What are your ‘pet hate’ Christmas presents?

[YellowsunriseClara]

Lighthearted thread, as I’m sure everyone is grateful for any gift they receive.

Just with Christmas coming up I’m wondering which gifts you are dreading getting (but know you’ll probably get)

Mine are the Lynx women gifts sets (hate it but seem to get it every year!)
Any Poundland creams as they seem to make my skin itchy and red
Anything Bayliss & Harding (I know there is another thread about that)
Cheap perfume that smells like paint stripper
Obvious second had gifts that the giver didn’t want for themselves (it’s usually something totally unrelated to the things you’re interested in)

One year my friend got me some unwrapped Poundland glitter body spray, not sure why as I’ve never worn the stuff and it was clear that it was in the back of her wardrobe from a while ago

If you exchange meaningless presents with friends, family or colleagues please stop. Go for a drink with them instead. Be assertive and tell them you would rather spend time with them. (Unless you hate them of course!) Martin Lewis has a good explanation on moneysavingexpert.com which is along the lines of giving the gift of not being obligated to buy presents in return, by not giving pointless presents for others. Sounds harsh but makes a lot of sense.

My pet peeve is novelty books. Like those "hilarious" adult penguin ones. My husband seems to attract them for some reason. He is admittedly very difficult to buy for, but they all go to the charity shop.

I'm so easy to buy for - scented candles, shower gel and chocolate are my favourite gifts! No fucker EVER buys me chocolate and it makes me very sad! I submit exact orders to my husband too and he seldom takes the hint. One thing I would say is that I'm not so keen on selection boxes (of smellies or chocolate) as there's invariably one or two things I won't use. My husband last year got me an Aesop box which was lovely but I have a face scrub and a "hydrating mist" lying around not getting used, which is so heartbreaking as I LOVE Aesop stuff and would have loved more shower gel or hand soap. I know he never uses anything on his face or body and doesn't know what any of it is, but it's such a shame as I'll never buy it for myself.

This year I think I'll be strong and exchange anything that's wrong.

Boxes of chocs with lots of white chocolates.
White chocolate is the work of the devil.

I love body puffs, shower gel, and body butter. I’d probably be happy with a 3 for 2 boots gift set. Any chocolate would be ok, apart from liqueurs, as my husband likes the horrible ones ie strawberry creams, Turkish delight and marzipan, so between us they’d be eaten. I like book marks

I don’t want alcohol. You’ve never seen me drink it, so I don’t want it. Especially little half bottles of pink Prosecco. I always seem to get those. Socks. No thank you, I’m particular (swollen feet), and books, (I love books but prefer to get my own, as getting a duplicate is heart breaking). The worst sort of books you can buy someone are autobiographies because the person getting the gift once said they watched something on tv. When Miranda was popular, I got three copies of her autobiography. I don’t use diaries, calendars or umbrellas either.

Random toiletry sets with thing in them I never use. Even if there is one item I would use I can't bring myself to open the packaging just to use one item so is usually passed on to my daughter or a charity shop.

Any large box of chocolates. Would rather have a small box of something thoughtfully selected with say 8 chocolates in than anything bigger. I appreciate a few special chocs I wouldn't usually buy myself that I can curl up on the sofa and watch a film with. I don't like big boxes ...often a bit meh and I never want to open them because I only want a few at a time. DH is a chocoholic and just can't stop until they are all gone.

House plants. I haven't got room for them and I'm not very green fingered so they slowly die - looking awful and making me feel guilty.

I don't drink alcohol so alcohol or any weird liqueurs.

I must be either unfussy or have really good gift givers, mind you I'm easy to buy for, books, xbox games or stuff from Lush and I'm happy

Gift vouchers for restaurants .i'm not the type to go out for meals just not my thing.

Clothes. I have a tricky figure. My Mum and MIL are both fond of buying me tops (but 9 out 10 times I look like a heifer in them and they end up shoved in the back of cupboard.)

Anything B&M looking with a shit rose gold caption. No I don't want a mug with "Prosecco Princess" in metallic handwriting.

Smellies unless they are uber luxurious. I probably wouldn't treat myself to, say, Chanel bubble bath, so that's a treat. A boots giftset is not a present, it's just what you'd get on a standard grocery shop for yourself, in exaggerated packaging with some kind of random foot file or shower puff thrown in to bulk it out. I think things like that are more "thanks for putting the bins out while we went away" token gestures at best.

