Mumsnet users share their favourite gifts and/or cards from Card Factory

[EllieMumsnet]

This activity is now closed

Valentines Day and Mother’s Day are on the horizon and whether you celebrate them or not, it can be a great time to share your love and gratitude to friends, family members and/or partners. With that in mind, Card Factory would love you to visit their website here and pick out your favourite items, whether that’s cards, gifts, flowers or balloons and post them on the thread.

Here’s what Card Factory have to say: “Giving a gift can make any occasion even more special and at Card Factory, you can find something they’ll love from just £1.99. We’ve got fantastic high street and personalised gifts available, as well as more unusual presents like balloon bouquets. Whatever the celebration, you’re bound to find something perfect.”

As well as posting your favourite items from Card Factory, we would also love you to share your gift giving tips. Do you always ensure either the card or gift is personalised to make it that extra bit special? Do you prefer to surprise them with a gift you think they’ll love or ask them exactly what they want? Or maybe you always ensure the wrapping is set to impress.

Whatever your favourite gifts and gift giving tips are, share them on the thread below and you will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 voucher voucher of their choice (from a list). PLUS 5 MNers will win the item they’ve picked from Card factory!

Thanks and good luck!
MNHQ

Standard Insight T&Cs Apply

[sashh]

I don't wait for a birthday or other event, if I see something and I think, "x would like that" I buy it.

I'd love the sweet hamper.

[Winningbeauty]

I love the mounted personalised tiles, I'd have the my name, my husbands and my sons

www.cardfactory.co.uk/personalised/personalised-letter-tiles-print.htm

When giving gifts I always feel that thoughtful or useful gifts are the best.

For example my last gift to my aunty was "from my son" who according to the Chinese year is a rooster. So I got her a cup and oven mittens with roosters on. She loved it.

[Kraggle]

I love this Pinky Pie airwalker. Never seen them before and my dd would love one for her birthday next month. Also didn’t realise Card Factory was online so that’s really handy.

[YerAuntFanny]

Ooh, not sure what's going on with my links just now. Will try that again!

My favourite item is this 12 photo print. It would make a lovely gift for any Mum this Mother's day filled with photos of the kids/grandkids 😍

My top gift giving tip would be to keep it simple and remember that it really is the thought that counts, so many times I've tried to get something really cool when really something simpler (and often cheaper!) would've done the job.

Case in point - I got my 4yo a £20 art set for christmas which has basically been ignored in favour of the £1.99 springy/fluffy cat pen and notebook I put in her stocking, funnily enough from Card Factory! Guess who's daughter is having a very scaled down 5th birthday next month?!

I'm another who shops in-store all the time and didn't know there was a website full of stuff, handy to know wink

[WilmaJean]

I will look out for presents throughout the year - if I see something perfect for someone I will get it - even if it's not needed for another 10 months! Much better than panic buying - plus it spreads the cost!
I really like the idea of a personalised prosecco bottle www.cardfactory.co.uk/personalised/personalised-birthday-age-prosecco.htm - it's my lovely friend's 40th this year and she loves a glass of fizz! This would be perfect!

[Didiusfalco]

www.cardfactory.co.uk/personalised/personalised-birthday-age-prosecco.htm This would be great for DHs milestone birthday.

I must say the prices are very reasonable and the balloon bouquets look lovely too.

I always like to give an extra surprise gift as well as the expected gift - even if it just some chocolate, although I prefer it to be more personal. I love choosing presents!

[mitalmanda]

I've never really thought of the Card Factory having such a good website for online shopping/ideas and that it's always somewhere I'd pop into on the high street instead, for value for money cards/gifts. I'm loving the personalised gifts as I love to make a gift special and put thought into any gift rather than any standard or dull soapy sets, chocolates, etc.
Personally I like the 'Personalised Birthday Card - OMG, You're How Old?' as it's always great to make the recipient laugh and bring a smile to their face. I like the 'Personalised Red Football Shirt Notebook' as a gift, personal and useful for a footy fan at school, perfect for my nephew. And I love the 'Personalised Teddy Design Children's Cutlery Set', my friend is expecting so this is great. Some great ideas, with matching gift bags/wrap/balloons for decoration. I tend to have a store of gifts which I've bought during the sales as this saves me a lot of money and is handy when a surprise Birthday crops up, especially with kids from school parties. And I do like to tailor a gift or be different, remembering what someone may have mentioned as a like...e.g. my friend had been ill so I bought some healthy tea and treats made into a gift pack.

[Fumnudge]

I love their inventive balloons, I can't believe how far balloons have come on since the days of a latex balloon and a marker pen
My daughter would love this:://www.cardfactory.co.uk/gifts/disney-princess-foil-balloon-bouquet.htm
I got a storm trooper for DH's 40th which he thought was the best thing ever.
What I do love about card factory is the variety and new items coming in. I love to colour theme wrapping to the receivers' taste and its really easy on the purse to do so with their prices.

[Headfullofdreams]

Love the retro sweet jar! Lots of thought, doesn't have to mean lots of money.

[Megansmumsie]

I love the personalised Llama card, my daughter has adored them for years and they're very 'fashionable' this year so she's snapping up all the Llama related stuff she can get and she would ADORE this card and the cute little note book- i think it's fab that they're personalised.

I guess i'm somewhere in between asking what people want and surprising them. My favourite thing to do is to create a hamper of all the little bits people will like/ have asked for. I always think they look splendid and it makes little gifts feel so much bigger. I always build a hamper and never buy one pre-made.

A good example of this would be my Mother in law's Christmas present this year, she was after some fancy soap and moisturiser combo in a holder. I bought matching body washes, a bath pouffe, bath crystals etc and a wire basket, it didn't cost the earth at all (which is bloody handy) but looked lovely all together with a big bow on it and she was thrilled.

