Do you re gift? A quick straw poll with friends suggests that this question has a clear yes or no answer.
Some people consider it rude but on a practical (and frugal) level it makes sense to pass on gifts you know you won't use. The tricky part is not offending the gift giver or, as in the extreme cartoon above, the recipient!!
For example, I was given lots of lovely gifts from the children in my class, many of them edible things that I cannot eat. So when I was making up some Christmas baskets with my marmalade and chutney I was able to add in some posh biscuits and chocolates as well. Win/win!
I was also given red wine. I've never been able to drink red wine (it triggers a migraine) so I took it to my lovely mum who does like it. And I told her it was a gift I couldn't use. She doesn't mind, she likes nice wine!
Other presents I know I won't use I generally pass on to the charity shop. They might be just what someone else wants and the charity benefits too.
In recent years I have told my family not to buy me anything. I genuinely don't need anything. I'm still sorting through the last of my boxes from moving house over a year ago which is full of stuff I've been given. The easiest way to avoid clutter is stop it from making itself at home in the form of unwanted gifts!
I have at last got my family to give us things we would not usually buy for ourselves. So far we have recieved 2 bottles of expensive wine, stilton and port and 2 boxes of all butter shortbread. There is still one lot of things to come, I have a feeling mine is going to be slippers as my old ones fell to bits the other week. What OH gets remains to be seen.
ReplyDeleteI do rehome things that I cannot use, usually either as presents to people or to the charity shop. I have to be careful -, I well remember my mother, who was well into rehoming stuff, giving my daughter and electric toothbrush, which my daughter had given her for her birthday!! said daughter was not amused.
I had an aunt who was a rehomer extrordinaire, stuff she had been given years before re-appeared as Christmas or birthday presents. There was a set of bath cubes which did the rounds for a number of years. I was given them eventually and used them.
My family is giving us gift cards to restaurants this year. We usually can't afford to eat out often so this is a great gift for us. Our theme this year is "No Stress". I got gift cards for everybody else and all our shopping was done one day in November. I also told my hubby not to get me anything and he thanked me. He said shopping for me really stresses him so he is having a stress free holiday too,
ReplyDeleteI do pass on things I can't use but not as a birthday or Christmas gift the following year. I hand things to friends or family 'just because'. Passing on foodie gifts in hampers is different somehow though and a very good idea. OH and I don't buy for each other either because he hates shopping and always used to get DD to buy my gift for him which somehow defeats the object anyway!
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