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Unusual Ideas Satisfy Tricky Gift Recipients

Make Your Own Beer; Buy Portrait In Lego

When it comes to gift-giving, everybody seems to have that same problem person to buy for. You know that person, the one who already has everything under the sun or who is just too difficult to pin down for any ideas.

With a little work, whether you are looking to spend a ton or just a bit, you can find the perfect gift for that person.

If you're looking for a gift for somebody who enjoys a beer or wine now and then and are willing to put in the time, one of the best gifts is brewing him or her a special batch.

It may take a small initial investment, but once you're equipped to make your own beverages, you won't have to worry about gifts for most of your friends. Who wouldn't love getting some homemade libations instead of a store-bought bottle? A standard beer or wine-making kit will run you between $50 and $200.

And what better to go along with that mug of beer or glass of wine than a fine cigar? As Mainstreet.com's Taylor Smith says, guys and some gals everywhere love a nice cigar. But don't know what to get? Try Cigars International's Cigar of the Month Club, which includes 12 months of cigars for $244.40.

Each cigar is hand-rolled, and the monthly offerings include well-known brands like H. Upmann as well as boutique cigar brands. Each month will also include an executive summary detailing each cigar.

Give To Others

If you want to give a gift while also making a difference, consider making a donation to charity instead of a wrapped present.

Instead of gifts, Waco, Texas, resident Toby Marie Walker told The Associated Press she sends donations on behalf of friends and relatives to groups she thinks the recipients would support. A gift like that "has some sentimental value," she said.

If you don't know where to start, try Heifer International, a Little Rock, Ark.-based nonprofit that buys farm animals for families in developing nations. It's annual catalog, which it bills as "The Most Important Gift Catalog in the World," features such things as a flock of chicks for a family in Tanzania for $20 and a goat for an Albanian family for $120.

Get Crazy

For a truly outlandish gift that nobody will never see coming, consider a shiny new grillz, especially if the recipient has a good sense of humor. Not only will they have the coolest chompers on the block, but they will also have a gift they will always remember.

While the removable, decorative, brace-like teeth coverings made popular by rappers start around $30 a tooth if you want 10K gold and even more if you want to look like Paul Wall or Flavor Flav, there are budget alternatives. Sites like HipHopBling.com and HustlaGrillz.com offer low-end models starting around $30.

Anybody can give the gift of a digital camera. But what about an affordable gift that will allow you to take actual photographs without using a camera. Known as cyanotypes, or "sunlight" prints, this is the oldest form of known photography.

And all it will cost is around $20 from a variety of online retailers, like Amazon.com, for example, to give such a gift. The kit includes sunlight sensitive paper, templates and everything else needed to get started. The kit comes with 80 pages of paper, giving your loved one more than enough to learn, hone and really enjoy the craft.

But if you truly want to blow somebody away with a gift and have a bit to spend, consider immortalizing them in Lego. Brickworkz can create a Lego mosaic from a photograph or drawing. Along with the artwork, you can also get a book displaying making-of photos and fun facts about the mosaic and a time-lapse video of the creation being put together.

Now that's something you can rest assured your hard-to-buy-for gift recipient doesn't have laying around.


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