Receiving a second hand/already opened Secret Santa gift?

[ladymeredith]

This is probably going to be a bit of a controversial topic so I'm aware that there will be mixed opinions.

But basically my job did Secret Santa and I think I pulled the short straw for gifts. The gift I received was one that the sender had clearly previously received as an unwanted gift and looking at the box, I could tell by the way it was taped that it had already been opened and taped back up, along with being covered in dust and being slightly torn!

I get not everyone is in the same financial situation (it was a £5 limit) and I'm not trying to be selfish, nor do I expect designer stuff. However I was rather hurt and insulted to receive that and it made me very cross as I had put effort into mine despite not being in the best financial situation (there was not obligation to take part). I probably won't do it again.

AIBU?

My department's secret Santa is always really good. We have a limit of a Tenner and everyone puts a lot of effort into it. It's good fun.
We also did a Pound Shop Secret Santa this year, which was like a lucky dip. That was good fun.

Dh once gave something we'd won earlier on a tombola. It was very embarrassing for him as it was held up for ages as the perfect secret Santa gift, and the recipient was worried someone had overspent.
It was quite a nice prize really, just something we wouldn't ever use, and we knew she liked that sort of thing.

Certainly nothing wrong with 'regifting' if you have been given something that's perfectly pleasant, unopened but that you just have no use for (or already own eg book, DVD)

A family member of mine is pretty quiet and 'serious' and her work secret Santa gift number of years ago was a vibrator.

She was mortified and very upset, but laughed it off in front of people.

Well, I started a new part time job at the beginning of November. Two weeks ago they all pulled names out of a tub for SS and completely ignored me, they completely left me out.

It was so rude and childish. It is a tiny office, so I was even helping to pass it around the office for them to pull out names. Why not just do it on the two days of the week I am not effing there?

My DC's school have now decided that Secret Santa should be done. As if we haven't got enough expense without that! DH is out of work at the moment, so the £10+ that it cost could've been spent better elsewhere!

My last SS, I gave a nice notebook and pen (ok, boring). I received a Chinese-English dictionary. Unfortunately it was translating Chinese to English and as I don't speak/read Chinese, not very useful to me.

We have often done the yankee secret santa thing with groups of friends, but we do it a little differently, and we call it the white elephant christmas game.

person no. 2 had to decide BEFORE they choose a gift - will I steal one that is already opened, or choose a new one?
Each gift can only be stolen 3 times and then it is yours.

We always did it with a small amount (eg £2 gift) and the criteria was fun/lighthearted etc.

But it was with friends. With 15 ish people it takes a while to do and makes for a very funny evening which is a bit different.