Dads are difficult for a particular reason: by the time you are old enough to buy them a decent present, they have had forty years to buy themselves anything they wanted. What is left is the category of things people do not buy for themselves.
That is where engraved gifts live. The full range is in our personalised gifts for dad collection.
The dad who is always in the shed or garden
He is outside in all weathers, so the gift should survive being outside too. A stainless steel tankard or an insulated flask or travel cup both get used constantly and take a knock. Enamel camping mugs are the same idea for less.
The dad who watches football in February
A hip flask, straightforwardly. Engraved with his name, it becomes a fixture of every away game. The football gifts range covers the rest, and golf gifts if that is his sport instead.
The dad who cooks
A cheeseboard and knives set engraved with the family surname. It is the sort of thing that comes out at Christmas and every dinner party afterwards, which makes it better value than the price suggests. BBQ sets, pizza boards and aprons are the summer versions.
The dad who is precise about his drink
An engraved whisky tumbler if he drinks spirits, a pint glass or tankard if he drinks beer, a gin glass if that is his thing. This is the highest-hit-rate category on the list because it attaches to something he does every week anyway.
The dad who is impossible
Two options that reliably surprise people:
- A pocket watch, engraved on the back. Nobody buys themselves one, which is exactly why it works.
- A money box for a specific named fund - the boat, the shed, the trip he keeps talking about. It is half a joke and half a genuinely nice object.
The Best Dad range and the King Of designs cover the jokier end if that suits him better.
For a new dad
Different problem entirely. Here the gift should mark the year rather than the man - a frame with the baby's name and date of birth engraved, or a mug with the same. A first Christmas bauble works too.
For a grandad
Use the grandchildren's names. It is the one thing he cannot buy himself, and it turns an ordinary object into something he will not part with.
What to engrave
Keep it dry rather than sentimental. Dads tend to respond better to a name, a date, or a short line that sounds like something he would actually say than to anything heartfelt. A joke works if it is your joke, not a slogan.
When to order
Made to order means November is the comfortable window. Browse the gifts for dad collection, the Christmas range, or Father's Day gifts for ideas that work year-round.