What to do with unwanted gifts?

[speakout]

I have already a large bag of stuff I have been given that I dont want to keep- what should I do with it? Mostly gift sets, mugs, cheap perfumes slipper socks, toiletries etc, Everthing is new with labels on etc,
Most of my charity shops are not accepting donations- I don't want to bin them- what will I do with them.

Oh God @Ionlydomassiveones*, I feel this so hard. Incandescent with rage that every bloody year I spend six months telling DH's mad old biddy relatives that we don't want endless plastic tat with a minimum age of 500 years in landfill.

What do we get? Sackfulls of horribly gendered rubbish designed to make our boys 'feel like real boys' and dd 'feel like a little miss' .

Every year without fail it all goes to charity shops - but not till the kids have seen it, wanted to play with it and the messages have been absorbed. It becomes what they want.

We have a whirli subscription. I wish I could keep it and throw DH's mad old aunties into landfill.*

What a bloody horrible post.

Not sure uf they can take them, but when my DF was in the dementia ward, a lot of patients had no visitors and the nurses were buying toiletries for the patients. Maybe see if your local hospital will take them?

How unbelievably sad.

Can you message friends and let them know what you have to give away in case they'd like something? For example, I have dry but not sensitive skin. I get through gallons of body lotion and am not fussy regarding the brand. I feel better passing things on individually to people who actively choose them, and worry that mass dumping things at charity shops/school fetes just passes the same problem on to someone else.

@Mumdiva99

Lots of great suggestions here. But can I clarify....charity shops are accepting donations. They have been here for over a year. Please don't think they aren't.

How rude to assume you know OP area better than she does - she has said they have notes in their windows saying no donations!

@stayathomer

Why wouldn't you keep stuff like the mugs? And could you not use most of the toiletries? I get the perfume thing but surely you can use eg shower gels? Even moisturisers you could use on your feet etc. I can see why charity shops won't take them if people are all giving eg Nivea gift sets. Next year recommend that instead of presents you do a day at the theatre or something

It's years since I bought a mug yet somehow we seem to have at least 20-30 of them, for two people. They take up an entire shelf in the kitchen cupboard and then some.

If I keep one that's gifted to me, that means I have to get rid of another one, so I've not been given a nice gift, I've been given a job to do.

I could use the toiletries, but I see no difference between basic Nivea level toiletries and things like washing up liquid. Neither make suitable gifts and in reality, something like Nivea will probably end up being donated, so another job for me to do.

I've never moisturised my feet in my entire life. Why would I? . Likewise body lotion. An entirely useless product that serves no purpose except to be partnered up with shower gel to make basic toiletries look like a gift.

If we were serious about saving the planet, we'd stop with the waste that is swapping stuff that no-one wants and needs with other adults, most of whom could buy what they want, when they want, within reason, and if they can't, that's a very good reason to not spend limited funds on stuff for other people.

Olio, Freecycle.

People buying presents in good faith only for it to be called 'unwanted tat'. Lovely

Please stop doing it nan it’s annoying

I bought three gifts of toiletries and took them to our local women’s refuge and they were most grateful. I am going back with scarves that I have been knitting.

So local refuges
Food bank- I know ours takes toiletries because they often ask for them on our church list of what is needed.
Local hospital- people admitted as an emergency don’t have any with them and some don’t have relatives or friends that could bring them.
Local care homes- some have no one visiting.
Local animal refuges - can be used for tombola, raffles etc
Local schools for raffle prizes as some has said. PTAs with be having a hard time in some areas as people haven’t enough money and can’t donate. Ask in poorer areas of cities.
Contact a Family, other charities. Some will take them for need others for fundraisers.
Social Services can point you in the right direction or may take them to pass on to women’s refuges/ men’s refuges.
Refugees - group set up to help refugees would be glad as the put up packages of essentials.
Churches- often have their own food bank or know people they can distribute to, ours does.

I realise it makes extra work for you but there is a need and you can help others less fortunate than yourself. You may not feel fortunate but some people have no one that cares about them.

@speakout

I am cynical about christian groups using showbox gifts as incentives to sweeten their indoctination. I know some shoebox schemes will require attendance at bible school lectures or include religious literature with the boxes. I may get in touch with women;s aid or similar- thanks.

Team Hope do the same thing without any added messages. Presume they are in the UK as well as here in lreland.

