Canadian Gift Guide

Today’s gift choice better be a good one, because I just bought it as a gift for two of my closest friends. As mentioned, I’m leaving town in a couple of weeks. Before I go, I want to give my pals (one who’s birthday is the night of my goodbye party, the other has theirs in early October) their birthday gifts. Typically speaking they are fun to shop for (and receive from) because you get to give each other girly luxuries that aren’t necessarily on a ‘list’ of any sort. So along with some fun jewellery and a Joe nail polish each, the part I was most excited about is today’s suggestion.

I was introduced to today’s gift by one of my favourite Canadian starlets, Rachel McAdams. I seriously root for this girl to be successful in whatever she does, and love that she’s down to earth enough to still live in Toronto, in a shared townhouse with her brother. I mean, really? Love. I read about her Toronto living in the same article where I also found out about Keel’s Simple Journal. I’m actually a bit familiar with Keel’s, as he created a popular series of ‘All About Me’ books that I happen to own one of – ‘All About Us’, a book Jordan and I haven’t quite ever bothered to finish filling out (although we’re close).

Anyway the Simple Journal is sort of an upgrade of those books. They are sleek little pocket-sized diaries that come in a rainbow of colours (and the colour you choose apparently says a lot about you). The idea behind the journals is that many people seem to have a problem to sticking with journalling (or blogging) because something interesting doesn’t necessarily happen to you every. single. day.

The Simple Journal aims to overcome those woes by giving you a simple question to choose a word to describe your day, space to write a sentence about why it was so, and a few other random musings, questions, and thought spaces.  Sometimes the book can be a little bit rooted in the abstract, but its aim is to both make you reflect and make you smile.

Now, why is this a good gift? It’s a very personal gift, but also a very impersonal one. Your recipient is the one who will make it personal – you’re simply providing an avenue for them to record the days of their lives. There isn’t really a reason why someone would wrinkle their nose and desperately look for a gift receipt. Worst case scenario? They let it languish on their bedside table for months, but really, I’m super excited to start filling my out (then again, I do blog on a daily basis in one of my, um, five blogs so…). Although journalling has traditionally been a female endeavour, the Simple Journal is neutral enough that a liberal-minded guy would also have fun filling these pages.

The Simple Journal is also a very affordable gift. On Amazon they come in at just $11 a piece, making them a sweet Secret Santa gift, or a perfect singular birthday gift for someone you don’t know so well (in terms of price point), or in my case, a nice way to say goodbye and encourage your friends to make (and keep track of!) memories in your absence. They are also beautiful. Honestly, I was surprised how nice-looking they were, with a textured cover, shiny page lining, and smooth paper. They are a great example of practical but delectable giftware.

Now to keep this blog a secret for another week from my friends so they don’t see the big reveal!