Gift Guide: The 8 Most Unique Gift Ideas For a Long Distance Birthday or Occasion

Who’s with me in saying that gifts are one of the best things in the world – both to give and to receive. Of course they are better exchanged in person, but that doesn’t mean you can’t make a gift special even when you are miles and miles away from someone. Here is a list of gifts you can give to a long distance special someone who is just way too far from you.

Best for Wine Lovers: WINC Membership

Long distance is hard, but wine makes it all better. WINC is a “wine club” or wine subscription service that lets you curate a box of wine to your liking. The wine is very affordable and very good quality. After you gift someone their first free box, they can choose to keep their membership or cancel it. Winc’s membership program is $60 per month, lets members customize their box every month, provides access to better prices, and even lets you skip a month if you don’t want to be charged or don’t need wine that month. Sorry but…is not needing wine even a thing??

Photo by: WINC

If you have a wine lover in your life, getting them a 1 month ($60), 2 month ($100), or 3 month ($150) subscription to WINC is the way to go. We’ve been using WINC for almost a year and absolutely LOVE it.

Best for a Quality Dessert: Milk Bar

I mean, all you really need to know about this is…Christina Tosi. She is a queen, and her cakes, truffles, pies, cookies, really everything are so delicious. Milk Bar has a Birthday Shop as well as a Moments & Milestones Shop. You can choose from a variety box, or just get a single cake, truffle box, cookie tin, etc. What better way to celebrate someone than to send them dessert?

Photo by: Milk Bar

Best For the Flower Lovers: Urban Stems

The days of corny flowers in corny vases are over. Trust me, when you order flowers or plants from Urban Stems, you will never go back. While they do have a Gifts page, I highly recommend starting on their Flowers page for inspiration and drool worthy floral arrangements.

Photo by: Urban Stems

You can choose a chic vase for your flowers (more options than just these 3^) or just leave them as is, they are beautiful either way! I can’t even choose my favorites because literally every single bouquet is so incredible and it depends on who you are gifting it to. Oh! And they also have Plants, as well as a Subscription Service. Boom!

Best for a Personalized Dessert: SendaCake

There’s a very unique way to send a cake that lets you make it extremely personal. Sendacake is a cake delivery service that lets you send someone an “explosion box”, which is mini cake in a box and you can add flying butterflies, flower petals, candy, personal pictures, etc. to the inside of the box for an amazing little surprise.

Photo by: Sendacake

I know what you’re thinking – is Sendacake the one with the corny ads I see on Instagram? And yes, I’m here to tell you it is and I’m also here to tell you that their cakes are the CUTEST. They even have full size cakes, which I have not tried. But they do have cakes for all occasions – birthdays, graduations, anniversaries. Both the mini explosion box and mini non-explosion box have been a huge hit for the people I’ve sent one to. 

Best for Highlighting a Special Moment In Time: The Night Sky

Speaking of ads on Instagram – have you seen the ads on Instagram with the maps of the stars’ alignment at a specific time or place? Ok, and have you always thought it’s a couple’s only gift? Well, I’m here to prove you wrong. I mean, sure, if you’re looking to give this to a significant other to represent your first date, wedding day, engagement etc., this is a great idea. But you can also give this as a gift to really anyone in your life. The Night Sky lets you customize a map based on your needs.

Photo by: The Night Sky

Give this to a friend for getting their first job or a big promotion that changed their life. Or, give this to a cousin for their graduation. You can even give this to a sibling for buying their first home. Give this to your parents for the time and place where they met. Give this to your aunt for your favorite day spent together. Do you get my point? You can really take this gift in many different directions and it’s super personal, thoughtful, and just…super cute.

Best For the Drinkers in Your Life: Spirited Gifts

If you have someone in your life who loves drinking *raises hand*, or need a gift for a friend, family member, coworker, manager, really whoever, I got you covered. Spirited Gifts has an incredible variety of single bottle options, gift sets, specific cocktail sets, at home bar gifts, and so much more. AND, you can choose the packaging and also engrave almost any product. Take a look at one of their cocktail sets!

Photo by: Spirited Gifts

I’ve personally used Spirited Gifts to congratulate my friends on their engagement with a bottle of Veuve Clicquot, and the experience was truly 10/10. I did not get any engraving, and the amazing packaging and gift note made up for that. Below are some of my favorites on the site:

If you want to gift them a glassware set to go with the alcohol you are sending them, check out my post on the Best Glassware to Complete Your At Home Bar.

Best for Chocolate Addicts: Harry & David

Ok listen, do not sleep on Harry & David. I’m a huge fan of Harry & David products. Their chocolate is DELICIOUS and they have such a great variety of options to choose from for any taste and any price point. From their Gift Baskets & Towers, I love their Tower of Chocolates ($70) which includes two pounds of assorted goods. I would start on their homepage, and see where your sweet tooth leads you. What better way to show that special long distance someone that you love them than with treats and goodies?

Photo by: Harry & David

Best for Low Budget but Personal: Felt Cards

I can’t even tell you how many times I’ve sent my friends or family a Felt Card. You have to download their app in order to use it, but trust me it is SO worth it. You get to completely customize a card from scratch (they also have templates you can choose from), and the price ranges from $4 to $7.

Photo by: Felt Cards

If you compare the pricing to what you would normally spend on a card, and add the fact of how personal you can make this feel (and how pretty they look!!!), it really is worth it. This is the second time I’ve said it’s worth it so now it’s real right? But really, the world is really yours with Felt. You can add panels, pictures, different fonts, and even small gifts to be sent with your card. Just…DO IT! Don’t buy generic cards anymore. You’re better than that. We’re better than that.

Ok friends! That’s all for my roundup of best gifts to give when you’re far away from the person you love. Let me know if any of these inspired you to buy a gift. And tell me which one!