Worst present you received as a child

[threetethree]

Hopefully this doesn't offend anyone!

Was just thinking about my birthday when I was about 7. My auntie gave me a present and it was a cross stitch of a spider going up a drainpipe after it had rained
At that age i was TERRIFIED of spiders. I was visibly shaking as I threw it to the floor. It put me off opening any other presents.

So what was the worst present you received as a child?

Does anyone remember the shop Past Times? It used to sell awful mock antiques and replicas of old things.

I figured my parents were old so they must want things from Past Times. My poor mother - every single birthday or Christmas I got her some monstrosity from there - a viking chess set, some awful Victorian style soap, a cd of Gregorian chants.

I think she must have been ecstatic when it shut down.

.My very caring aunt and uncle would phone my mum to tell her what they were thinking of getting and whether we would like it.

One year they asked my mum if I'd like a stand for CDs. My mum said yes.

She then told me what I was getting and to be pleased about it, she knew I had no CDs so it would be useless but didn't want to bother my relatives.

There are a few others but, and I am somewhat comforted by not being the only one.

When I was about 17 my brother was having his first Xmas alone (he was a student nurse in the days they trained on wards not in uni) so there was quite a lot of, "Do you think your brother would like..." and quite a large parcel was sent off.

But because she was so busy, she forgot to buy for me.

I remember past times what a strange little shop wasn’t it!!

Pliers, craft knives for a 3 year old, sellotape and balaclavas some of these are hilarious but also sad!

I can’t think of any but I’m sure I’ve had a few disappointments over the years. I liked the posh ring I was gifted in a beautiful branded box and gift bag, however was a bit awkward when the diamond fell out and my mum took it to the posh jewellers to complain they said they didn’t even sell that one it must have been a cheap one put in their box 🤣🤣 ( that was from distant auntie who always sends cards with the wrong names as well)

I loved Past Times I bought a book there once, but otherwise I was always 'just looking'.
My mother made me write a letter to Father Christmas each.year. One year she made me put desk and chair on it. I hated that desk. Recenoly I discovered that she had a desk and chair when she was a child, and coming from a poor family it was her pride and joy, so she wanted me to have one.

I lived Past Times! Used to endlessly browse the catalo. It seemed so grown up and sophisticated (and I liked history). I really wanted one of their Victorian nightdresses but never dared ask. Can't remember but I suspect my parents had a couple of gifts from there, which they probably weren't keen on.

jessstan1 That made me laugh. My worst Christmas gift was a baby doll in a three quarter sized carriage built silvercross pram. I wanted scaletric or meccano. I lost the doll and used the pram as a wheelbarrow. My mother was horrified to find it full of leaves, twigs and accorns, and a stuffed dog.

Lots of clueless Aunts on here.

A pair of shoes from a friend of my mum’s. They were a pair but not the same size!

Don’t pick on Past Times!

I made dining room curtains from five of their ‘Indian Tree’ bedspreads.

@garlictwist

Does anyone remember the shop Past Times? It used to sell awful mock antiques and replicas of old things.

I figured my parents were old so they must want things from Past Times. My poor mother - every single birthday or Christmas I got her some monstrosity from there - a viking chess set, some awful Victorian style soap, a cd of Gregorian chants.

I think she must have been ecstatic when it shut down.

I remember that shop! And the wafty Victorian nighties...

I think my worst from extended family was a packet of three white vests from an aunt when I was about five or six. We were very poor, and I imagine she thought she was helping out my parents.

From my parents — I doubt my parents had ever had more than the most token presents themselves as children and didn’t really ‘get’ Christmas presents — it was always the fact that they got a cheap, badly-made, off-the-back-of-a-lorry knockoff of whatever we’d asked for. I remember consoling my little sister when her asked-for Tiny Tears was a cheap, plastic doll in a nappy which fell apart on Christmas Day. My supposed Sindy furniture was for a much smaller doll.

In adulthood, my (now financially comfortable) mother still has the oddest ideas about Christmas presents, and gives her three 30 and 40 something daughters Christmas gift bags filled with rolls of cotton wool and Nivea cleanser and pairs of black socks.

My heart aches reading some of these, school uniform and being forgotten the saddest thing I've read today. I wish I could go back in time and give you a proper present x

*My brother and I have the same birthday, and one year I think I was 12 and him 10 maybe, we both really wanted a guinea pig! Had done all the research, spent months reading books about looking after them etc...

He got a guinea pig, I got this horrible green cardigan! I think I was polite at the time then went upstairs and cried. My mum said something like "oh we thought it was just him that wanted one and you weren't that interested" but I was so upset as it obviously meant they loved him more. She returned the cardigan but I don't even remember if I got a replacement gift!*

Hang on @Poppyismyfavourite are you saying that after screwing up your birthday that badly they STILL didn’t get you a guinea pig, even though your brother got one??

@CoffeeWithMyOxygen nope! I'm sure they must have given me something else, but it wasn't a guinea pig!

