No matter what you choose, keep in mind that it is best to know the personality of the woman you are shopping for before giving them a trip or an activity as a gift.
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Giving Gifts Based on Age
Not only do you have to keep personality in mind when purchasing gifts for older women, but age is an important factor as well.
There are important distinctions between women in different decades, meaning that gift ideas for women over 40 can vary widely from gifts for women over 50.
See the sections below for a quick overview of a few popular—and age considerate—gifts for older women in their 40s, 50s, and 60s.
Gift Ideas for Women Over 40
Women between 40–49 years old may still have children living in the house. As a matter of fact, if the woman did not have children until her 30s, she may have young children still living at home.
This is an important fact to keep in mind when thinking of gift ideas for women over 40. They may appreciate different gifts than a woman who does not have children living at home.
A woman with children would appreciate a gift that allows her to spend time alone. Popular gift ideas for women over 40 include spa days, professional massages, and gift cards to their favorite stores.
In this age range, gifts that allow her to get out of the house and spend time pampering herself tend to be greatly appreciated.
Gift Ideas for Women Over 50
Women between 50–59 years old may still be working, but they most likely do not have children living at home anymore. Kids no longer need to be kept in mind when searching for gift ideas for women over 50.
However, since these women are still typically employed, work schedules need to be kept in mind when choosing gifts for women over 50.
Women in this age group may not have the same energy as they did in their youth—but with children out of the house, they could have more time to dedicate to hobbies and vacations.
Excellent gift ideas for older women include adventure vacations, vacations to foreign countries and different parts of the world or travel tours. Gifts related to hobby items are also great for this age group because they are more likely to have the extra time to use them.
Gifts for Elderly Women
Women over 60 years old are getting close to retirement age, and it’s incredibly unlikely that they will have children living at home. These women most likely have grandchildren and are looking to wind down in life.
Gifts for elderly women over 60 should not be extreme and should keep their health in mind. Getting older has its fair share of health problems, and it is possible that these women are not capable of traveling. They may also be unable to do physical hobbies or activities as they could earlier on.
The best gifts for elderly women over 60 are usually ones that they can use within their home or with their family.
If they are a grandmother, they probably enjoy spending time with their grandchildren, so entertainment devices, games, or opportunities to spend time with the family are popular gifts.
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Conclusion: Where Can I Buy Gifts for Older Women?
Choosing the best gifts for older women is only half the battle. It can be equally daunting to figure out which store to purchase the gift at, especially with dozens of stores all selling the same items.
First, you have to decide whether you will be purchasing gifts for older women online or inside of a physical store. Online gift shopping is by far the easiest and most convenient, but it is not something that can be done last minute.
On the other hand, physically shopping for a gift is time-consuming, which increases the appeal of online shopping. Depending on what you are looking for, a few popular online stores to find gifts for elderly women include:
- Amazon—Unlimited options across a wide range of gift categories
- eBay—Wide range of items from electronics, collectibles, home goods, and more from independent sellers
- Overstock—Online department store selling everything from bedsheets to fine jewelry at a discounted price
- Etsy—Handcrafted items from independent artists around the world
- Groupon—Great for local events and activities, like a spa day, hair salon, and more
If a physical store also has an online location, you also have the option of walking into a physical store, browsing for a gift you like, and coming home to purchase the item on its website.
This is a useful tactic if the physical store does not have the exact color or size that you are looking for. Rather than waiting for the store to order it, you can save yourself a trip back to the store by ordering the item straight off the website.
No matter where you go to purchase gifts for older women, keep in mind that the best gifts for older women will always come with sincerity, consideration, and care.
Keep this guide handy as you search, and don’t forget that as long as you keep her unique style, taste, and personality in mind, you will be right on track to finding the best gifts for women in their 40s, 50s, 60s, and beyond!
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