The Top 5 Regifting No-No's
It's the day after Christmas. Aside from feeling fat and hungover, you're probably wondering how you'll get rid of all the terrible gifts you've collected--the gizmo you'll never use, the book you'll never read, the sweater you wouldn't be caught dead wearing. Rather than toss that hideous scarf or Ricky Martin album in the trash, take a moment to think . . .there's got to be someone with an upcoming birthday and terrible taste.
Yes, I'm talking about regifting, the act of taking a gift you received, but don't want and giving it to someone else. Although the practice pre-dates the green trend, regifting is one of the most environmentally responsible things you can do over the holidays.
By regifting you'll eliminate the need for new gifts, whose production requires the unnecessary dissipation of energy and extraction of natural resources. Regifting will also prevent items from ending up in the landfill or incinerator. According to the EPA, each American throws away an average of four pounds a day. That's a total of 210 million tons a year. Garbage cans everywhere should now read, "Reduce, Reuse, Recycle . . . Regift!"
Even Emily Post--Madame Manners herself--was a regifter. According to Post, good etiquette doesn't require you to keep anything. Good etiquette simply requires you pretend you like the gift upon reception.
So there you have it! Regifting is neither tacky, nor cheap. Best of all, it's good for the environment. But first, a few cardinal rules to keep in mind. Follow these tips and you'll be sure to regift with finesse and tact.
1. Avoid perishables.
Next Christmas, that food basket will be a collection of moldy crackers, rancid cheese, and outdated muffin-mix. Unless you're going to claim it's vinegar, best to avoid beverages with a funny smell and inch of sediment on their bottle's bottom.
2. Avoid out-of-date/extinct products.
Unless your giftee is an avid collector, avoid articles of clothing, music and electronic gear of decades past. Chances are your recipient will know you originally received that home BETA video recorder in 1988.
3. Avoid dead giveaways.
Certain regifts are a plain and clear message that a) you're regifting and b) you're an idiot. For example, never regift monogrammed items . . . unless you have a plan to explain why your initials should be emblazoned on their bathrobe. Promotional items from your company's "fun day" are also poor choices.
4. When you regift make sure you rewrap. (with recycled or "green" wrapping paper, of course).
The gift should be in its original condition (i.e. unused and in original box). Then make sure it is covered in non-tattered or faded paper. Nothing says this has been sitting in the bottom of my closet like disheveled wrapping paper.
5. If you are going to regift, be sure you know who gave you what. Keep track in a notebook or computer file. Yes, it's nerdy, but you'll be happy you did. Nothing is quite as awkward as regifting to the person who gave you the gift in the first place, especially if that original giver is a grim-faced and resentful relative. You know, the one with a sense of humor akin to a dead fish?
Check back for more tips on living the green life from Olivia Zaleski every Wednesday.
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I think the coconut cup I received qualifies as one of those obvious ones NOT to regift: http://uht
I don't think this would even sell on eBay.
Maybe I'm hard to buy for, but 9 out of 10 gifts I recieve go into my regifting/eBay closet. As I'm opening something that I'd never buy in a million years and thanking the giver, I'm mentally placing the gift away for later disposal. Sometimes you get stuff and think, do you know me, at all? Have you ever seen me wear this type of jewelry? Or an appliqued sweater? Thank goodness for eBay.
Our family and friends have an even greener way to handle gifts. Our local library has a free magazine table we scour regularly. When it is time for a gift the adults get "catalogs" made by the giver which are made from pictures cutout from the magazines. I have "given" my friends priceless antiques, island vacations and piles of designer clothes. And those 'real' gifts we have for which we have no desire or need? They go to the local Habitat for Humanity thrift shop.
My boss gave me a fuzzy leopard print purse with some vanilla-scented cream and body wash. I smiled, thanked her and told her it was just what I needed when I go out partying w/ my friends.
I HATE leopard print anything, and I NEVER wear vanilla-scented stuff.
I was having a hard time finding a second gift for a good friend so I re-wrapped it and gave it to her.
She "f***ing loves" it. And I'm sure she'll wear the purse, she has gloves to match.
Re-gifting rules.
But don't return the gift to the store where it was bought and get the refund money. That is going too far.
