Whole piles of presents that won't get used!!!

[Ohdoleavemealone]

What do you do with them? DD had a whole class party which has resulted in 20 presents. 8 of them art kits and DD has ripped into most already so cannot charity shop most. We have loads of these sets for DS that never get used.
What would you do with them? We have a very small house!

Dish them out to friends for free. Or donate to a kids group.

A playgroup or after school club might be glad of the craft materials even if the packets are open.

Donate to local groups ( church?)

I thought about groups but they are like "paint an egg box" kits so the paints are those crappy tiny pots stuck together.

I might see if any friends have kids that would use them though.

Invest in a large wipe-clean tablecloth and invite some of dc's friends round. They'll soon use/trash all that lot, and can take their works of art home with them.

Offer them for free on FB Marketplace, someone will take them!

Next time don't let her rip into them so you can give them away.

I think butterflyze has it right though, invite some friends round and they can do one each.

Local brownies and cubs groups might appreciate a donation.

Find out where nearest afghan refugees are and donate. We had collection at work as local refugees in a hotel had one football between them and one little girl had been in the same outfit for three weeks since arriving😭

Can you wrap them up and give them as Christmas presents ?

This is why I started putting cash in a birthday card years ago.

Put them on eBay and make some money.

Can you keep them for party activities?

Donate to your local Women’s refuge.

Donate or re-gift I guess are your main options. Frustrating I know.

For next time - I had a whole-class party 2 weeks ago and told everyone that DS2 had got a "big" present from us on his actual birthday so no need to bring a gift along, and that DS2 had chosen a charity if people really wanted to do something they could bung a fiver to the charity instead.

I felt a bit bad and virtue-signally but it was really to avoid the mountain of plastic that we had been left with after a similar party for DS1 a few years before.

We still got a couple of gifts which were very gratefully received but it cut down the mountain by about 80%, and meant that DS2 actually played with the presents he got rather than total overwhelm.

Keep them for your child to give at the next party they go to?

Put a batch of them together and put on Freegle/Freecycle. Someone will want them for Half Term

Contact the Home Link Worker at your DC’s school and see if they would like them. They could be offered to the families who are in receipt of food parcels, or even offered to the same families at Christmas.

@Ohdoleavemealone

What do you do with them? DD had a whole class party which has resulted in 20 presents. 8 of them art kits and DD has ripped into most already so cannot charity shop most. We have loads of these sets for DS that never get used. What would you do with them? We have a very small house!

What would I do? I'd keep them for my DD who was given them as gifts. They can't be taking up that much room.

You DD's friends might have chosen and wrapped those gifts and might ask about them later.

What a horrible example of consumerism.

We have a local CRAP page on Facebook - Conserving Resources Associating People. It's a giveaway only page, and anyone caught selling something they've been given on the page is banned.

EVERYTHING goes on there - we've had a few bits off it, often things are lightly used but some are damaged but repairable. Kids toys go really quickly. Do you have anything like that?

Would your daughter not like to just use them?

Those little kits take all of about 30 minutes to do. Do one or two a week (probably more over the holidays) and she'll be done by Christmas!
Your daughter will have great fun! And yes, as PPs suggested, she could always invite a friend or two round to join her.

You need to to be faster next time and get to the presents first!!!

I used to squirrel away the presents and then bring out one a month which made the birthday last longer and each present was appreciated.

Equally, if there were duplicates/unsuitable gifts, then they could be re- used appropriately.

@mrsm43s

Would your daughter not like to just use them?

Those little kits take all of about 30 minutes to do. Do one or two a week (probably more over the holidays) and she'll be done by Christmas!
Your daughter will have great fun! And yes, as PPs suggested, she could always invite a friend or two round to join her.

I agree. I kept things like this for when my daughters had friends round in the holidays. Put a tablecloth down and let them get stuck in. Its fun.

Why do people always make things so negative?

I keep those arts & crafts sets in the cupboard and pull them out for rainy days (... or lockdowns). We used pressies she got a year or so ago during the school closures. This year she's having a smaller party with just six of her close friends. I'm glad the 'whole class' party days are over TBH!

Alternatively I think the suggestion of donating to afghan refugees would be the nicest thing.