Holiday gift guide: Gift certificates

The gift card is perhaps the holiday season's most divisive item.

Some people say it's a fail-safe, universally pleasing item. Others call it an impersonal holiday cop-out. To some extent, they're both right.

When it comes to gift-giving, here's how gift certificates measure up:

Pros: You're putting the gift-giving destiny in the recipient's own hands -- literally. You don't have to mess with sizes, colors or the fear a friend is only using your present out of a sense of obligation.

Cons: The gift card's greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. Sure, it doesn't require hours of shopping, but it's also pretty darn impersonal. Also, the recipient knows exactly how much you spent. Yowza.

Of note: Speaking on behalf of all girly girls, I'll emphasize it's hard not to get excited about a gift certificate from SpaFinder.com. The site offers gift cards from a national spa database, which includes some locations in the Columbus area.