Christmas gifts - specify or hope? Keep the unwanted or re-gift?

[damian_steele]

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - Wrapping up that unwanted picture frame from last Christmas and giving it to someone else as a gift might not be as taboo as it once was, according to a study released on Wednesday.


The survey of 1,505 American adults, conducted by market research firm Harris Interactive, found that over half of the respondents admitted to "re-gifting" with passing on gifts becoming a far more common and acceptable phenomenon.
In fact 78 percent of consumers who were polled felt that it was acceptable to re-gift some or most of the time.
Full story

So what do you do during the run up to Christmas? Do you just come right out with it and specify what you're after, drop hints about what you'd like or just hope that someone will actually buy you something which you won't instanly want to give away again?


Or what happens if someone does give you a gift that is as ugly as grandma or as useless as a bucket made from toilet paper? Would you consider re-wrapping, or have you already re-wrapped, a gift given to you ready to give someone else?


Do you know of anyone who has received back the same gift they gave someone else?


Or does the fuss over who gets what make you mad as hell and ready to scream at people who've missed the whole point of Christmas?

[thehoneyant]

.........Unwanted gifts . Is my middle name, I tag em and bag em for the following year, and none have been discovered. Unless of course they come back to me AGAIN, like a proverbial chain letter.

I love new slippers, I go through them like a hot knife through butter.
I hate the fact that I can't go to my local church Christmas Eve. Midnight service (it's been shut for 3 years because of the drunks)

[Paulwillhappy]

Hi Damian,

I'm a very direct person, I've given up waiting to get what i want for Christmas i just do it, Ask for it or just buy it for myself and say Wrap this........................Please


Life's to short ! Last time i took any notice it was 1986 now we are in 2006 Flip 20 Years has gone.................

I've ordered myself the new Nintendo Wii plus a load of games and controllers its because we've got the Older Teenagers (70+) for Christmas day and i want to see how they manage with Nintendo Sports etc

WOW

[Gothicina]

So what do you do during the run up to Christmas? Do you just come right out with it and specify what you're after, drop hints about what you'd like or just hope that someone will actually buy you something which you won't instanly want to give away again?

After the year when I think everyone in the family ended up with two identical presents, & the upset that caused. (You know the why did you exchange the DVD I got you, & not the one xxx did?)

All of the family have started an amazon wish list each so we at least have an idea of what to get. (We don't necessarily buy from amazon but at least we know what people want). It's a bit restrictive as to the range, but at least gives us an idea on books,cd's dvd's, PC games & Software & some electrical goods.

My niece & her partner have 2 each, one for his family, one for hers)

My nephew started an argos one for his daughter, who is 18 months old, as well.

It works well, as long as you remember to update when you buy or receive something.

We also make a great deal of use of the "Tell a friend" function on both eBid (& feebay) to send ideas to one another.

We usually discuss with the rest of the family (obviously not the recipient) before we buy, as we are all online this is pretty easy to do.

An eBid Wish List would be great, but would probably only work well for items that can be repeated, no so good for one offs!

I guess it sounds a bit clinical, but none of us can afford to waste money, & we want everyone to be happy with the gifts we buy for them.

[Pete27]

Are you telling me im wasting my time telling Santa what i want?

[dragonmist]

I received a box of chocolates the Christmas before I married. They were obviously left over from the previous year as they were white and dried up. I tipped them in the bin, and a small envelope fell out. It contained a £20 note and a card saying "With Love from Aunty Glad". Was I honest enough to hand it back to Aunty Glad's penny pinching niece? Not on your life. That was equivalent to a month's wages after stoppages. I used it for our wedding.
I have never rewrapped a present like that. My Gran taught me it was the thought that counted ..... even if the donor did think I was only worth a stale box of chocs.

[earthangel]

I keep telling everybody not to buy me anything. The kids all have bills to pay and I'd rather they do that than splash out on me. But they still get me something every year. Bless' em!

[Pete27]

I keep telling everybody not to buy me anything. The kids all have bills to pay and I'd rather they do that than splash out on me. But they still get me something every year. Bless' em!

If they were only as smart as me they would know to give you one of their bills for Christmas!!

[damian_steele]

In our family we produce a Wishlist each some time before Christmas. These then get passed around the family and, usually, we each get something we are after. Occasionally someone thinks they know better and a gift is given that is less than desired, but nothing negative gets said. In this day and age of technological wizardry, it is becomming more and more important to specify exactly what is wanted.

For example, my OH thought I wanted a 17" LCD monitor and so she bought me one. Then she found out that I already had the 17" and so she swapped it for a 19". If she'd asked I could have saved her the hastle. Actually, if she'd asked I'd have told her to buy something less expensive, but I appreciated it anyway.

[funky_fudge_factory]

Same here really...a few years ago OH compiled a list during the year of things that I had commented on wanting so that he would be armed rather than being greeted during December with my usual - Oh I don't know, surprise me Bless him, then he lost his list sometime during November and was really gutted because he could only remember one of the things I had commented on pmsl

SO now we generally build a list of little bits and bobs we would like and bounce the list between in laws, kids and ourselves It works.