Our Best Father's Day Gift Ideas 2024

As a personalised gift company catering to some of the UK’s most thoughtful shoppers, it’s no surprise that Father’s Day is a very important occasion in the calendar year for us. Each May and June, we are inundated with stories of first-time dads, soon-to-be-dads, honorary dads and dads who have lived through decades of Father’s Days. Our customers use their treasured photographs, private messages and snippets of memories to create keepsake gifts for dads, which capture their most meaningful moments together. With all that in mind, we understand the importance of Father’s Day and why it matters.

In this blog post, we’ll share some of our best gift recommendations for Father’s Day 2024, a little look into the origins of Father’s Day (and why we celebrate it in the first place!), and some key findings from our 2023 consumer research study, including the most popular Father’s Day gifts across the UK and the ones that dads actually want.

**Jump to Father's Day Gift Ideas**

What day is Father’s Day 2024?

In the UK, Father’s Day is celebrated annually on the third Sunday in June, which falls on Sunday, June 16, 2024, this year. 

Father’s Day is celebrated in June in many countries worldwide, including the USA, Canada, and many European and African countries; however, this date is not universally recognised. For example, in Australia and New Zealand, Father’s Day is celebrated on the first Sunday in September (this year, it falls on Sunday, September 1st, 2024). It is traditionally observed in Germany on Ascension Day, the fortieth day of Easter. 

While the date of Father’s Day does change every year, the regularity of falling on the third June Sunday is easy enough to remember. On the other hand, the date of Mother’s Day, in the UK at least, can be tricky to keep up with!  Mother’s Day is rooted in Christian origins, and in the United Kingdom, it is celebrated on the fourth Sunday of the religious festival of Lent each year – simple enough so far. However, the dates of Lent depend on the dates of Easter, and the moon determines the dates of Easter, so you’d be forgiven for not being able to recite all upcoming Mother’s Day dates offhand!

Below are the UK dates for Mother’s Day and Father’s Day in 2024, 2025, 2026, 2027 and 2028. Note them in your diary now for safekeeping.

Where did Father's Day originate?

Celebrations of fathers and father figures have taken place for hundreds of years. They can be traced back to the Middle Ages, as far as 1508, when many European Catholics would hold a celebration feast on St. Joseph’s Day (on 19th March) to honour fatherhood. However, the annual celebration of Father’s Day as we know it today began in the USA in the early 1900s.

A young woman named Sonora Smart Dodd from Spokane, Washington is credited as the founder of modern Father’s Day. When her mother very sadly died in childbirth, Sonora and her five brothers were raised by her father, an American Civil War veteran named William Jackson Smart. After hearing about a memorial church service in West Virginia, held on 5th July 1908 to honour the fathers lost in a coal mining disaster where 362 local men were killed, Sonora became inspired to campaign for an annual celebration of fatherhood. She was very close to her father and thought it was only fitting to have a recognised day to honour fathers in the same way that Mother’s Day commemorated motherhood. Following Sonora’s campaign, the first Father’s Day celebration was held at the YMCA in Spokane on 19th June 1910.

Father’s Day celebrations were slowly adopted across the country. In 1916, US President Woodrow Wilson announced that he was working on plans to make it a national holiday in the USA. However, despite support from successive presidents and growing popularity across the USA, the campaign for Father’s Day was not officially recognised by Congress for another 50 years. Eventually, in 1966, President Lyndon B. Johnson issued a proclamation designating the third Sunday of June as Father’s Day. In 1972, President Richard Nixon finally made Father’s Day an official national holiday in the USA by law.

Across the pond in the UK, Father’s Day is not a public holiday; however, it is a recognised part of the national calendar, with many UK families celebrating fatherhood and marking the day with gifts, cards and family activities. The celebrations were adopted in the UK sometime after the Second World War, following a mass Americanisation of British culture where other American celebrations, such as Halloween, were also popularised. 

What are the most popular Father's Day gifts?

