Buying the Impossible Gift

My husband is one of those hard people to buy for. You know the type. He likes stuff that I don’t understand. He isn’t very verbal about what he wants. He often buys what he wants which leaves very little margin for gifting…

A few months ago he and I went shopping for shirts and pants so he could go to work clothed.   After the store-to-store run around, not able to find his size in several things that he liked and then the ultimate insult of purchasing something only to have it shrink in the first washing, he muttered, “Why can’t someone just come to my house and make my clothes?” I laughed. Fast forward to the Holiday Bazaar at Liberty Elementary.   I was walking from craft booth to candle booth to accessories booth to men’s wear booth…*STOP* *Rewind* Men’s Wear Booth? I stopped and asked what they did. “We make custom shirts.” Yep, they literally come to the house, take measurements, design a shirt with the customer with a wide variety of style and fabric choices and then make the shirt. “I’ll take one!” After choosing what level of shirt I wanted to give (ranging in price from $79 – 149 with discounts for first time clients), I was handed a gift card to put under the Christmas tree. This Christmas my husband’s wish was my command. In January, Trae (my local J. Hilburn style adviser) will call and set up a time with my husband for the consultation and voila! custom shirt. I went home very pleased with myself.   I finally had a gift that:

1. He hadn’t bought himself.
2. He will actually use.
3. I think is pretty cool.

So, I continued my Christmas shopping over the next week.   I found fun stuff for most of the people on my list except…my brother, my father, my father-in-law, my brother-in-law and my nephew.   I just couldn’t think of anything.   Anything. Until it occurred to me that they might need shirts too. So, I called up Trae and ordered 5 more… So easy.   So easy. So easy. The cool thing is that once a client is measured, the J. Hilburn style adviser will keep the information on file.   So if I get stuck in the gift-giving department in the future or my husband is in need of another shirt, the solution is just a call away… J. Hilburn is a local company – based out of Highland Park.   They currently sell custom dress shirts, ties and golf shirts and have plans to add to their product line. Trae Lynne Atchison is the ‘burb’s local style advisor.   She can be contacted by phone (214) 708-9518 or email:   tr***********@jh******.com.