Looking for unique gifts for men can be it's own unique challenge. It's even more difficult when you don't know the recipient very well.

If you're in this dilemma, it might be a good idea to get more than one gift, which will increase the likelihood of the man in question liking at least one of his presents. In this situation a gift basket might be a good idea.

Usually, gift baskets are packaged in generic combinations. Some baskets contain snack food and alcohol such as beer and little whiskey - a possible Christmas present. Others may contain chocolate and Easter eggs. Most baskets are tailor-made for specific occasions. While they might be ideal gifts for some men, if you're looking for gifts that are a bit more unique, they may not be the best choice.

However there ARE ways to find unique gift baskets for a unique man.  Here are some tips.

Unique Gift Basket Tip  No. 1 - Specialty gift basket shops.

There are plenty of shops that will happily help you choose a selection of gifts for your own tailor-made gift basket.  Once you've chosen the gifts, they can wrap it up in a basket for you. For instance, if you're shopping for a gift for a guy who likes to fish, go to a sporting store  for inspiration. They may already have a gift basket on the shelf. If not, you could hand-pick a number of gifts such as a book on great fishing spots in Australia, fishing flies and fishing knives. There are plenty of gift ideas that a fisherman would find useful.

Don't forget that the best gifts are useful AND fun.  The lucky man will be able to use his gifts all year round, and will be thinking of you every time he uses his gifts.

This concept works best if you have some idea of what the man is interested in.  Perhaps he's starting up his own business. What about a gift basket with some entrepreneurial books, fun post-it notes and a stress ball. If he's into tennis, how about some top quality balls, some tennis socks and a ticket to the next tennis tournament in your city.

Unique Gift Basket Tip No. 2 - Find businesses that will customise your gift basket.

There are plenty of pick 'n' mix gift basket websites and gift shops that can put a gift basket together for you. You can probably point out certain gift items that you'd like included in your gift basket, as well as give ideas on what you'd like the gift basket to look like when it eventually reaches the man in question.

Make sure you ask for a quote when they put the gift basket together. Customised gift baskets can cost a little bit more than off-the-shelf gift baskets.

Businesses who offer customised gift baskets can often organise delivery.  This can save you time and money... especially if the man in question lives on the other side of the city. The bigger gift basket companies can even deliver inter-state and even overseas.

Unique Gift Basket Tip No 3 - Creating your own gift basket.

If you want to go that little bit further, you can buy all your own wrapping materials and gifts to create your own personalised gift basket.  When you do this, you'll have total control over how unique your gift basket will turn out.  The lucky man will be in no doubt about the time and effort you've put into his gift.

This is the best option when you're making something for a dearly loved one, like a husband or boyfriend. Not only will he love the gift, you'll get to do quite a bit of shopping to find your unique gifts and wrapping materials - and that's a bonus for many people!

Any gift - baskets included - are more appreciated the more thought you put into it. If the gift is for a work colleague, it may not be appropriate to give them a highly personalised gift basket.  A generic gift basket may be a better option.  Unique gift baskets are usually for people who already know each other well.

Whatever the situation, gift baskets for men give you a more flexible approach to gift-giving. You just need to know a little bit about the man in question before you start... so you can come up with a totally unique gift basket he's sure to appreciate.

When it comes to finding ideal gifts for loved ones, of course we all want to find something very special - especially when the gift is for a special Dad.  Putting a great big smile on his face when he opens the present is a heartwarming experience.

However, if your dad is a 'hard to buy for' or fussy man, finding something unique that he'll like, and use, can be a challenge. 'Hard to buy for' Dads are usually those who are either 'a little bit fussy', or seem to have everything already!

However, don't panic. There are a few ways to help you identify a great gift for your Dad if he does fall into the category of 'hard to buy for.

If the person you are buying for is a sports fan, whether it's Aussie Rules or Cricket, then buying him a ticket to see his favourite team play would be much appreciated. You could even buy a ticket for yourself and go along with your Dad - even if you're not interested! That's a gift money can't buy... showing him how much you care.

If your Dad is a bit of a joker, he'd probably enjoy a novelty joke gift - a fun coffee mug, a quirky mouse pad. You can even buy chocolate boxes that have funny pictures and quotes on it. That's if your Dad is a sweet tooth of course. Try this website for gift ideas.

Perhaps the most difficult challenge is buying a gift for a father who seems to have everything. If he plays golf, he'll have all his sports gear and clubs sorted. If he plays tennis, he'll have his racquet and clothes already.  The best solution for these types of 'hard to buy for' men is to go one better. Pick the sport, or hobby, your dad enjoys and do some research about the most up-to-date equipment that's just recently come out. Then replace something he already has with the latest model - whether it's his runners, a squash racquet or a cool new power tool.

With a little thought behind the gift, it really isn't that hard to buy gifts for 'hard to buy' and fussy men.

