If someone already owns everything, the gift that works is not another object but something to do. A make-your-own kit hands over an afternoon with a proper result at the end of it, and that result gets drunk, eaten or put on a shelf rather than joining the pile of things nobody needed. You are giving a project, not a possession, which is the one category the person who has everything is usually short of.
Christmas shopping for this person fails the same way every year. You hunt for the thing they have not got, discover there isn't one, and settle for something expensive and forgettable. A kit steps around the problem completely, because nobody already owns the evening they spent stretching mozzarella over the sink.
Why does "has everything" usually mean "has enough things"?
People who are hard to buy for are rarely greedy. They tend to be the opposite: settled, well supplied, and quietly weary of being given more stuff to find a home for. The gadget arrives, gets admired, and lives in a drawer by March.
Once you accept that, the brief changes. You are no longer looking for a gap in their cupboards. You are looking for a few hours they would enjoy and would not have booked for themselves, and something to show for it afterwards. That is a much easier thing to find.
What makes a kit work for someone this hard to buy for?
Three things, in our experience. The first is that it should be slightly unfamiliar. Nobody wants a kit for something they already do well, but almost everybody is curious about a craft they have watched from a distance.
The second is that the box should contain the hard parts. Our kits are built for people who have never done any of this before, with a printed booklet and the ingredients measured out, so the only shopping left is one obvious item from a supermarket.
The third is that it should end. A kit that is finished in an afternoon, or over a week, is a pleasure. A hobby that demands a shelf of equipment and a Sunday every month is a burden dressed as a present.
The gin kit, for the one who always has people round
If they are the host, the one who pours you a drink before you have your coat off, the Gin Making Kit is the easy call. It turns a bottle of ordinary vodka into a London-style gin by steeping juniper with coriander, citrus peel, allspice and lemongrass, and it infuses in under a week. There is no distilling and no equipment to buy: you add the botanicals, wait, taste, then strain.
What makes it land as a gift is the second act. They pour their own gin for other people and tell them they made it, and that is a better story than any bottle you could have bought instead. It is also the kit that was named a top pick on ITV's How to Spend It Well at Christmas, where chef Matt Tebbutt tasted it. For adults aged 18 and over, since they supply the spirit.
The kintsugi kit, for the one who notices details
Kintsugi is the Japanese art of mending broken pottery so the repair shows, the crack picked out in gold rather than hidden. The idea behind it, wabi-sabi, is that a thing that has been through something is more interesting than a thing that has not, which is a good sentiment to hand someone in December.
Our Kintsugi Kit uses a two-part epoxy rather than traditional lacquer, with gold-effect mica pigment, gloves, a spreader and mixing card, a booklet and two practice bowls so the first attempt is not on something precious. Nothing needs adding, there is no kiln or oven, and each join is held for thirty to sixty seconds while it grabs. It is an adults-only kit, and a repaired piece is decorative rather than crockery: the adhesive is not food grade, so do not use a mended bowl for food or drink.
The cheese kit, for the one who cooks confidently
For the person whose kitchen is already well equipped and who reads recipes for fun, the Cheese Making Kit, Cheeses of the World gives them something they almost certainly have not tried. It covers ten fresh cheeses including mozzarella, halloumi, paneer, ricotta, mascarpone, chevre and burrata, with vegetarian rennet, citric acid, cheese salt, a thermometer, moulds and cheesecloth in the box. Most are ready in about an hour.
The reason it works for a confident cook is that it is genuinely new territory rather than a slightly better version of something they do already. Watching milk break into curds and whey on your own hob is a small revelation even for someone who has cooked for thirty years. All they add is fresh whole milk, never UHT, which will not curdle.
What should you add so the gift feels finished?
A kit on its own is a good present. A kit with the missing piece attached is a better one, because it can be started on Boxing Day rather than whenever they next do a big shop.
- With the gin kit: a bottle of inexpensive vodka. Supermarket own brand is genuinely the right choice here, since the subtlety of a premium vodka disappears under the juniper.
- With the cheese kit: a note promising the milk, or a couple of litres of fresh whole milk if you are handing it over on the day. Whole milk, not UHT and not lactose free.
- With the kintsugi kit: nothing at all, thanks to the two practice bowls. If they have a broken piece they have been unable to throw away, and you know about it, wrapping it up with the kit is a lovely touch.
If the gift is going to someone else's house, you can send a kit straight to them: enter their address as the delivery address at checkout and it goes directly to their door.
Gifts for someone who has everything FAQs
Is a kit a good present for someone who is not crafty?
Yes. The kits are built for complete beginners, with a printed booklet that takes each step in order, and no previous experience is assumed anywhere in them.
Do I need to buy anything else for the kit to work?
Usually one thing, and it is always an ordinary supermarket item: vodka for the gin kit and fresh whole milk for the cheese kit. The kintsugi kit needs nothing added.
Is it too early to buy a kit in October or November?
No. Our food and drink kits have a shelf life of eighteen months from packing, cheese kits twenty four months, and every kit leaves us with at least twelve months left on the best before date.
Do the drinks kits contain alcohol?
None of our kits contain alcohol. They hold the botanicals, equipment and instructions, and the recipient buys the spirit separately, so the drinks kits are for adults aged 18 and over.
Which kit should I choose if I do not know what they like?
The kintsugi kit, because it needs nothing added and does not depend on their taste in food or drink. The two practice bowls mean they can start the evening it arrives.
Still stuck on the hardest name on your list? Browse the whole range of gift kits and pick the project that sounds most like them.
