Xmas gifts I hate receiving

[JammyRed]

As Christmas is approaching the gifts I dread getting that I get every year are : Xmas themed socks , slipper socks , body lotion , body scrub. Christmas ornaments , Christmas mugs and glasses . Really cheap pound shop chocolate . Mulled wine or spicy biscuits. They don’t go to waste as I donate them to charity . What are the gifts you dread getting ?

Anything Christmas themed, as once Christmas Day is over, I’m not interested in opening a new Christmas hand wash, lighting a Christmas candle, or putting Christmas shower gel in the bathroom. I save them for the following year, it then it’s just storing them for 11 months!

Presents of the type @JammyRed describes are exactly the reason we no longer exchange presents with friends or extended family.

Christmas has largely become an endless round of reciprocal swapping of unwanted tat. We now only give presents to children under 18. We also buy for adult DC but only if we know what we are giving is something they actually want. It's as likely to be tickets for a concert or show as it is to be 'stuff'.

We still host a big family Christmas for several family members but now it's all about lovely food and drink, games, chat and karaoke. Nobody seems to miss presents.

Alcohol, as I rarely drink. Strange 'personalised' things like wine glasses, again I rarely drink. Actually I don't really like personalised things in general.

I refuse to buy things just for the sake of it and would rather just give someone a tenner gift card for somewhere they go regularly, even if it's a supermarket, than spend it on some weird plastic or personalised rubbish, although I try to be a bit more thoughtful.

Toiletries, I like most people use specific stuff that I know works for me. Thaey aren't fancy, my face scrub is 99p and my shampoo from Asda etc... and a 'brand' name won't impress me as I already have all I need. I have had to throw away or donate so many toiletries and we still have more than we need as spares.

I just simply don't need any more Dove, Lynx, Babyliss & Hardy, Soap & glory, Boots sets... ever. ESPECIALLY not Avon as my skin (and poor fanny) is highly allergic to their bath products (never been allergic to other toiletries brands only some bio washing up stuff but Avon must be made with pure acid the way it burns).

Same for big thick huge chunky jumpers, I don't really wear them or like them which is why people never see me in them yet people take not seeing me in them as a 'Oh I should buy housethatbuiltme a Jumper, she clearly doesn't own any', they then continue to buy me one every year dispute clearly seeing I have never wore any of them. I have a winter coat that melt the ice berg that took down the titanic, I only need my standard t-shirt and jeans under it I don't want to wear bulky uncomfortable clothes for no reason.

Oh an also do NOT give me money if you are going to harrass me about what I did with it. If you wanted it spent on a certain thing you should have done that but 'I gave it to you to be spent not saved' or 'you should have spent it on something special not a new kettle' etc... is annoying.

I don't love boxes of chocolates like Thorntons or equivalent, would rather have a slab of Cadbury's or a Toblerone.

No nylon socks and no supermarket china. I love a ceramic mug where you can see the finger grooves.

We buy for kids only and the adults do Secret Santa, so everyone spends £30 on 1 other adult.

If I never get another pair of socks I will still be willing many unworn pairs to my family!

Homemade food gifts. Too many bad experiences.

I went Christmas shopping and the shelves are just full of tat- smelly sets, novelty gifts, plastic rubbish.

I don’t want to buy any of that stuff for people. It just shows that you didn’t know what to get them.

My sister usually buys me an item of clothing two sizes too small, always something that i wouldn't be seen dead in anyway. She loves a bargain and starts picking up stuff in January, so no chance of returning it. She has plenty of money btw. My other sister buys stuff for herself and if she doesn't like it passes it on, usually skincare or clothes that dont fit, she is also very well off. I also get tat and bath stuff that I don't use, i honestly i would be perfectly happy if I never receive another gift in my life.

I pray for socks especially as my daughter steals mine. I in turn borrow her dad's. He's the only one that ever gets socks and they do us all 😅

You'd think it would be fairly easy to remember to buy myself some but nope.

Hand cream.

Completely agree. I buy for DH and children, my MIL and my godchild. That's it. I'll do a suggestion list for them and vice versa and it also contains "please don't buy" because we all have stuff we don't want/or have a current surplus of.