In May 2023, we surveyed over 1000 UK shoppers¹ who were planning to buy gifts for Father’s Day to learn more about their preferences, habits, and behaviours when purchasing gifts for their dads. When asked what kinds of gifts they usually buy for their father figures, the three most popular Father’s Day gift categories were food and drink (58.24%), fragrance and grooming (45.85%), and clothing (45.35%).

64.14% of respondents said they would prefer to buy practical gifts for their dads rather than emotive ones (which makes sense, given the practical and somewhat safe nature of the most popular categories). However, a strong 32% named personalised gifts a favourite choice when shopping—great news for a business like ours!

Top 10 most popular Father’s Day gift categories

At Create Gift Love, the five bestselling, most popular Father’s Day gifts of 2023 were:

1. Personalised Metal Photo Keyring With Leather Case
2. Personalised Multi-Photo Leather Case Keyring
3. Personalised Wood And Acrylic Photo Keyring
4. Personalised Double Photo Keyring with Leather Case
5. Personalised Leather Loop Keyring

Notice a pattern here? Although our full range includes a selection of gifts such as coasters, bookmarks, homeware and more, all five of our customers’ favourite Father’s Day gifts were from the keyring category for the second year in a row. Given the results above, there’s a good chance this is because our personalised keyrings balance thoughtfulness and sentimental value while having a practical purpose – something we know is an essential factor for many Father’s Day shoppers. 

But what about the dads? What do they really want this Father’s Day?...

What Father's Day gifts do dads actually want?

Well, it turns out that our dads are not always as keen on practical gifts as we might think. In a second survey of over 1,000 dads and father figures² in the UK, we asked what kinds of gifts they actually want and what they value in a Father’s Day present. Although many of the categories most popular amongst dads echoed the categories chosen most frequently by our gift-buying respondents (food and drink, tech, clothing, personalised gifts and grooming being the top five categories according to dads), only 15% chose “practical gifts” when asked what kind of present would mean most to them on Father’s Day (compared to 64% in the buyers' survey). Most dads said they would prefer family time (45.85%) or emotive gifts (30.67%) instead.

And for the quarter of gift buyers that often opt for socks as their go-to Father’s Day gift, we’ve got bad news. Socks were one of the most frequently mentioned answers when we asked the group of dads to name the worst Father’s Day gifts they had ever received.

Should I buy a personalised Father's Day gift?

So, we know that dads aren’t always blown away by practical, emotionless presents. But what about personalised ones?

In our survey, 86.31% of Father’s Day gift buyers thought their dads would enjoy a personalised gift, and over 70% of dads said they would prefer a personalised present over a generic one. When we asked the dad group to name the best and most thoughtful Father’s Day gifts they’d ever received, personalised presents were a frequent response, so maybe they are something to consider next time you shop for Father’s Day gifts.

You might be nervous about buying something overly sentimental for your dad, especially if you’re like the 64% who usually opt for practical presents. A number of the buyers who said that their dads wouldn’t enjoy a personalised gift mentioned that they were “cheesy”, “useless”, and “a bit naff”, and while this is a common perception, it isn’t always the case. The personalised gifts that we make at Create Gift Love are subtle and tasteful, made using quality natural materials and with understated customisations, plus many of them also have a practical purpose, like our keyrings, coasters and bookmarks. They are a world away from the bright and brash novelties some people may associate with personalised gifts.

So, if you’re asking yourself “should I buy a personalised Father’s Day gift?”, consider what’s holding you back. We might be biased, but we’re pretty sure your dad will be touched by the thoughtful gesture.

Father's Day gifts at Create Gift Love

With over a decade of experience designing and making personalised gifts in the UK, we know a thing or two about Father’s Day at Create Gift Love. Aside from Christmas, it’s our busiest time of year, and Father’s Day orders keep our small workshop team busy for the whole month leading up to the big day on the third Sunday in June.

