Gifts for a Husband Who Has Everything

When your husband already owns the tools, the gadgets and the good coffee maker, another thing to find a shelf for is not the answer. The best gift for a husband who has everything is something he could never buy for himself: a memory, a person, a piece of his own story. Here are 12 ideas built on that rule, from free to a proper splurge. Our top pick is a song about the two of you, because nobody can walk into a store and buy one.

Hear a real Songbond song

This one was made for another family. Yours would carry his name and your stories.

12 gift ideas for a husband who has everything

1. A song about the two of you ($39.90). You share how you met, the names he calls the kids and the thing he always says when he walks in the door, and Songbond turns it into an original song. It takes up no space, and it is ready within 24 hours.
2. His parents, recorded telling stories about him. Sit his mom, dad or an older sibling down with your phone and ask what he was like at six, at twelve, at seventeen. Give him the recording with a printed list of the questions. It costs an afternoon, and it gets more precious every year.
3. A piece of his childhood, tracked down. The toy truck, the baseball glove or the model kit he still talks about can usually be found secondhand for $20 to $150. Ask his siblings what he lost and still mentions.
4. A signed ball or jersey from his boyhood hero. The player whose poster was on his wall at ten. Signed pieces from retired players often cost less than you expect, usually $50 to $300.
5. A guided day doing what he already loves. A day on the water with a fishing guide, a session with a golf pro or a track day at a racing school. He has the gear. What he does not have is someone who knows the spot. Expect $200 to $600.
6. Tickets to the band from his first car. The group he played on repeat at 17 is probably still touring, or a good tribute act is playing a small club near you. Usually $60 to $200 for two.
7. A national parks pass and a first trip planned. The annual pass costs about $80. The real gift is the weekend you have already booked to use it.
8. A class he takes with one of the kids. Woodworking, knife making or a cooking course. Book it for him and your son or daughter, and stay home. Usually $100 to $300 for two.
9. His family tree, researched properly. A hired researcher or a few months of your own digging, printed as a chart he can frame. Expect $100 to $500 if you pay someone.
10. A bottle from the year he was born. A wine or whiskey with his birth year on the label. Prices run from about $60 to well past $200, depending on the year.
11. Money toward the project he keeps putting off. The old car in the garage, the boat, the workshop. Wrap one part he needs with a card that says the rest is covered.
12. A reunion with his oldest friends. Call the guys he grew up with and plan the trip they keep talking about. You handle the dates and the rental. He just shows up.

How to choose for a man who has it all

Look at where his money already goes. A man who buys whatever he needs is telling you what he loves, and the gap is usually time, people and memory rather than things. Match the gift to the part of his life he never gets around to.

• If he is quietly sentimental: the recording of his parents, the family tree or the song.
• If he is restless at home: the guided day, the parks pass or the reunion.
• If he collects things: the piece of his childhood, the signed ball or the bottle from his birth year.

Listen for the story he tells twice

The best clue to what he wants is the story he keeps retelling. Most men have two or three: the summer he worked on his uncle's farm, the car he sold and still regrets, the coach who pushed him harder than anyone. For the next two weeks, keep a note on your phone and write down anything he mentions more than once. One of those stories is your gift. It might become a trip back to that town, the old car in miniature on his shelf, or the opening lines of his song.

Give him something he cannot buy

Make a song for the husband who has everything. Tell us his stories, and his song is ready within 24 hours. If the day is tomorrow, express delivery gets it to you in about an hour.

Also in the Journal: anniversary song ideas for your husband and love songs for no reason at all.