I do birthdays only for nieces and nephews because they'll get gifts from Santa, parents, grandparents. I think that's enough and I encourage my siblings to do the same.

The irony is that in my job, we've been talking about Christmas since March but handily since I buy for so few people I can pretty much park my personal Christmas shopping until a week before.

Growing up we did Secret Santa between siblings as a family once actual Santa was done because Mum felt really strongly that otherwise everyone got a lot of wasteful tat [and it cluttered the house up]. Mum and Dad would also do a gift or gift voucher for us. I don't remember anyone feeling bereft there wasn't some huge American movie style tower of presents.

If I get a glut of chocolate I chop it all up and put in a freezer bag and use it to bake cookies with throughout the next few months. Good way of managing the influx

Reading this thread (and speaking from experience!) I really don't know why ANYONE buys people toiletry gift sets (Dove, Nivea, Sanctuary etc). Pretty much everyone uses specific products for their skin for a reason!

I always used to hate getting candles as they seemed a generic thoughtless middle aged woman gift. But then I started lighting them during Christmas week and quite liking them. (Though the cheap and nasty scented ones I still don't like.)

Other than that, nick nacks/ornaments. I'm trying to have a less cluttered house and if I really do want something useless but lovely to look at, I want to choose it myself!

Having cats also brings the cat related presents, most of which are nasty...
Coasters
Tea towels
Mugs
A tray (to match the coasters)
Jigsaw
Socks
Humorous cat books
Ornaments
Biscuit jar (I actually like this)
Basically, if you can put a picture of a cat on it someone has bought it for us.

For me…
Toiletries gift sets (I don’t use the vast majority of the products)
Clothes (I don’t like other people choosing my clothes. MIL buys me a jumper every year and I wish she wouldn’t)
Mugs

For my kids…
Lunch boxes (If they need a lunch box they will already have one)
Water bottles (who doesn’t already have a water bottle? I have so many they fall out of my
cupboards!)
Blankets/cushions (NO MORE!!)

This is horrible, no wonder there’s so many climate, etc, problems with the amount of things people say ‘I put it in the bin’, at least donate if you don’t want something

Toiletries specifically Tropic. Don't like it at all.

The whole thing should be renamed Landfill Fest.

When l retired last year l got three big gift bags of presents.
Two bottles of prosecco. I don't drink alcohol.
Tons of smellies. I have weird skin, can't use them.
Scented candles. I have asthma. They make me ill.
Fancy chocolates. They're wasted on me. I like Cadburys.
Six big mugs. I've got a cupboard full of mugs. I don't need any more.

The thing is, I suspect they were all chosen by someone l'm good friends with, so she knows me well. No idea what she was thinking.
But.... for my birthday this year she gave me more smellies and a big scented candle. I'm expecting the same for Christmas, even though l've said l can't use them.

The thought's very kind, l appreciate that. And the local charity shop (which helps fund our local food bank) got most of it. I gave my friend the chocolates.
The local hedgehog rescue got the prosecco for their tombola/raffle.

I've been very direct (tactfully, l hope) with my close friends this year, asked what they wanted, and sent an email with a list of good causes saying please would they donate to one those instead of giving me presents.
I honestly don't 'need' anything. I'm decluttering before downsizing.
And considering the cost of sending stuff (no one lives locally), l'd much rather they donated even just the cost of the postage to a good cause. I was sent two parcels last year that cost over £10 each to post. Complete waste of money.

One of my good friends has ended up in a women's refuge recently due to a relationship breakdown. I'm donating to that, god knows they need it, any time of year. And when she gets her new place l'll be more than happy to get her something she actually needs. Not just something for the sake of 'giving a present'.

Cheap chocolate. I don’t mind bath and shower smellies, candles or socks. But the chocolate has to be right.

That reminds me, for years we bought FIL a huge Dundee cake at Xmas and b'day because whenever we went around he offered a slice so we thought he bought it.. Turned out he hated the stuff, and people kept buying it for him and he was just trying to get rid :-)

The endless bath bombs... we dont have a bath, we have a shower in the house 🤦🏻‍♀️

One4All gift cards. I'd rather be given a fiver in a card than £50 of these bastards.

money/vouchers... no thought has been put in to it..