All our gifts are made to order in the UK in our workshop in Ringwood, Hampshire. Each product is personalised and handmade from sustainably sourced wood and leather, creating high-quality keepsakes to last. They’re also available quickly, so if you’re like the 54% of shoppers who leave buying Father’s Day gifts the week before, you needn’t panic. We typically dispatch the next working day and offer express next-day delivery for orders placed before noon.

Next last-minute gift ideas for Father's Day? Check out the blog.

Photo gifts Dad will love on Father's Day

In our survey of Father’s Day shoppers, when asked about the best gift they’d ever bought their dad or another father figure, one answer that cropped up repeatedly was photographs and photo gifts. From photo books to keyrings, personalised photo mugs and picture frames, we’ve found that shoppers in the UK love to share family photos and memories with their dads on Father’s Day. Photo gifts are emotive, thoughtful and highly personal, showing dads how much they are loved and appreciated (which is the main aim on Father’s Day!).

These findings were no surprise to us at Create Gift Love; our all-time best-selling product is our Personalised Metal Photo Keyring With Leather Case, a firm favourite for Father’s Day every year. The handcrafted photo keyrings feature a stainless steel charm printed with a favourite photograph encased in a leather cover, personalised with dad’s name or initials in traditionally debossed lettering. Customers also have the option to engrave the back of the keyring with a personalised message for Dad on Father’s Day, from heartfelt notes of love and thanks to private jokes and nostalgic memories shared.

Our leather photo keyrings for Dad are available in tan brown, smart black, and navy blue. If you can’t pick just one, we also offer versions that include up to four photographs.

Best gift ideas for first Father's Day

As a new parent, those first milestone moments are hugely significant: the first family outing, the first time your baby smiles, the first time you celebrate Mother’s Day or Father’s Day as a new mummy or daddy. You only get to do “firsts” once, so if you’re responsible for making a loved one’s first Mother’s Day or first Father’s Day memorable, you’ll want to find a special gift fitting the occasion.

One of our company “firsts” was our now-iconic personalised calendar keyrings. Originally designed in 2012 as a save-the-date for Create Gift Love founders Tony and Emily’s wedding, this wooden engraved keyring is still a popular Father’s Day gift over ten years later. Etched with a simple calendar design and marked with a special date, this keyring makes a beautiful, heartfelt keepsake that new dads will treasure, celebrating the day they became daddy. 

Choose from solid oak, walnut, maple or cherry wood and personalise the keyring with a date, calendar caption and message engraved on the back. We also offer the keyring in leather if you prefer.

Looking for more first Father's Day gift ideas? Check out 7 Gifts That a New Dad Will Love.

Father's Day gift ideas from young children

A homemade present or card is a great Father’s Day gift idea if you have young children, especially if you’re on a low budget or tight on time. Their dad will love to know the thought and time that’s gone into your kids making the gift, and if they’re the sentimental sort (most dads are, secretly), then it’s likely they will hold onto these homemade treasures long after their little ones stop being so little anymore!

If you’re looking for an easy way to turn your kids’ artwork into a more practical gift, take a look at Create Gift Love’s child’s drawing keepsake range. Our top picks for dads include our solid wood coasters and personalised leather bookmarks, which can each be printed with a copy of your child’s drawings. All products from our kids’ artwork collection are made from high quality, sustainably sourced wood and leather and are typically dispatched the next working day so you can give dad a beautiful gift made from your child’s artwork, even if you’ve left it to the last minute.

What to give an expecting dad for Father's Day

If you’re expecting your first baby and want to make Father’s Day special for the soon-to-be Dad (even if your little one isn’t going to arrive in time for June 16th!), a thoughtful keepsake gift to mark the occasion is a lovely way to make it memorable. Our bestselling photo keyrings are perfect for displaying a copy of your baby scan, giving the Dad-to-be a way to carry his first look at your little one wherever he goes.

