9 best Singapore places to get unique, personalised and thoughtful gifts for your loved ones

Because a regular old thingamajig from a department store can no longer cut it.

It can be tough finding a perfect gift for that important person in your life. But nothing says “I care about you” more than something that came out of careful deliberation and thought.

Which is why we are recommending these places for you to get your next present from. Besides, not only are customised and personalised gifts way more significant and heartfelt, they also prove to your recipient that you’re no regifter. Win-win.

1. My Paper Box

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/mypaperbox/posts/2896318277273765[/embed]

Is your friend disorganised? Does she need a place to quickly scribble down her stray thoughts? Or perhaps she just likes stationery in general.

Either way, she’d love these customised notepads that will not only keep her messiness in check, it’ll make her actually enjoy sitting at her work desk.

At My Paper Box, you can customise different types of stationary and office supplies with your friend’s name in various fonts.

Choose from notepads such as those sporting rose watermarks, watercolour florals, cactus flowers, black and white marble and more, and indicate the name you wish to include.

You can even get a notepad that includes a photo of your choice. Notepads are from US$14 (S$19) but shipping fees apply.

Visit www.mypaperbox.xyz for more info.

2. Naiise Iconic’s Gift Bar

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/naiise/posts/3539048652809461[/embed]

Naiise has plenty of great options when it comes to quirky, funny or useful-but-out-of-the-ordinary gifts. After all, it’s known for its emphasis on good design and local products. But any gift will look unpolished if you simply cover it with any old wrapping paper.

To bring it up a level and make your gift smashing all round, head to Naiise Iconic’s gift bar in Jewel Changi Airport, where you get to choose between 

1) a basic gift wrapping paper + one ribbon or twine + one gift tag; or 2) the same as above, except you get a premium gift wrapping paper (some of them designed by renowned illustrators).

You can also add pompoms, a wax seal and dried flowers, and choose from different fonts to inscribe onto your gift tag — basically, nothing is too extra!

While there, you can opt to have engraved text on every purchase from jewellery company The Mindful Company (at $15), or have your name printed on a bottle from The LAB Fragrances (free with every purchase of The LAB Fragrances).

3. ana tomy

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/anatomyco/posts/1155385828189762[/embed]

If you like to be in control of every single thing in your life (you be you, we’re not judging), then you’d enjoy getting your notebook or planner done at ana tomy.

It allows you to make a choice on every single detail to create the perfect notebook or planner in your eyes.

Which means you don’t just get to choose the type of paper (ruled, dotted, grid, plain, planner), you also get to choose the cover (cloth- or paper-bound), the colour of the pen loop, spine, ribbon marker, book band and loop wires and the material of the paper.

You can also monogram the cover with your initials or a phrase (up to 10 characters). It’ll be a creation that’s truly yours.

Visit https://ana-tomy.co for more info.

4. Wonderbly

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/Wonderbly/photos/a.464203536949687/3291411764228836/[/embed]

Have a friend who has just had a newborn baby? This personalised book would make a perfect gift for the bub’s one-month celebration.

The book will feature the little one’s name and cast them as the hero/heroine of the story.

Wonderbly, which ships worldwide, has various themes, such as Where Are You, Lost My Name, and Bedtime for (insert name here), and the books come in softback or hardback options.

Plus you get to include a dedicated message within the pages as well. It’ll be a unique and meaningful present that will be cherished for years — and hopefully inspire them to love reading too. From $36.99.

Visit www.wonderbly.com/sg for more info.

5. TheImprint Singapore

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/theimprint.sg/posts/2660005914251196[/embed]

What started out as a school project in 2012 among three polytechnic students branched into a full-fledged business after the trio found a market for providing unique and personalised gifts.

TheImprint Singapore allows you to customise a whole array of products, from phone cases to mugs to cardholders and passport holders.

Our vote goes to the burgundy cardholder with lanyard, which is made with saffiano microfiber leather and comes with three card pockets. 

Also available in black, navy or nude, you can add a monogram in gold, silver or rose gold for a maximum of seven characters. Minimalist and elegant, it’s perfect for that friend who works in the CBD.

Visit www.theimprint.sg for more info.

6. Oo La Lab

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/CraftedinOoLa/posts/1228578310815598[/embed]

Have a friend who wants to smell different from the bodies around him or her? Oo La Lab’s 100 per cent customisable fragrances are the way to go.

At its flagship NomadX store, you can select the ingredients you want from its extensive the Oo Fragrance Table for your top, middle and base notes to create a truly unique and pleasing scent.

If you want to let your friend to mix and match their own fragrance at any time, you can purchase the Eau de Parfum Mixology Kit ($188), which comes with a guided instruction manual and 12 fragrance notes, each note hand-tapped into individually appointed 5ml dropper bottles. There are also two limited edition ingredients included inside the kit.

At 68 Orchard Road, #01-67 & #03-65, 69 Plaza Singapura, 238839. Visit https://oola-lab.com for more info.

7. Misty Daydream

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/mistydaydream/posts/1782515871901066[/embed]

Regular tumblers and flasks are so cliched, am I right? Get your friend one that literally screams their name — in a cool font.

Misty Daydream has a whole range of stainless steel double-walled flasks that will not just keep your drinks hot and cold for hours; they also come in fashionable shades such as hot pink, marble, rose, gold, rose gold and black.

Choose from fonts such as signature, retro, geometric, sweetheart and more, and decide if you want the name to be horizontal or vertical.

Besides these flasks, Misty Daydream also customises cake-toppers in various fonts and designs, so if it’s your loved one’s birthday, we say add that to cart as well to make the celebration ever cooler.

Visit https://mistydaydream.com/customised-items for more info.

8. Bynd Artisan

[embed]https://www.facebook.com/byndartisan/posts/3390462327710531[/embed]

Local craft atelier Bynd Artisan is known for its beautifully made paper and leather goods which can be customised to your fancy.

Co-founder Winnie Chan brings her experience of working at her family’s bookbinding and stationery firm, Grandluxe, to Bynd Artisan, along with a sharp eye for design and a minimalist aesthetic.

First launched in Boon Lay in 2014, the business has since flourished to include a flagship atelier in Holland Village, standalone retail stores in shopping malls such as Ion Orchard, Takashimaya and Raffles City, and a shop-in-shop outlet in multi-label fashion boutique Pedder on Scotts.

At Bynd Artisan, you can customise notebooks ($35) by choosing its cover, the type of paper (apart from the usual ruled, plain, dotted and checks, they also offer black paper and colour combinations such as pink and purple and yellow and orange) and the colour of its ringed wires.

You can also opt for a clasp, a closing flap or an elastic band to secure the notebook and add a monogram. You can also personalise leather pieces, ranging from cardholders to pen cases to wallets to circle pouches and clutch slings.

Take your pick from a range of leather colours and add a monogram by choosing from its choice of fonts and font colours.

Visit www.byndartisan.com for more info.

9. Trouble Brewing

[embed]https://www.instagram.com/p/CF_vNDDnBVk/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link[/embed]

Get your pals their very own custom craft beer that is brewed and labelled specially for them, courtesy of local brewery Trouble Brewing.

The brewery, which began brewing its own beer in 2017 in an old Singaporean bean curd factory, usually sends its IPAs and ales for sale at other establishments, but you can contact it for a unique concoction that you can’t get anywhere else, in terms of taste and packaging. This is one type of trouble we wouldn’t mind getting.

Visit www.troublebrewing.com for more info.

This article was first published in The Finder.