Re-gifting (light-hearted)

[SwaningAround]

My neighbour usually gives my dog a Christmas gift bag of toys and treats including some that have been given to her tiny toy breed dog that he won't use. I have a large dog and it's lovely of her, so kind and much appreciated. My dog loves these gift bags as they usuallly contain things different from what I normally buy him. In return I always give her tiny toy breed dog a Christmas gift bag of treats and toys I've bought especially for him - tiny toys and tiny treats suitable for his breed and age (or so I thought).

This year she's given me back a dog toy I gave to her dog last year with the tag still on! It's so tiny that my dog would literally choke on it if I gave it to him.

First time I've ever been re-gifted something I gave. I'm amused more than offended, especially as it's for dog.

But its got me thinking about re-gifting generally. I'm not against re-gifting although, but I've never done it myself. Is it more common than I think?

I sometimes recieve gifts that don't seem to have been chosen for me - kids colouring pencils and colouring book, highly scented bath products I'm alergic to, countless candles etc. which makes me wonder how common re-gifting is. Do you give or recieve re-gifted presents. What's your view on them? Any funny stories of being given back something you gave?

I wouldn’t regift but may give stuff to charity shop. It’s very thoughtless to regift to the original giver so I assume she does it a lot. I’d regift it back next year.

I always get given loads of bottles of wine but I hate wine. I regift those.

Anything I get given that I don’t want I put in a present cupboard with a post it saying who gave it to me.
My mum is a big re gifter, she’s given me stuff for Christmas that I put in a charity shop bag for my Dad to take in before. It was hilarious but MIL was very puzzled by our hilarity

My birthday is the start of Jan so I receive a few regifts. I don’t mind, the presents may as well be used. However, I once received a very pretty paperchase diary but when I started to use it, the original gifter had written a lovely positive personal message for my SIL hoping that year would be a better one for her with some lovely messages amongst the pages which my lovely SIL never got to see.

My Scout group keeps its raffle and tombola prize cupboard fully stocked from unwanted gifts

I ask friends if they would like certain things I definitely wont use / drink as seems pointless to keep bottles of wine etc which I absolutely hate and wont drink.

My uncle and his wife were well off, but tight. We got some odd presents from them over the years, but I only realised why when we got a tartan toilet bag. Inside was a note from a friend of theirs, wishing them a Merry Christmas. They'd obviously been passing on unwanted gifts for years! (When I sent a thank you note, I included the note from their friend, saying 'I think you left this in by mistake'. That was the last present we ever got from them!)

I do regift occasionally, but only if I make sure the recipient doesn’t know it’s a regift, and only if I know they will also really like it! There’s an art to it so that you unite the gift with a person who would really like it, not just pass it on willy-nilly (and you must always keep a record of who gave it).

One year I gave some friends “advent baskets” with 24 small things (chocolates and use up able things). Went down well.

Come October one friend regifted me my own basket as a “boo basket” which I thought was a little odd but fine, used basket to put my fake plant in at the front door. Roll on Xmas and another friend saw that at the front door and said “oh I’ve got a basket like that at home I don’t need- you can have it”! So clearly no one really liked the actual baskets… which was fine, lesson learned. They were really cute baskets though and not cheap (Ella Olli brand!) so I sold one on Vinted when I got it back.

Oh and I regift for sure as I have sensitive skin so often get stuff I can’t use but know is nice. So then it’s enjoyed and I guess I could see me saving some money as the treat for me in lieu of a gift.

I re-gift frequently. For example, when anyone gives me a box of chocolates I'm unlikely to eat them and more likely to pass it on to someone else. I'd try not to give them back to the same person though!

I generally don't regift. However, was meeting up with friends the other day. We exchanged Christmas gifts and opened them at the get together.

The gift from one friend, who has know me many years, was something I'd never use and I'm sure she'd know this. I can only imagine she'd received it, didn't want it and regifted it to me. I'd never regift it, so it will just end up in landfill.

I’m pretty sure my neighbour gave me regifted presents this year because it was such an odd selection of wee things. It’s kind but honestly I’d rather no present!

I did regift some of her present (chocolates) as I was going out that evening, so I’m not opposed to regifting but it’s definitely a know your audience situation.

A bottle of non-alcoholic wine from MIL which was two years out of date

I’m a regifter! Mainly with wine- I’m a teacher so I get a lot of it at Christmas and summer hols but I don’t drink it.
Also, when our baby was born we got given lots of lovely outfits that we were very grateful for. However a few were for newborn/first size, but he was born quite big and went straight into 0-3month clothes, so they all still have the tags on. Next time I have a pregnant friend, I’ll give them to her (probs won’t pass it off as a proper gift, I’ll be honest about how I got them). There’s also a couple of things we were bought that aren’t to my taste. I’ve kept them in a bag with tags still on. They aren’t to my taste but I know plenty of people who would like them. But if no one gets pregnant any time soon I’ll just take them to a charity shop or baby bank!

Brilliant 😂

I could live with recieving regifted wine or chocolate.

A colleague bought me a tin of biscuits from M&S that we won’t eat, I dropped them off to a neighbour as I know they love them. Not as a gift, I did tell her that I was passing them on!!
I don’t really mind being regifted something, I’ll either make use of it or ask someone if they would like it. I don’t regift things as presents though.

Dh and family are massively into regifting. I used to hate it but now I've totally bought into it. Why hang on to something that you dont want but somebody else could possibly enjoy? It's more economical and better for the environment. I try to put some thought into regifting and I try very very hard not to regift the present to rhe original giver but the few times I've been given baxk my own present I didn't mind (mostly by mil but she is so open about regifting that it doesn't feel malicious or sneaky).

These days when I give presents to people I don't know well or dont know what they like i try to give them something that is easy to regift, e.g. chocolates. That way even if they dont like the present it is still useful to them as they can just pass it on and hopefully it will save tjem some time and money.

When rhe kids were younger and had whole class parties we set aside a lot (first before thr kids knew and later with their consent) as no one needs 30 toys given on one day. Now I always tell them exactly who has given what so they can appreciate the giver and thank them for the generosity ajd they can decide themselves what they want to keep. If there is anything they dont like to keep we will very happily regift it.