I recently received a question that bears discussion:
“What types of presents should be given at the beginning of a relationship that the man hopes to be a serious, lasting love? (and what not to give!)”
Generally speaking, a man should not give ANY gifts for the first few two or three dates. Most guys tend toward “buy her affections” behavior, where they try to lock women into an implied commitment by buying gifts for her far too soon. What this really does is scare women off.
Instead, a guy should save his money to demonstrate that he’s FUN, and then show her a good time. An example might be to get a few rolls of quarters and take her to the arcade. Or buy her a really nice pastry that you can both savor together.
Gifts early on should be geared toward enhancing the experience of your time together, not to impress a woman. Hold off on the flowers and the candy until you’ve built up some genuine rapport and interest from her, then your gifts will be appreciated.
After three dates or so, the guy can then open up a little and maybe get her a card or some flowers. But the idea here, again, is to keep it LOW...