A japanese lady who i am not romantically interested in is having a birthday party. What would be a good idea to get her for a present - she likes cosmetics...

how about a gift card to a place where she buys her cosmetics, or something like that. Or if you know where she likes to shop, maybe stop by and ask an employee what might be good.

If you're not romantically interested in her then just get her some sort of nice snack. Cosmetics from a dude would be a bit weird.

When in doubt, I give money. I don't know if that's normal for you or her, but I always think it's a good way of giving a gift that's going to be used.
Some people seem to think that this is a cop-out though... If no one else wants it, you can give the money to me.

Otherwise, a not-too-nice-but-not-cheap bottle of liquor always seems appreciated, especially if it's regional instead of something that's pretty much everywhere.
If there's a good restaurant around that does gift cards, that can be good.
Outside of these two things, I don't really recommend food.

And yeah, it might seem weird to give something cosmetic related as a guy... guess it depends on how close you are.

I guess the main point is not to get something too expensive nor cheap, and if it's not expensive, get something that has some other factor for scarcity.

If we're going by Japanese sensibilities, both money and gift cards aren't great. I've never heard of people doing that in Japan except among family members. But if it's outside of Japan you don't necessaroly have to think that way.

I would just get her a generic thing a girl would probably like, haha.

Tzadeck Wrote:If we're going by Japanese sensibilities, both money and gift cards aren't great. I've never heard of people doing that in Japan except among family members. But if it's outside of Japan you don't necessaroly have to think that way.

I agree. I'd suggest some fancy cake, or some nice sweets, or a bottle of fruity alcohol. Or something related to her hobbies - e.g. an easy English novel if she is learning English, a CD if she likes music (CDs are still pretty popular in Japan). I think she'd be taken aback by money.

I once bought a bag of Niigata rice as a present. Japanese in the UK either pay through the nose for it or have to settle for pudding rice or that terrible Nishiki stuff grown in the US. In Japan, I'd probably go for some expensive sweets or alcohol.