@speakout

slashlover Every charity shop in my town has a note on the dor saying "no donations".

Are you sure they don’t mean “please don’t dump stuff in our doorway while we are closed over Christmas”

I realise it makes extra work for you but there is a need and you can help others less fortunate than yourself. You may not feel fortunate but some people have no one that cares about them.

I realise this- which I why I am looking for ideas. Mumdiva99
I am glad your local charity shops are accpeting donations, we have 5 charity shops in my town and each one has a notice on the door telling people not to donate as they are full to capacity.

I don't want to start using bath products/ body moisturiser simply because it has been given it to me. Glugging bubble bath into my makes it no less wasteful than throwing it in the bin. I don;t use products like these,and have no desire to just to somehow salve my guilt.
I like most people contribute to waste and pollution like all of us. I rive a car, I have kids, but if I can give some body lotion or bubble bath that will use it - or usually but that kind of item as a gift, instead of buying a new item manufactured for that purpose that is a very small but significant thing surely.
I don't used scented body lotion- starting to use it simply because I have been given it doesn't make me a greeener person.
Thanks for the ideas- I already have a huge bag of unopened chocolates and sealed tins of sweets ready for the food bank.

Charity shops where I am are completely full and not accepting donations! I have several winter coats from my children, in excellent condition that I wanted to donate, but none have any space. People had such enormous clearouts over the last 18months that shops have been full for ages.

Toiletries can go in the supermarket food bank trolley. Ditto any unwanted chocolates, biscuits, etc., I’d have thought.

Might be worth contacting the local Sally Army for anything like gloves, hats and scarves.

Not quite the same but I once phoned them on Christmas Eve because we’d won a hamper when the house was already stuffed with food. Someone came within half an hour to collect it.,

@Tuliprain

Slipper socks and hand creams can be sent to me 🤣. In reality someone on a local Facebook will probably want them.

And I'll happily take any candles... I love candles

Do you have any links to a school pta? They always want stuff for hampers and raffles

I have a box of stuff like that which I keep for the school raffles. Unfortunately, due to covid, there haven't been any for ages and it's very full!

Otherwise I just regift toiletries and candles to the MiL

I'd politely ask people to check whether their local food banks actually want what your unwanted tat. It's enough to have to use a food bank without realising that you are only worthy of getting the rubbish that people didn't want themselves. Do ask the organisers whether your donations are a help, too.

I wish we could say "no donations" or state what donations we could take, the two weeks before Christmas was everyone clearing out their old, broken, parts missing toys which went straight into our recycling.

I was given a few bottles of Prosecco from a relative. It is well known in the family that I do not drink and haven’t for almost ten years (no problems, just don’t like it)

I don’t know anybody that drinks Prosecco so think I’m going to put it on a free stuff Facebook and just say that you’ll need to show that you’re over 18 if you want it

TheMarmaladeYears fairr point, but Ihave just dropped off things ike Thontons chocolates, tins of quality street, shortbread etc. I assume thee are peol;e that like that stuff.

@CovidPassQuestion

Charity shops where I am are completely full and not accepting donations! I have several winter coats from my children, in excellent condition that I wanted to donate, but none have any space. People had such enormous clearouts over the last 18months that shops have been full for ages.

Not sure where you are but if you type in "coats for kids charity" there are various charities around the country that want winter coats for children. They do seasonal requests for summer and winter ones and if my kids' coats are in good condition I send them there.

There is always somewhere anyone can send unwanted items to., But as pp say it often involves a bit more work for the donator than the convenience of their nearest charity shop or the bin.

Wish I knew where these charity shops were that aren't accepting donations, my charity shop is desperate for new stock and I am just hoping we get loads in when I reopen tomorrow...

@AnotherDayAnotherDisappointme I suggest you actually research the Samaritans Purse controversy. Many schools and organisations do not support them anymore for good reason.

@TheMarmaladeYears

If it's new stuff then there will almost certainly be someone who wants it. The things that OP mentions - socks, mugs, perfume, toiletries etc will be considered luxuries by many living with extreme material deprivation. Things like this tend to only be considered 'unwanted tat' by people who have a lot.

I live near a city where there are some very deprived areas. Started using free cycle a couple of years ago when I moved house, and was really surprised by what people wanted. A lot of things that I would normally have thrown out (old pots and pans, kitchen items, toiletries etc etc were in demand).