Ask a guitar player how many guitars they own. Watch them pause. Watch them do the calculation of what number is safe to say out loud.
Whatever they tell you, add two.
The Universal Law Of Guitar Acquisition
Non-players cannot understand this and players cannot explain it, so let me try.
Every guitar sounds different. Genuinely, not as an excuse. A player has a bright one, a warm one, one that stays in the case because it is too nice, one held together with optimism that is somehow their favourite, and one they are "going to fix up," which they will not.
None of these is redundant. All of these are necessary. The next one is also necessary.
Why They Are Impossible To Buy For
Here is the trap every family member falls into. You cannot buy a guitarist gear.
Strings are personal. Picks are personal, and they have four hundred already. Cables are boring and they have opinions about them. Anything with a price tag high enough to matter, they would rather choose themselves.
So you end up buying nothing, or buying something they politely thank you for and never use.
Buy Around The Guitar, Not The Guitar
This is the whole trick and it works every time.
Buy something for the person who plays, not for the playing. A Musician Hoodie for the cold garage they practise in. A Musician Coffee mug for the four in the afternoon when the practice is going badly and they need a reason to stay in the chair.
Those get used constantly, they cost nothing to get right, and there is no way to buy the wrong gauge.
The Hoodie Is The Correct Answer
Genuinely. If you take one thing from this, take this.
Musicians are cold. Practice spaces are cold. Garages, spare rooms, basements and the back of venues are all cold, and a player will sit in one for three hours because they are working on something.
A hoodie is the most-used item any musician owns and almost nobody thinks to buy them one.
What Not To Say While Handing It Over
Do not say "so when are you going to be famous." Do not say "play us something." And whatever you do, do not ask whether they really need another guitar.
Just hand them the hoodie. They will wear it every single day and think of you every time the garage is freezing.
Written by Allergic to Boring Dayz. Thanks for reading.