A few years later, when the original piggy died (she was killed by a dog when she was 2 or 3 sadly) we finally got one each! They checked very carefully that my sister didn't also want one then!

I always buy my dm 3 gifts, one is an item of clothing that she always asks for and then 2 little things e.g. bedsocks, chocolates.

She has form for putting me last. My df (they're separated) and my dh get annoyed on my behalf.
Last Christmas she surpassed herself. As we all opened gifts she rummaged in her handbag and handed me an m&s voucher card with the words
xxx sent me this voucher and I haven't bought you anything so have this, there should be £20. on it.
To make it worse she constantly tells me the thoughtful gifts she gave my siblings and the rest of the family.
The previous year I got €10.00 and watched my dsil open a watch from John Lewis and my dsis got the same.
Every year she spends at least 4 weeks with us and nobody else has her for more than 2 days.
She just takes me for granted.
This year I've just got her some vouchers, she won't be happy but I've had enough.

Great granny bought my daughter a doll which looked great but then she wound it up and its head started to rotate with an awful polystyrene screech sound dd screamed I screamed nanny (her daughter) was visibly flinching nanny "forgot" to put the doll in her car when we left and it was never mentioned again now dd is an adult she tells her friends at uni about the "exorcist doll" and gets me to confirm to them its true some of them really don't believe it 🤣

One Christmas my brother received a very flash, very expensive remote controlled car.

I received a cheap, denim gilet.

I looked like Meatloaf.

I got a pair of pea green and a pair of fuchsia pink tights with horrendous patterns on from DAunty. I'm sure they were previously rejected by my cousin who was about 6 months older than me.

I also wanted a Barbie house from Santa. DDad was a keen DIYer. I got a Blue Peter circa 1970's homemade style dolls house filled with miniature furniture he had made. It wasn't the same.

Oreservoir what?! You put her up for 4 weeks and that's how she treats you? I'd get her nothing and if she looks at you askance then tell her you've given her the most precious gift of all: your time and hospitality and that you know she wouldn't want anything more. Failing that, chuck her a baylis and Harding set

I wanted a Dougal dog from the Magic Roundabout, all fluffy and adorable.
I got a hard plastic Florence doll, with those legs that had a big round socket thing that slotted into the base of her body. The body was like a round triangular hard plastic plant pot type of thing, with a solid plastic base with holes for the legs, not very cuddly.
I can remember going into the kitchen and pulling those bloody legs out and throwing them across the room. Can still picture it now and that must be over 50 years ago.

After reading the stories here of horrible gifts, I feel quite humble and a bit guilty about being so embarrassed with my 'talking doll' and dolls' pram.

@FatimaMunchy !! Is my mum your 'distant' auntie? She had form for always buying gifts from k-mart, tkmaxx, etc. and then wrapping them in posh branded boxes (think Harrods, Fortnum and Mason,) ..it was SOOOO embarrassing for my DSis and me! She finally stopped when a young bride's mother called to ask my mum where she'd purchased her daughter's wedding gift because she wanted to get the piece in her chosen silver pattern. They, like your mum had tried to exchange it at the posh shop and were told that the shop did not carry that item...😂
Yes, a bit rude of the bride's mum, but finally learnt my mum a good lesson!
Another time she sent my cousin a cheap silver plated tea service complete with a giant service tray for a wedding gift.....guess who got regifted the fab gift as a wedding gift a few years later?! Me! My auntie even wrote on the card how excited she was to find a tea service set for me JUST like the one my mum had sent her DD...two can play that game! I got a huge giggle out of the whole affair....

Sweet pea I think you have mixed me up with someone else.

Two tins of peaches.

It was from a friend of my mum's who we saw very rarely. She brought it to the house and it was wrapped for Christmas and it was for me and my sister. I was so excited about it, for some reason I thought it was going to be toiletries from boots that were very popular at the time that had floral packaging. I was absolutely gutted to open it and realised it was tins of peaches. What my sister could not understand why somebody would give you that as a present.

@Oreservoir

I always buy my dm 3 gifts, one is an item of clothing that she always asks for and then 2 little things e.g. bedsocks, chocolates. She has form for putting me last. My df (they're separated) and my dh get annoyed on my behalf. Last Christmas she surpassed herself. As we all opened gifts she rummaged in her handbag and handed me an m&s voucher card with the words xxx sent me this voucher and I haven't bought you anything so have this, there should be £20. on it. To make it worse she constantly tells me the thoughtful gifts she gave my siblings and the rest of the family. The previous year I got €10.00 and watched my dsil open a watch from John Lewis and my dsis got the same. Every year she spends at least 4 weeks with us and nobody else has her for more than 2 days. She just takes me for granted. This year I've just got her some vouchers, she won't be happy but I've had enough.

@Oreservoir I would love to see you start a thread in the run up and let us know her reaction!

Oreseevoir please let us know how the vouchers go down,