One thread which caught my eye recently was about giving aftershave as a gift for men.... mainly boyfriends and husbands. Of course, I'm not talking about Brut 33... or last minute birthday and Christmas aftershave gift sets you buy at your local late-night chemist on the way to a party (although we've all done that - admit it!)

I was inspired to search for some aftershave and cologne brands that would be stylish and classic gifts for men. So I turned my attention to Europe and found out which brands are hotting up the fragrance world at the moment. I found this list in the Sunday Times Style Magazine which was written by the editors of Perfumes: The Guide... an online guide to all things to do with fragrances and perfumes.

They may not all be available in shops here in Australia, but you can do doubt buy them online. Australian prices quoted are a VERY rough guide!

Tom of Finland (Etat Libre d'Orange) $100. This dusty lemon fragrance brings to mind clear mountain weather or the feeling of cool hands on a fevered forehead.  Great gift for men who prefer their aftershaves crisp and dry.

Escale a Portofino (Dior) $90. A lovely almond cologne with a mouthwatering citrus topnote and a strange bitter-almonds note in the heart. The perfect gift for men who love their marzipan icing.

Scent 79 Man (Jil Sander) $195.  This would be a great gift for a more outdoorsy man. It has a languid cool smell of damp leafy, green notes and unsmoked cigarettes that will make him nostalgic for the days people smoked in bars.

Guerlain Homme (Guerlain) $70. I must admit I'm a big fan of Guerlain fragrances. They have a warm, mysterious smell to them. This aftershave is described as having a rum wood nose... with a hint of mint and anisic.  Sounds like a sexy gift for a boyfriend or husband. It's in a nice silver bottle as well.

Incense Extreme (Tauer Perfumes) $120.  The combination of Iris and petitgrain creates an old-fashioned, soap-and-water aroma and brings to mind grand hotel rooms.  Maybe this is the ideal gift for Dad or Grandad?

L'Eau de Jatamansi (L'Artisan Parfumeur) $190.  An original and very arty gift for the creative man in your life. Fresh, Woody citrus up top, a dollop of soft rose and a background of spikenard and incense. 

So now giving aftershave as a gift doesn't mean you're unimaginitive or lazy. It could turn out to be your man's favourite Christmas, birthday or anniversary gift.

• Tickets to their favourite sporting event. Even better - buy two and go with him. That way they get the added gift of time from you. Your time and you've chosen to spend that time on him.

• Tickets to their favourite band / group or style of music. Again, buy two tickets. Now this may be one that you can hand over to your mother, or to his best friend, or keep it and go with him.

• An item that goes with his favourite hobby. And please don't tell me your dad doesn't have a hobby. Every dad has a hobby.

• Vouchers for the local hardware store. There's always something your dad would like to buy and / or fix and vouchers are a great present to give to your dad.

And of course -

• Alcohol. But make it something special, after all it is his birthday.

Whilst you can keep an eye on an international calendar (and some websites (including wikipedia) have all the father's day date variations), you may not remember.

So what can you do?

Given the Queen has more than one birthday celebration around the world, we could start a whole new tradition and send our father's multiple father's day presents - one for our date, and of course one for his. But if that seems a little like overkill, which one do you choose?

Well unless the retailers have cottoned onto this minor point, there may not be any suitable cards to send for your father's date, so you will need to send one on your date and not his. But whatever you decide to do - always give yourself plenty of time as sometimes post can be delayed. Better the parcel arrives early than late.

If you think sports are the way to go then why not sporting memorabilia, sports clothing, DVD's and tickets.

Of course there are many office based toys available these days too. From indoor golf putting sets, to dart boards.  As well as things to challenge the mind, for example puzzle sets or other desk based items.

Or are the men in your life into mechanical bits and pieces? Radio controlled cars, battery operated wotnots and computer based everything else - and then we have their vehicles of course. But lets face it, we're talking about unique gifts - items for cars etc come under "normal" presents for most men - unless it's something that goes in or on said vehicle of course.

So far we haven't mentioned that other big thing in most men's lives - the hardware store and the tool shed. How many people would buy their men a screwdriver or ratchet set, or a new lawn mower? Probably not many I would hazard a guess. And then there are other items that go in the tool shed - bar games and alcoholic based gifts. There are many different styles and types of bar fridges for instance that could be classed as "different" - I'm not sure whether they would be classed as a unique gift, different yes - unique? Not sure. As with all things, you need to define what a "normal" gift would be, before you can determine what would be a unique present.

Whatever gift you decide to buy for your father, you know he will appreciate the thought and the time and effort that went into buying it for him.

Dad's are like that you know.

• Flying lessons,
• Laps around a race track in a race car,
• Tickets to the next footie / cricket game,
• A tandem sky dive

Or you could just go with the socks and aftershave, after all it is the thought that counts.