Gift wrapping other people’s presents

[GordonsAliveAndEatsPies]

Inspired by another thread though only something small but yesterday my husband got a message from his DM basically angling for him to wrap DC’s presents when they arrive. He didn’t reply as we were out so in fairness to DM she then sent curt message to say she would get them gift wrapped by the shop (unlike the thread where ex DH just sent them over to his ex to do the job) but it did make me think, is this a thing now? Expecting others to pick up the tasks people don’t want to do (or pay for?). For context, MIL is just the type of person who will be extremely annoyed she had to pay for gift wrap as opposed to us doing it for free.

Does anyone else have any Christmas cheeky fucker stories?

I don’t personally think this is CF.

I get gifts delivered to another country for friends children- and there is no gift wrap service or if there is it is extortionate- I’ve generally had the impression they’re grateful I’ve thought of their kids and are happy to do it... intrigued to see if I’ve got this massively wrong!

We buy & gift wrap if requested.
I have wrapping paper 'from GPs' that isn't used by anyone else, also from an Aunt, and also of course from Father Christmas.

Are you seeing her over Christmas or is she buying the gifts online and having them sent to yours?

If it's the latter then I don't think she's BU.

My grandma used to give my mum money to buy our presents and my mum wrapped them. I don't see it ad a big deal 🤷‍♀️

I think that’s fine. I usually give my kids any parcels addressed to them in the delivery boxes. They enjoy opening those as much as wrapping paper and it’s better for the environment. Gift wrapping on say Amazon is overpriced and not even nice paper.

DHs family tend to send gifts through amazon but never select the gift wrap option. We have been asked to wrap them ourselves but I just give them to the kids as and when they arrive and let them know who it's from. I hate wrapping the presents I buy never mind the ones that other people buy!

This year, several people have had presents delivered straight from Amazon or similar to us, and then someone in the household who's not the recipient has wrapped it, and we've done the same - sent a book for my granddad's birthday to my granny and she opened and wrapped it.

I can't tell if this is the kind of thing you mean, or whether MIL is physically buying presents and then sending/giving them herself without wrapping. If it's the former, YABU, if it's the latter YANBU.

Unless of course she doesn't like wrapping/has some kind of disability which makes it hard for her to do, and your DH enjoys it. I do all of my DMs wrapping (except presents for me, of course!) because I enjoy it and she finds it physically difficult due to disability and a surgery she's waiting on.

No we aren’t seeing her and no it’s not a big deal but I think it’s mildly thoughtless when she could just get a job done or land it on him when we are running a business until Christmas and I am quite heavily pregnant meaning we are somewhat starting from scratch having kept nothing as it was supposedly medically impossible.

Obviously if she’s just dropping round the presents in the bag for you to wrap YANBU but if this parcel delivery that makes sense.

If someone would like to send your family a gift but they won't be seeing you (perhaps due to Covid) it makes perfect sense to have it delivered to your house, and for you to wrap it, rather than the gift being delivered to the buyer, wrapped and then further cost and time delay posting on to you. Especially now Christmas is close. I think you are being mean spirited. It will take 2 minutes to wrap each present and you can get huge rolls of paper for £1.

I sent my sister a cup of Pick and Mix for her birthday (silly little present but she likes it) and the postage cost more than the sweets.

We’ve done lots of this and had lots done to us this year. Seems stupid to have it delivered, make a trip to the post office in order to resend it.

I obviously haven’t made myself clear. I wouldn’t expect it to be delivered to her and resent on, but surely if there is a gift wrap option for something which can be selected at the same time as the delivery address (yours), that’s not expensive as it’s an online service that’s used by millions all the time, someone would just spend the extra £3 to save the other person a job. Obviously wrong here!

I dont think its unreasonable if you're not seeing them. Gift rapping is often shit and extortionate. It's not a massive job to wrap a present but it would be costly in time or money for her to get it delivered to her, wrap it, package it and post it on.
It's one small favour. It was different for the other thread because the dad was seeing his kid so could easily have got it delivered to himself and wrapped it.

