DIY - top chocolate ideas for Christmas presents

But do you also find festive gift-giving stressful, and you don''t know why? Find out where the gift-giving habit and the stress that comes with it actually comes from and save some nerves with our chocolate tips.

Gift giving - a centuries-old custom

Exchanging things is a habit common to all human cultures. The rules and customs surrounding this practice vary from culture to culture, but the essence is virtually universal. The same is true of gift-giving. Despite the fact that this practice is so widespread, few people ask why it has spread throughout the world, regardless of time and place. The social role of gift-giving was already explored in the first half of the 20th century by the French sociologist, ethnologist and anthropologist Marcel Mauss in his Essay on the Gift, who studied the practices of Amerindian tribes and archaic societies in Melanesia and Polynesia. He started from the concept of the potlatch, a form of gift based on competition between givers to see who could give more and thus create a better status in the community. It is his work that is key to understanding why shopping for festive gifts can also be stressful for many people.

Why can gift shopping be stressful?

Mauss found that gift giving is an important part of social life in cultures around the world, and that this is followed by the 3 commitments of gift giving and the rule that gifts are given, received and returned.So gift giving is not just about the gift itself, but also the underlying legal, economic, spiritual and moral significance that permeates the whole social fabric. In all societies, therefore, things given as gifts express the relationship between the giver and the donee. According to Mauss, such gift-giving is neither voluntary nor altruistic. What is really behind it all is an obligation to give, an obligation to receive and an obligation to repay.

But do you also find festive gift-giving a certain amount of stressful, and you don''t know why?

This whole custom revolves around the rules that determine how to do it properly - with whom, when and how. One of these rules is that the process itself must appear voluntary and spontaneous, when in reality it is just a formal pretense and a social sham. We are all complicit in it, and pretending is only part of the rules. Thus, gift-giving obliges the giver to return at least an equivalent gift to the donor, otherwise a hierarchy of social relations can be created: if the donor gives more than the donee can return, then the donor proves that he is worth more than the donee.

Delight the giver with a DIY chocolate gift

Why bother worrying about how much money you can spend on this year''s gifts? Give your loved ones a gift that you''ll make yourself using the "Do It Yourself" technique. This way, neither you nor the recipient will have to wonder how much the gift is worth, because every handmade gift is always priceless.

Here are 3 chocolate Christmas gift ideas:

1. Surprise cup

A cleverly chosen cup with the recipient''s favourite colour or motif is sure to put a smile on their face. Fill it with his favourite chocolates, and don''t forget to add a delicious hot chocolate to warm him up in his new cup on cold winter days.

2. Festive chocolate cake

Especially if you have a chocoholic in you, you can cheer him up with a festively decorated chocolate cake. By taking the time to create something in the kitchen especially for him, you''ll show him how much he means to you.

3. Personalised chocolates

For those of you who are short on time or creativity, with our help, you can go a little "rogue" by giving your recipient a personalised bonbonierie, which in a sense will still contain elements of DIY technique, but will save you a lot of time and nerves. Choose the size of the candy and its contents - you can add any praline you like, perfectly to the taste of the giver. Each individual praline will be handmade, without preservatives, artificial sweeteners or flavour enhancers. With our help, you can also add a personalised greeting card to the praline free of charge. What an exquisite and imaginative gift, isn''t it?

Of course, our chocolate Christmas gift ideas can also be slightly redesigned and customised according to your wishes and those of the recipient. But this year, you can avoid the "Mauss gift concept" and give your loved one a warm smile, a hug and a kind word. After all, that''s what counts the most.