Chocolate. We buy a tonne and eat a tonne over the festive period. Don't give me more. If ever there's a time to not buy me chocolate

On edible stuff, nothing weird either please. Hot sauce in a novelty skull. Sets of flavoured oil in a shiny wire holder. Often not cheap, but always unused. Just get one fantastic bottle of balsamic instead. Also assorted sugared jellies in trays. Just why.

Novelty calendars. It's not the tackier the better. Please don't make me put up a years worth of "goats in trees" so I don't look ungrateful.

Bath bombs. Get in the bin you gritty little bastards.

Please do get me...a nice little plant. New slippers because these ones can walk on their own. Kitchen bits. Beauty salon vouchers.

Pyjamas, now I know my aunt gets given these every year from her friend and she saved them andregifts them to me the next year every year without fail . The thing is my aunt is about a size 18 and is given an appropriate size by her friend. I am size 10, so whilst oversized can be comfy, I cannot fit in XXL or size 16/18, they fall down nice problem to have. So I then sell them on eBay as usually a nice brand.

I'm also not keen on toiletries sets as I have sensitive skin, plus I think it's a cop out. When I get one I think they giver must think I'm really boring, as they can't think of anything else I'm into. Or maybe it's just lazy buying. I once got a mega set of soap and glory in a zip up bright pink patent bag. I looked it up it was apparently worth £100, but sold for a fraction of that. And i got a smaller soap and glory set from my SIL too that Christmas

So what should you get the secret Santa who you don’t know very well?
I don’t want to get something with loads of packaging or really tacky but I really don’t know this person well so what would you suggest?

I'd love socks

I got my last secret Santa an YSL nail varnish and I got a preloved inflatable cactus in the same one🌵 yep..

Novelty 'funny' books or DVDs. I don't own a single thing that will play a DVD. Not even my laptop.

Gift sets, and food other than chocolate, but definitely not quirky stupid flavoured chocolate! Alcohol. Bayliss and fecking Harding! Brightly coloured/childish socks.

If anybody asks what I want, I just send them a link. I'd rather people get exactly what I like than pointless tat! How bloody ungrateful I am!

Chemist vouchers- our local one is pretty limited in their gift lines, so the (often) pricey voucher which I should be super grateful for, ends up being used for family medications, camera batteries, gifts like old lady soaps & smellies for other people. No!!!!

So what about a good list for cheap easy secret Santa type presents:

-warm socks
-good shower gel
-nice hair spray
-hair grips
-nice pen
-plant
-coffee
-nice cooking oil
-car air freshener

I’ve loved these in the past!

Every year I get a can of coke off my mum. When I was little this was a real treat as it wasn't so widely available as it is now. But 50 years on it is a bit weird

I think that's a message of memory and love, surely?

I am genuinely grateful to anyone who buys me a gift and I really do mean that but there are some items I would rather not receive;

Soap&Glory (or similar sets)
Used items... I actually don't mind at all being given something which has been "recycled" but last year I was given a French Connection lip and nail set in a tin, one lipstick was missing and the three nail polishes had clearly all been used, one in fact was all congealed around the lid.

I rarely drink but occasionally (a few times a year) like a gin. So I get given gin miniatures, and gin parapharnalia. Signs proclaiming that it’s gin o’clock. Gin notebooks. Gin mugs. Stuff to put in gin to flavour it or make it sparkly. Gin ornaments.

Novelty socks. I don’t wear anything cute or kitsch or novelty at all. Novelty socks go straight to the charity shop.

Christmas salt and pepper shakers... just why?

Electronic stuff. DH has a habit of panic buying something expensive because he hasn’t taken any notice of who I actually am!

Every year I get a can of coke off my mum. When I was little this was a real treat as it wasn't so widely available as it is now. But 50 years on it is a bit weird

I think that's a message of memory and love, surely?

I agree. This can't handle anything to do with the actual coke.

I hate to be all doom and gloom but I imagine there will come a time when you will miss that random can of coke turning up each year.

I agree re the coke. I think it’s lovely.

I am always really grateful that someone’s bothered to buy me a gift buuuuuut I have a family member with, shall we say, unusual and rather eccentric taste. Over the years she’s bought me a purple and green woven top in the manner of a CBEEBIES presenter and quite possible the most hideous frock ever from M&S. All of this could be forgiven had they been ANYWHERE near my size but the dress was a 20 when I’m a 12. Not regifted as she enclosed the receipt . She’s not the PA type so God knows what was going on there!

Love (reasonable quality) scented candles, bath stuff, socks, hand cream, plants, gin. Not keen on chocolate but otherwise I’m not very fussy tbh.