These baby scan keyrings also make a personal pregnancy announcement gift, perfect for surprising your Dad on Father’s Day with the news that he’s going to be a grandparent. You could stamp the front of the leather keyring with “Grandad” and then print the scan photo inside, along with an engraved message announcing the little one’s due date.

Father's Day gift ideas for dog dads

For lots of households all across the UK, pets are a huge part of the family, and at Create Gift Love, we have seen a growing trend of customers buying gifts on behalf of their pets to give on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day. Our top pick for the Dog Dads (or Cat Dads, Rabbit Dogs, Reptile Dads…) is the personalised wooden photo block, which can be engraved with your pet’s name and printed with a cute pet photo. This gift is perfect for Dad to keep on his desk at work and is available in your choice of smart solid walnut wood or light maple.

Best Father's Day gift for my ex-husband

If you are separated from your child’s father, finding an appropriate Father’s Day gift for the kids to give their Dad can be tricky to balance. While your relationship with your ex-husband or partner is not what it once was, your kids still have a bond with them, and in most cases, that is something you want to honour. You might not know the ins and outs of his hobbies and interests these days, so finding the perfect gift could be challenging.

When it comes to Father’s Day gifts for your ex, letting your children pick out a personalised gift made just for him is a great way to alleviate any uncomfortable feelings. A personalised gift chosen by the kids shows your ex that thought and care have been put into the present, and it allows your children to express their feelings towards Dad in their own words. Our personalised handwriting keyring, for example, is a great option: your son or daughter can write a note to their Daddy, which we will print inside a handcrafted leather keyring. Dad will love the sentiment behind this thoughtful keepsake, and it’s something he can carry with him wherever he goes, perfect for if he doesn’t get to see them every day.

Best Father's Day gifts for Grandad

And don’t forget the Grandads! Father’s Day is also an opportunity to celebrate Grandads (and even Great-Grandads) and thank them for all the support, wisdom and encouragement they have given over the years. One of our most popular gifts for Grandad on Father’s Day is our range of personalised leather bookmarks – perfect for if your Dad or Grandad is a keen reader (or wishes he had more time to dedicate to books). You can personalise our leather bookmarks with photographs, names, messages and drawings to create a bespoke gift that Grandad will love. The leather bookmarks are also a great accompaniment gift to give alongside a new book for him to read over the summer.

Our leather bookmarks are printed in-house in the Create Gift Love workshop directly onto our beautiful vegetable-tanned leather. They have a high-quality finish and are presented in a luxurious black gift envelope, ready for handing over to Grandad on the big day.

Personalised message ideas for Father's Day gifts

Once you’ve chosen the perfect personalised gift for your dad or grandad, all you need to do is decide how to customise it. At Create Gift Love, we give you the option to add your messages and engravings to your personalised gifts, and the requests we receive each day range from the funny to the thoughtful to the downright bizarre (some private jokes are best left unquestioned!). If you’re stuck for words and struggling to come up with a personalised message for your Father’s Day gift, then don’t worry. We’ve compiled a list of some of the most popular ideas our customers use to inspire you! 

• Daddy, we love you to the moon and back
• Forget sleep, we have way more fun when we are awake!
• [Date] - the day you became my Daddy
• Dad, I love you more than nap time
• Shh! Grandad is reading…
• Daddy and [kid’s name]: making memories since…
• This daddy belongs to…
• Daddy and [kid’s name]: like father, like son

Our most popular personalised message for new dads on Father’s Day is a list of your newborn’s all important details: name, time of birth, date and weight, for example: "Frankie, Born 15.01.21 at 10.22 am, 6lb 9oz", along with a cute baby photo. Funny quotes your little one has said, pictures from your favourite memories shared, and simply engraving dad’s children’s names make great ideas for personalised messages.

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References:

1. Create Gift Love: Father's Day Buyers Survey Results 2023, conducted May 2023

2. Create Gift Love: Father's Day Dads Survey Results 2023, conducted May 2023