Regifting is great if you get something and just know someone else would love it. If you hold onto something for a whole year -- well then the #5 really is important. I think I may have given my sister earrings this year that she gave me last year--was sure I'd been holding onto them for her, but now (the 26th) think perhaps once she gave to me. Well, I will try to find out tactfully, if possible. Oy, am glad Christmas comes only once a year. ;)
Why regift when you can sell it on eBay?
I'm just asking....
What about having a White Elephant party? Everyone brings their re-gifts, pull their name out of a hat, and pick a random package. The next person can take your gift away from you or choose a mystery package. One year, my mom got stuck with a package of Depends! Funny stuff.
I had someone give me a Trifle Bowl, twice. While I was using the first one ('cause I like Trifle...)
When you keep a stock of things on-hand for housewarming, showers, and other semi-obligatory events, keep track of what you gave.
If you're not sure, just bring flowers.
I don't mind regifting, I'm a use it and re use it kind of guy. It's your gift, you can do with it as you like. If the original giving was ill-considered, perhaps you can pay-it-forward to a happier conclusion.
Re-gifting is just another expression of our disposable society. If you don't like something you receive (I'm a vegetarian, the worst present you could give me is a Hickory Farm set, but it can happen, because some people either re-gift or don't care...), give it to a homeless shelter.
Well, these five rules for re-gifting are kind of obvious. I don't suppose many people would re-gift year-old food, or I hope not. I don't suppose many people would re-gift a monogrammed sweater with the wrong initials on it. That's a no-brainer.
I've never believed in throwing away perfectly good items. That would be a ridiculous waste of resources.
I give unwanted gifts to Good Will. A poor family will be using the unwanted items within days.
If you are fortunate enough to have a family with a sense of humor, regifting can just increase the pleasure of Christmas.
In my family we give each other many small presents, not one big one. And the humor and silliness is what's important, not the cost - which we inflate anyway by leaving the price tags on and inserting extra digits. A can of Moroccan sardines with chillies is much more valuable if it says $31.99 than if it says $.99, isn't it? We think so. Since we're a small family, we each invent additional relatives for each other, too, so we all get presents from some very odd people - which is also fun.
Some presents go around and around. Rubber frogs and insects are popular - but you don't really need new ones every year, do you? So are gadgets with magnifying lenses, strange food items, and items with poorly spelled packaging. Recognizing a present I gave to someone else a few years ago is a pleasure, not an insult. They cared enough to save it all this time and then surprise me with it.
We put a lot of thought into what we get for others, enjoy ourselves, and feel loved and appreciated after we've opened up all our presents. And seem to avoid a lot of the money-based problems some families fall into.
In years when we're flush, there will be some jewelry or nice electronics or whatever among the silliness - but in years when we're not flush, the absence of expensive things in no way diminishes the pleasure of Christmas morning. In any year a package of plastic moose labeled "Jungle Animals" by a company in China, or a necklace of small rubber ducks, or a Russian hand-powered flashlight can be the most popular present of the morning.
I recommend explicitly emphasizing fun and thoughtfulness with your kids, rather than how much you spend on them. And start them young. It carries over into adulthood, and increases the general level of happiness in the world.
Yesterday was a Christmas like the previous ones. Full of joy and cherished times with my loved ones. And also, disappointment with not being treated right by some of my (very) close relatives. I am talking about gift giving. The New York Times had a whole section on the psychology of gift giving, a few days ago.
My head says get over it, be polite and say thank you for another pair of cheap, ugly earrings. The truth is I am mad, and I wish my loved one would care, and know me well enough to please me.
Re-gifting? I dont' regift. I just give away the stuff, to whoever wants it. Gifts are a personal act of love, that require thoughtfulness. It is not about the money, but rather seeing the other person for who they are. Not a trivial act. My three most cherished gifts this year, came from my two daughters: a picture frame with pictures of them when they were little, a ceramic Peace pendant, and a big coffe cup, the kind my mother used in their grandma's home.
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Another thing left out: MOST of all, still feel greatful to the person that gave it to you. You should still appreciate the fact that somebody gave you a gift. A horrible, unwanted, unuseful object. But still a gift.
another no no: regifting lingerie or other underthing
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Posted January 7, 2008 | 12:45 AM (EST)