Hi all!
Just wondering here if people regift - tis the season for getting a bunch of useless stuff, and I was wondering if people regift, if they've ever been caught regifting, or if they think it is tacky. Thoughts?

I have a funny story about that. My mom in her late 40's was going thru a divorce and moved back home with her mom and dad. A first cousin's wife brought over a gift for her b~day party ~ it was the same dress my grandma had given her the year before as a gift! My grandma was spitting nails!

Oh regifting stories are hilarious! My friends and I have this red candle that has actually been gifted all the way to Africa and back. I bought it for a friend for Valentine's and she in turn regifted it at Christmas to our other friend who was in Africa at the time who in turn regifted it to the sister of the friend that I gave it too. At first I didn't find it very funny because they all got caught, but now it's a joke of course.

I think in general, it's a bad idea because in most sitatuations the risk of being caught is just too great and you can offend someone. However, if you wanted to regift something Grandma gave you at an office Christmas party, I think that would be safe. You just have to cover the bases.

Usually if the gift I get is something that I cannot use or I just plain don't like it, I donate it to charity rather than regift it. I have on occasion given it away but not as a gift. If someone indicates they like it or could use it, I'll give it to them. I often hold onto items like this for several months before donating them just in case the giver wants to know that I have it and/or use it--that must be the guilt part I feel!!!

I think it's a great idea!! But only if you follow some VERY strict guidelines. I hate wasting things and the thought of me getting a gift that I absolutely can not use is really sad to me.

The ONLY way I will regift is if I know for 100% certain that the person that I'm giving the regifted gift to will never, ever know that it was regifted. Like they don't know at all the person or circumstances which I got the gift in the first place. And I will ONLY regift if I know the person that I am now giving it to will really, really enjoy the gift. Like it's something I would have bought for them anyway. And then I will wrap it absolutely fabulously. Beautiful paper and lots and lots of frilly bows.

This year, so far I have regifted 2 presents

1) Chocolate fountain bought as a wedding present when I already have one

2) Horrid nasty liquer chocolates that my mum will love

The choco fountain is going to my Mum who knows it was our wedding present, and then to her sister to use on Christmas day when everyone's stuffed to bursting with turkey

Oh yes and we have been regifted in turn. One wedding present we got was a toiletries bag that came with some shower gel and a face cloth... But the toiletry bag was HUGE. It looked like there should've been more in the bag, with packaging Very suspicious... But it doesn't matter since the bag's quite nice and useful.

lol These are all funny. That reminds me almost every year my grandma gets everyone this Gosh awful Emauraude perfume!! She LOVES it so thinks everyone else should too! Thank heavens we are doing one $20.00 gift exchange for everyone this year!

My family always plays "dirty santa" at Christmas time. Last yr. there was a thighmaster that had been regifted numerous times. LOL, I would have taken it, but my SIL got it. All 3 of my nieces had regifted it. While my sister who had bought it was sitting there busting up laughing.

I'm still horribly offended by something my mom regifted last year. About 15 years ago when I had my first halfway decent job, I had bought my mom, grandma, and myself these matching opal cross necklaces. Well, last year when the shipment of gifts from my brother did not arrive in time for Christmas day, my mom apparently went in search of little gifts for those who's gifts had been delayed. Well, guess what she gave my neice?!

Whats bad is that my grandmother passed away 2 years earlier, and I have no idea if that was the necklace I'd given her or my mom. Of course, I didn't say anything - I wouldn't want my mom to feel bad about it, but it hurts my feelings that she did that. She even made a comment about having gone out and picked that out for my neice! My only comfort is that at least it was my neice and they are fairly religious, so hopefully she appreciated it...

That is terrible Tina!

They actually had a segment on one of the morning shows about this with an etiquette lady

She said regifting is fine if

a) the person receiving the gift will actually like the gift - in otherwords if you dont like wine but your friend does and you regift wine, thats ok

b) the person receiving the gift operates in a different circle from the original gifter. Give a coworker a gift from a family member. Do not regift amongst your family as in Tinas story

c) you remove the original tag! Unwrap it and rewrap it people, and if it comes in a box, open the box to make sure there is not a note inside unless the box is clearly still manufacturer sealed

d) she suggested waiting a year or so for some items, but keep track of who and what.

I will regift stuff like wine and food, but usually only by bringing them to holiday parties, otherwise I usually donate or freecycle. Goodwill has gotten about 300 sweaters over the years given to me by MIL...sigh.

I got a gift from a friend - it was a generic gift, you know, the kind where there is a basket with chocolates and biscuits in it. The only problem was that my friend, who is a school teacher, forgot to check the bottom of the boxes of chocolates and biscuits before putting them in a basket. EACH ONE had a label, saying: To: Mrs. Smith From: Tina or from Sandra or from Tom... I guess she collected up her gifts from her students, put them in a basket, wrapped it and gave it to me. I haven't told her about this, nor will I, because I know it would embarrass her...

I have an aunt who I love dearly but she is terribly cheap with gifts. I know she means well and thinks that it is better to give something than nothing. Anyway, she caused a stir with our family a few years back because instead of giving gifts to everyone, our family does the pick a name, buy a gift around $50 dollars. She normally would give gifts that were obviously no where near the $50 mark but one year she gave one of my uncles something that was around $5 and it upset everyone. It isn't that she doesn't have money, its more like she spends money on other things. So anyway, one year she knows I don't drink very often but she had bought a drinking game for one of my other relatives who then she decided it was unappropriate for them but then she asks my mom if she should give me that gift instead. My mom knows I wouldn't use it, my aunt knows I wouldn't use it and I guess my mom talked her out of it. Instead I got an obviously regifted item from her but it was better than the drinking game.

On the same line. I had a friend who did a similar thing. She doesn't drink, she knows I don't drink very often but for Christmas she gave me drinking glasses that were obviously for drinking alcohol (almost shot glasses but not quite). I know she has money issues but it kind of stung knowing that she gave me a regifted item when she knew that I'd have no use for it. She has done so in the past and I knew they were regifted but mostly they were things I could use.

I got a gift from an aunt who worked for Amway once. It was for my 13th birthday, and I was so excited because it looked like and sounded like some kind of perfume. Well, I opened it in front of my friends, and the label said,
TORRONTE
pour homme
on it.
Yes, it was AFTERSHAVE - pour homme means "for men" in French.
I still laugh about it, but my older sister laughs about it more than I do!!!

I don't do much re-gifting. I do get a lot of stuff from my step mom that I don't need or want (she believes in quantity rather than quality, so she tends to give out a lot of cheap gifts), but I usually just hang onto them for several years then donate them to a thrift store.

But this year I have started re-gifting food. What else are your family members for if not to eat all the high calorie junk that business associates, etc. give you? I don't work in an office, so I can't share this stuff with co-workers. I got a Harry & David gift tower a month or so ago and ended up shipping most of it, except the fruit, back to my family and I plan to distribute it at Christmas. It's perfect--saved me from having to buy goodies for them (I always put together little gift baskets), I'm pretty sure everyone will be happy with the goodies, and kept me from eating them.