I’m a female member. I’m going to have a Christmas present bought for me, but what I want varies widely depending on the budget. Would it be off-putting if I asked what budget he had in mind?

I’m a male member, Paper Airplane. I don’t like being asked about my budget. I’d rather she just tell me what she wants.

I’m Aya, one of the female members. I think it’s fine to feel out your papa’s budget through conversation, but there’s absolutely nothing wrong with asking directly, either. Another option is to prepare a few different combinations of prices and reference images, then see how your papa reacts. I was actually having exactly that kind of conversation with my papa today. He said, “Maybe earrings or a necklace? Or a bag?” So I replied, “I don’t even have pierced ears, and necklaces or bags might not go with certain outfits, so I’d prefer a watch I can wear every day,” and showed him a reference image to give him an idea of what I might like. I’m not particular about designer brands, and since I genuinely liked the design, I showed him a picture of a sparkly secondhand watch costing around ¥30,000. But for some reason, my papa got angry and said, “¥30,000!? And secondhand is out of the question!” Then he called his personal sales representative right there and said things like, “Do you have anything at Cartier with diamonds, something like this picture?” and “Cartier costs that much? That’s expensive. What other brands do you have? Chopard, and Chanel too? All right, I’ll come take a look next week.”

I’m Kazu, a male member. I like women who ask so frankly. You’re more than welcome.