Holiday shoppers are scrambling for gift ideas. Have you ever thought of selecting a gift with the recipient’s vision needs in mind? I thought about this when talking to my dad recently. He and mom are on a fixed income now and his Medicare plan doesn’t cover much to meet their vision needs. Arranging for an individual vision plan would be a thoughtful gift for folks in that position and are available to purchase yearly. Check out the VSP website for more information.
If you shop for a teenager or an adult contact lens wearer, a gift of contact lens solution or a new case might be a welcome gift. They even make cases now that are fashionable and accommodate contact lens paraphernalia and glasses in one!
For those of us of a certain age who need reading glasses, they make some stylish chains and beaded necklaces that can hold your readers and keep you looking fabulous in between paragraphs. Microfiber cleaning cloths and repair kits for glasses fill a need for the nearsighted, and sunglasses make a strong fashion statement whether you need a prescription in them or not.
Other visionary gift ideas came to me quickly one I started brainstorming. Here is the list I came up with: reading lights, large print or art books, hypo-allergenic eye make up or eye cream, cold pack or warm gel eye masks, sports or safety goggles, optical illusion or art books, sports bands and visors, back pillow to support reading in bed, work lights and magnifiers for crafters, large eye needles or threaders for those who sew, cameras or cat’s eye jewelry… the list goes on. For those who have extreme vision impairment, an internet search for low vision aids will yield many more ideas.
Lastly, if you shop for someone who works in a vision-related job, here is my favorite idea: prepare them a CD with all “eye” songs. There are many out there, but I’ll leave you with my favorite – Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes.”