I was going to send my brothers presents directly as he was shielding - although now happily had a medical change that improves things. As they wrap and charge individually the wrapping bill was £8. I just got them delivered here and will drop them off, so I was able to spend a bit more on his pressies. Normally I would just pay for gift wrapping but the prices seem to have soared this year. Maybe the wrapping bill was much higher?

I don’t see this as a big deal and I wouldn’t want someone to add £3 on per present to have them gift wrapped.

YABVU

If she’s not going to see the children to give them the gifts, then getting them sent to you and you wrapping them is by far the best thing.

Anything else just wastes loads of money. Amazon wrapping costs a fortune and you can’t even get gift wrapping from most other online shops. Another option would be that she gets them sent to herself, gift wraps them herself, parcels them up, takes them to the post office standing in a queue for ages, pays loads more money for postage AGAIN, just so that you get wrapped gifts.

It’s better to spend the money on better gifts. If someone has £20 to spend on a gift, would your child prefer to get a £20 gift that you had to wrap, or a £15 gift with £5 of horrible wrapping?

Also, gift wrapping when pregnant is not more difficult.

YABU and also ungrateful for the gifts.

£3.99 to get Amazon to gift wrap it or ask them to wrap it from a roll they already have which have. Takes a few minutes, costs about 20p. As Jim Royle would say, I’m not bloody made of money you know.

£3 per present is expensive. I am ordering gifts from amazon for godchild - 3 separate items, £9 in wrapping for a £40 present. Sorry no that’s not going to happen. In normal circs, we would see each other and they would be wrapped presents, but this is not a normal year. Sorry yabu - it’s a very minor thing to do if someone has spent money on a gift....

I don't think she's being a CF either! I've been asked to do this by very lovely in-laws and didn't mind at all.

I like wrapping so that doesn't bother me. I used to get annoyed about being asked for present suggestions, sometimes I just couldn't think of anything.

Ah well maybe it’s history that’s clouding my judgement then. I can’t remember the last time she didn’t look to land us with the bill even when perfectly reasonable for her to contribute (like when she walks off when the bill arrived for a meal out tho she has eaten and drink us out of house of home for a week or expecting us to get £200 worth of shopping when we arrive at hers) so I am being utterly petty but feel it’s just typical.

My DB paid for the giftwrapping for three books for DD; three bags, each big enough to hold all three books. I'm afraid I decided to be a bit of a cheapskate, so his present has one item gift-wrapped, and I've suggested that he close his eyes and transfer the others into the same bag! That's if he bothers to open the box, of course. The first year my parents did Christmas on their own, they decided that a pile of matching Amazon packets under the tree was fine!

Another one who doesn’t think this is cheeky in the slightest. I do it for my parents and SIL who sends parcels in the post. Paying £3 for gift wrap by the shop IS a waste of money.

But I can see that if you’re already irritated with them because of things from the past, this would be one more thing that feels too much.

This is how I feel when people send me money for DC to buy a toy and then send them a video or picture of them opening it. Sending money is fine if there isn’t expectation behind it as I’ll put it in their savings or DHs grandparents will say use it for a pair of shoes for them which is very helpful but when I’m expected to think of, buy and wrap a present yet the other person gets the credit I find cheeky. I’m happy to give people ideas and with covid if it’s easier to get it sent to us for me to wrap them fine but not to basically do it all.

Well you've obviously got issues with her but I've wrapped presents for 3 different people so far and there's one to come. It makes sense and I'd hate to think people buying gifts for my kids had spent unnecessary money on gift wrapping services.

I think you're maybe being a bit dramatic - the whole "expected a £200 shop" and "starting from scratch medically impossible" baby are both very dramatic tbh.

It's not hard and your DH can wrap presents despite you being pregnant can't he?