[Beeziekn33ze]

Product Description
This 22-piece train set is the perfect gift for budding train drivers and enthusiasts!

With a smooth wooden jigsaw track which slots together to form a circle, the set is complete with an engine, carriages, houses, figures and trees so they can build their very own landscape! The words 'Train Set' are engraved on one part of the track and a name can be engraved on the other in a cute block font.

A great gift for a christening or birthday, it's sure to provide hours of fun for both adults and children!


My favourite gift giving tip is to wrap little extras with a main present, favourite sweets, a tiny book, or small beauty products!

[Quietvoiceplease]

I love Card Factory, but we don't have one near us - if I'm visitng somewhere and spot one I always make a point of going in. Their cards and range are so good and astonishing value. I have to say I didn't realise they had a website (and probably wouldn't have expected them to actually).
The range is lovely. My favourite is probably the photo collages, like this: www.cardfactory.co.uk/personalised/photo-upload-12-photo-print.htm
I've been meaning to do something like this for so long (I mean, years) and actually thought this looked lovely.

[Quietvoiceplease]

Oh, I forgot. My advice about gift giving (actually, I love giving gifts) is to try and make the personal and to think about the recipient. It really doesn't have to be very expensive. So I gave a friend who is under pressure to complete her thesis some nice bubble bath, a candle and some chocolate: 'a relaxing kit', I gave another who happened to mention that wanted to try cooking new foods, a kit containing some 'fancy' (longlife) ingredients like spices and rice wine and a recipe. I try and listen to when friends or family mention things they like, or would like to do, and buy accordingly. Personalised gifts make the recipient know you have thought about them I think, and who doesn't like that?

[MrsST]

I get a lot of quirky mugs bought for me so that is usually my token gift.
We buy our balloons for the kids from card factory as they're so reasonable.
My husband bought our son a soft toy robot from Card Factory Outlet about 2 years ago. It's my sons favourite toy and he goes to bed with it every night. Only problem is we've lost it a couple of times and Card Factory Outlet don't sell them anymore so we have to be extra careful we don't leave "Bobot" anywhere.
As for personalisation I tend to not bother unless it's for a joke.

[BeeMyBaby]

I really like this https://www.cardfactory.co.uk/personalised/personalised-noahs-ark-money-box.htm

I always use card factory for birthday cards as they have a great selection and are by far the most affordable, luckily I have one right next to my work

[pinkflump]

I've just recently got engaged (like, this week!) so I have been eyeing up champagne flutes for our celebrations. I absolutely love these personalised ones!

Like others have mentioned above, I didn't know Card Factory had a website you could order from!

[mummymummums]

I love the 20 photo and message print.
I try really hard to find gifts I think the recipient will like. I do a lot of on line searching and try to be creative - I'll buy experience vouchers sometimes. I often buy personalised cards. I would only get photo gifts for myself, DH, or my parents (of my DC - their grandchildren)

[Peoniesandcats]

My favourite items from card factory are balloons as I think they are a nice surprise/touch: www.cardfactory.co.uk/balloons/mothers-day/18-inch-mothers-day-caption-helium-balloon.htm

I tend to buy presents for friends on offer/sale that I think the person would like, family it's easier for me just to ask them what they want..!

[Anj123]

My favourite is definitely the photo calendar

www.cardfactory.co.uk/personalised/photo-upload-calendar.htm

I make these every year as I love making personalised gifts. My top tip is to give something unique

[Pigeonpea]

I love the idea of this personalised apron:
www.cardfactory.co.uk/gifts/photo-upload-apron-star-baking-since.htm
A super gift, with a photo of Grandma and her Granddaughter whilst baking on a new baking apron
In terms of Mother's Day gifts, I like to keep it personal and homemade, from the card to jars of homemade jams and goodies, to show that I've thought and also that my daughter, their Granddaughter has been involved.

[motherstongue]

I love beautiful wrapping! I like giving gifts wrapped in tissue paper then placed in a box which is then tied with ribbons! It doesn't matter what the gift is, it is always enhanced, I think, with lovely wrapping.

I always manage to get nice boxes with tissue paper in a complementary colour at The Card Factory and at a very reasonable cost.

[Cobwebdust]

I like to give gifts that I think the recipient will love, so usually something personalised or more of a quirky novelty item that suits them.

If I was choosing a gift for myself I quite like the photo wall art.
www.cardfactory.co.uk/gifts/photo-wall-art?sortby=price|desc

[BellaVida]

What a revelation! I've only ever been into Card Factory and didn't even know they had a web site. There's so many great gift ideas on here too that are really reasonably priced.

I love all of the personalize photo gifts. My DC would love the personalized notebooks www.cardfactory.co.uk/gifts/photo-upload-notebook-butterflies.htm and iPhone coverswww.cardfactory.co.uk/gifts/photo-upload-iphone-case.htm. It would be nice if you could choose from graphics to customize the notebooks a bit more to personal taste. Also, it's a shame the phone covers are only from iPhone 6, as many kids I know have their parents old phones, so older models.

Personally, I love the prints, particularly this one. I often end up putting loads of pics into a Word doc, then printing them for gifts, but the finish on these is much nicer. www.cardfactory.co.uk/gifts/multi-photo-upload-seven-photo-print

Some of the valentines cards are hilarious, albeit a bit 'adult' 🤣. I think you need one for partners of all the techies out there.....'I love you more than you love your laptop/iPhone/social media'!!

[annarack99]

I love the pink and blue number candles for cakes, they are great value and just the right size, plus burn for ages