Father's Day Gift Guide 2016

Dads can be tricky creatures to buy for and my ex-hippie, all-softie stepdad is the perfect example!

If you follow me on social media, you might know him from such comments as 'Things and possessions won't make you happy', and 'Facebook is for people who have no friends'. Whatever.

However, I think one of my fave exchanges with him might have been when I was staying with my folks for a few weeks one September while waiting for our house settlement to come through...

Me (walks into kitchen, ready for a day of work at Lorna Jane): Happy Father's Day *kiss*
Dad: Thank you! What is on your face?
Me: My face is on my face.
Dad: No, all the makeup...!
Me: Yup, that's my face. When I go out, I put on makeup.
Dad: But... but you work at a sport store.
Me: Yup.
Dad: Oh. It looks like you're going somewhere fancy. Too much, Katy. Too much.

What is it with Dads who think we're all naturally beautiful and that any makeup is too much? It's actually the sweetest thing ever when you think about it.

Anyway, with Father's Day just around the corner next Sunday 4 September, I thought it was just the right time to put together a gift guide, chock-full of ideas for all the fathers in our lives.

For the dad who loves to kick back, this pair of eco-friendly pyjama pants from Good Spender are made from 100% certified woven organic cotton and screen printed by hand.

  

For the adventurous dad, or maybe the dad with a passion for photography, a trip up in the clouds with Floating Images would be a dream come true. They're Brisbane's closest hot air balloon company, which makes that 5am start a little easier to handle!

For any dad, this print would be a sweet reminder of their importance in your life. Find this and other sweet Father's Day prints at Turquoise Designs.

For the hirsute dad, keep him tidy with a beard grooming kit from the folks at Milkman. They really know their stuff, and this gift pack has everything the beginner beardie or expert-level grooming guy needs for the best lumberjack look in town!

For the dad who scrubs up alright, or perhaps the java-junkie coffee-loving dad, check out Sal Remedia's range of yummy body scrubs - my vote goes to the Daily Grind, a caffeinated treat for your old man's skin!

A Son's first hero, a Daughter's first love. Nawww.

For the first-time dad celebrating a new bub at Father's Day, this Daddy print from Coco & Ella Designs will make his mushy heart melt. Cue happy tears.

For the buff dad (not mine, but I'll be honest, I prefer him more Santa and less Thor), this muscle tee from Through the Milky Way will give him a chance to show off those guns when he takes the kids out for an active day at the park. Plus, it can be personalised with the 'established' year, so you can pop in the year he became a dad. Adorable much?

For the dad who has four-legged kids... my husband would adore these socks from our puppy Stevie, and with so many fur-kids out there, we really can't forget those kinds of special fathers! You can find these and other fun personalised socks from Alphs at Hard to Find, an online store packed with more nifty gifts than you can imagine!

Now to the really mushy stuff. My step-father has been a constant in my life since I was 15, and I can honestly say (and I tell him all the time) that if I could choose a father from any man on the planet, I would choose him.

His patience and love for our family, his supreme cooking skills, his willingness to drop everything and help my brother, husband and I at a moment's notice, his hilarious chuckle which makes the rest of the family laugh uncontrollably, all these qualities are just the ones I can put into words.

Mainly, he's just always been here for me. And isn't that what a Dad is for?

Love you Dad. Love you every day of the year. 

Got Father's Day sorted yet?