Gifts for elderly grandparents

[LittleBallOfFur]

I'm after some inspiration! I always really struggle to buy for my grandma and she ends up receiving the same things from everybody all the time. She also does't like it if we spend too much money on her, says she has enough stuff etc etc, which I understand but I'd like to get her something thoughtful.

So, what sort of things do you buy for your grandparents?

Regular (not very inspiring) gifts my grandma often gets are:

• chocolates
• nice wine/whisky
• gardening gift vouchers (not great now as my grandma is no longer very mobile)
• flowers
• hand cream/body shop vouchers/gift sets etc
• my DB and SIL normally steal the hamper idea
• my one moment of inspiration a couple of years ago was a lovely scarf, but can't repeat that one again (yet)!

Ideas please!!!

Thanks everyone some more great ideas!! Am writing a list of possibilities :)

My gm used to ask for Chanel No 5 - so my mum would usually get her the perfume, dsis and I would get the soap/body lotion/talc. Twas great - she loved it, it was a luxury she couldn't have bought herself and it made for easy present buying! She would have been horrified though if anybody had tried to give her just a standard 'granny' soap/cream/talc/pong/etc set as I tend to buy for mil as she never knows what she wants so she gets a tkmaxx or boots special offer special - even at 96 she was very particular about her perfume. To the point that when somebody tried to woo me by giving me a large bottle of Chanel No 5 as a student - I couldn't use it as it just smelt like my dgran - so she got it (and I didn't go out with the guy either!)

A nice small light umbrella - been very wet recently! even if she already has one you can say it's for her to have in the car or as an emergency back up one.

one of those fold up reusable shopping bags

scarf with matching gloves or hat this time

magazine subscription

some places (maybe interflora or even just talking to her local flower shop) will let you give a flower subscription so you get some flowers every month, rather than one big bunch just for christmas, spread it out through the year

if she's getting less mobile, it's worth looking through the catalogue they have at Boots (and probably other places) with things to help elderly people. Dmum's partner struggles to put his socks on and got a gadget to help - was only a fiver or so but really helps him. They have all sorts of bits and bobs to help with different things, depending on how your grandma is struggling. Not very glamorous I know, but would really help out with everyday life. Even things like getting her some of the OXO good grips range of knives and kitchen utensils - the really big handles were originally designed for people who struggle to hold knives etc as the mobility in their hands reduces, so she might find that they make life easy for her. Or a non-slip tray that waiters often use - if she uses trays, helps to reduce the worry about things slipping and falling off when she is carrying them.

Teas-maid to have by her bed

would she use something like a kindle to read on if you kept it stocked up for her? A friend's great grandad got his first one when he was 99 - loved it as it would read out the papers for him as his sight had almost gone.

Thanks confuugled, more great ideas! Update though - my mum has spoken to her and she has asked this year for everyone to just get her a Sainburys voucher . I know it is what she wants/needs so will probably get her that but something else too that's a bit of a treat!

I'd love to spoil her, but I don't think she'd really appreciate it she'd certainly have a big old whinge about us spending too much on her.

Thanks for starting the post, LittleBall! It's been hugely useful for me as I obsessively look for Christmas presents.

P.S. The best present we ever got our grandma was a Kindle as she could adjust the font size to be huge (about 10 words a page...) and therefore wasn't limited to large text books from the local library.

Really soft snuggly rug for her knees.
Sheepskin lined slippers that have supergrip soles or those house shoes that slip on and fasten easily that are like slippers but leather.
Sweet scented sachets for her drawers. Whenever I've given these they've been a real hit. Don't know if sense of smell heightens as eyesight deteriorates, but rose and lavender bags have always been more appreciated and cherished than I'd imagine.

Dad is 85 and finding it really hard to read now, so as I belong to Audible.co.uk, I downloaded a couple of books that we both would read (actually we tend to read the same sort all the time) bought some cd's and burnt them off. with a note enclosed for him to let me know when he has listened to them and I will do some more.

Hi there I am sorry if this has already been suggested but I haven't read through the whole thread. Also I am naff at links. However if you go on Amazon on search grandma books, the first book that comes up is fab. The idea is that you give it to your grandma to write it and then she gives it back to you. The book is full of questions which I wouldn't have thought of asking. It's like a journal for grandmas to write about their past. I have just ordered one and I think she will love it.

All these ideas are very twee and stereotypical old person gifts imo. How about doing something with your grandparents? Lets be honest their time on earth is limited and your time with them is limited. What more could they want than to spend time with you and your family? Happy memories are worth more than a thousand pounds worth of gifts. Get them tickets to your local theatre to see something they'd enjoy. Just make sure the seats you choose are suitable for their mobility requirements. Or take them for a day out somewhere a bit different from where they usually go and throw in lunch or afternoon tea? If they have difficulty walking distances then arrange a wheelchair or motorised scooter for them (shop mobility and a lot of local charities offer these). Or depending on your budget how about embracing new technology they may find useful, do they have a DVD player? If not how about that with a couple of DVD's they'd enjoy or a PVR? A Kindle preloaded with some books and offer to add more when they want them, A great gift for those who love to read and if their eyesights not as great as it used to be it's ideal as they can enlarge the text size. Do they enjoy music? An ipod (can be a nano or something so not too £££) with their favourites on and an ipod dock(you can get these for very little money now)?

All these suggestions of blanket's and nice hampers makes me dread getting old!

DH's gran now has dementia so it's really tricky as we can't do photos etc as she has no idea who anyone is and that distresses her. We're doing a hamper because although she has the money to buy things, she doesn't really as she doesn't get out much. Jam, marmalade, homemade biscuits etc.

It's boring and stereotypical but we're a bit limited on what she's able to manage.

Previously we have bought them a coffee table book of photos from around the world. They seemed to quite like that.

blob - that's a bit harsh. People are suggesting presents based on own experience of grandparents. When we buy we have to take into account dementia, being in a care home, having zero mobility (bedridden), living hundreds of miles away and people who hate going anywhere.

As people get much older, they haven't all got the energy to zip round to the theatre. They nod off or fret about needing a wee. I think it may be a bit patronising to sort out a mobility vehicle for them. It's like forcing them to keep up with your idea of a good time, when they are actually genuinely content with soft centre chocs and rose scented pillows. I try to buy what people want, not what I want to get them or think they should want.