Christmas presents you don't want or need

[Night Elf]

Does anyone get the same thing every year, or something so strange you'd never have any use for it?

 

Bath/shower gel, body mist, scarves, and gloves are the biggies. I toss out so much bath stuff that it seems like a waste. I don't know how many gloves and scarves I've donated to charity over time, which now that I think about it, at least that can be considered helpful.

 

And the metal grasshopper holding a leaf umbrella for a birthday gift? Egads! It's so bizarre that I named him Chester and put him on a high shelf in my living room just to remind me of the craziness of my mom. That was the year she also got me a pineapple and a can of nuts. :lol:

[LidiyaDawn]

If you get bath/shower stuff (soaps, gels, shaving stuff, shampoos, conditioners, bubbles, etc) that you can't (or just would rather not) use, check with your local women's shelter - they can usually put those to good use. :)

[Catwoman]

And the metal grasshopper holding a leaf umbrella for a birthday gift? Egads!

 

I can't believe you don't like Chester! Your mom and I shopped for WEEKS to find him! When we saw him, we knew he was just "you!" ;) Oh, and we were hoping you'd make a nice upside-down cake from that pineapple and nuts. (Thanks for nothing, on that count.)

 

But hey, he was better than some off-brand shower gel and a faux cashmere scarf from Marshall's, right? :D

 

This year, I'm giving you a giant snowman candle, so you won't know what to do with it after January 1.

 

Send me your address. :sneaky2:

 

Cat

[TXMary2]

Put the stuff on Ebay and then buy yourself something you want :)

[stripe]

Yes. I've had to force myself to stop feeling guilty when I donate them.

 

How about pink princess notebooks and frilly hair ribbons for my son, from a relative who wants to challenge gender stereotypes? Amusingly my daughter gets girly gifts too.

[Night Elf]

This year, I'm giving you a giant snowman candle, so you won't know what to do with it after January 1.

 

Address it to: Good Will Donation Center :)

 

Actually, a giant snowman candle sounds pretty cool! :tongue_smilie: I'd just put him out with our Christmas stuff each year. I am in desperate need of new Christmas decorations. Our stuff is old and tired!

 

And I'll admit, Chester has kind of grown on me. But it sure shocked me when I opened it! The pineapple and nuts was a very strange addition to the bag. It kind of hurt my feelings because it just had the feel of something thrown together so it didn't look like they forgot. I mean really, a bag of special cookies like Pepperidge Farms would have been so much more appropriate than a fresh pineapple and giant can of nuts. hmm.. unless she was trying to make a statement.. well dash it all.

[Catwoman]

How about pink princess notebooks and frilly hair ribbons for my son, from a relative who wants to challenge gender stereotypes?

 

 

:eek: :eek: :eek:

 

Well, that's just wrong. :glare:

 

I hope you bought that relative some nice motor oil and a couple pairs of jockey shorts as her gift the next year.

 

Cat

[Belacqua]

My grandmother once remarked to a coworker that she loathed chocolate-covered cherries. The sweet natured coworker misheard that as "loved," and she proudly handed my grandmother an enormous box of chocolate cherries every Christmas. I don't know what became of them, as nobody else in the family liked them, either.

[Mothersweets]

:eek: :eek: :eek:

 

Well, that's just wrong. :glare:

I hope you bought that relative some nice motor oil and a couple pairs of jockey shorts as her gift the next year.

 

Cat

 

 

I love this idea. :lol:

[secular_mom]

Purses, picture frames, jewelry, obnoxiously scented lotions and such that I am not able to use.

I mean, I have an Amazon wishlist with varying price ranges so there's something there no matter how much or little someone wants to spend- and they don't even have to order it from Amazon- they can just use it as a guide while they're out shopping. I hate the 'obligatory' gifts people give me especially when they just don't 'get' me, KWIM? My oldest always tells DH what to get me now, LOL, and she REALLY gets me and always knows the perfect thing to tell him. :-)

[Jean in Newcastle]

A brightly painted ceramic indoor fountain of the garden gnome genre. I hope that someone at Goodwill bought it and enjoyed it. . .

[Mejane]

Not me, but my daughter gets something ballet-themed for every occasion. She has ballet picture frames, statues, snowglobes, ornaments, journals, jewelry, jewelry boxes, teddy bears... Make it stop! :eek:

 

I use those bath gels to clean the shower. :)

[DarlaS]

Does anyone get the same thing every year, or something so strange you'd never have any use for it?

 

Bath/shower gel, body mist, scarves, and gloves are the biggies. I toss out so much bath stuff that it seems like a waste. I don't know how many gloves and scarves I've donated to charity over time, which now that I think about it, at least that can be considered helpful.

 

And the metal grasshopper holding a leaf umbrella for a birthday gift? Egads! It's so bizarre that I named him Chester and put him on a high shelf in my living room just to remind me of the craziness of my mom. That was the year she also got me a pineapple and a can of nuts. :lol:

 

My mom got me a can of nuts for my birthday this year. (Are you my sister? if so, you must be her favorite, because she knows I love pineapple. :D)

 

Oh, and she got peanut butter and jelly for my youngest for his 7th birthday this year. :001_huh:

[BarbecueMom]

Does anyone get the same thing every year, or something so strange you'd never have any use for it?

 

 

A relative bought a t-shirt printing business some years ago. The business all but failed, but he still prints in his basement. He's anti-computer, so he won't use computer generated or printed graphics. That means he's limited to tracing block letters and coloring book images on a silk screen.

 

It wouldn't be unusual to get a Hanes t-shirt that said "NIKE" in off-centered block letters, with a "check mark" beneath it. He honestly sees NO difference between a real Nike shirt and his print job (I guess it's not fraud, since he's not selling it). We also used to get sweatshirts referencing whatever make of American car we were driving. We started buying Hondas, and that put an end to the sweatshirts!

 

The strange thing is that they enjoy buying thoughtful gifts, but since that doesn't create enough boxes under the tree we get odd stuff just to fill up space. I'm a clutter-phobe. This stresses me out every year. :tongue_smilie:

[fairfarmhand]

I got this weird pot. Painted red with black spots and a face on it. It had springy arms and legs sticking off of it. Supposed to be a lady bug. Weird.

 

Came from my mil who said "I thought it was cute!"

[Night Elf]

Oh, and she got peanut butter and jelly for my youngest for his 7th birthday this year. :001_huh:

 

:lol::lol: Maybe we are sisters!!

[Daisy]

Nope. I tell people not to get my ANYTHING. Works like a charm. :tongue_smilie:

[Harriet Vane]

Dh's aunt once gave me a set of decorative pottery. It was truly hideous. I felt lucky though, because the pottery was way better than the fake book with artistically curled pages and a syrupy picture of Jesus that she gave my sil to display.

 

Dh's grandma gave us a funny gift that I use all the time--including just today! When we visited her as newlyweds, she gave us a large pink towel. Just one. Clean but obviously not new. She was a dear lady, though, so we thanked her and we added it to the stock of towels.

[plansrme]

Dh's grandma gave us a funny gift that I use all the time--including just today! When we visited her as newlyweds, she gave us a large pink towel. Just one. Clean but obviously not new. She was a dear lady, though, so we thanked her and we added it to the stock of towels.

 

A towel that lasts for 16 years, now that's a gift. I would take that over bath gels and snowmen candles any day.

 

Terri

[Laurie4b]

Nope. I tell people not to get my ANYTHING. Works like a charm. :tongue_smilie:

 

Ack. That does not work for me. My dad's wife wants me to "have something to open" (like I"m 6) and if I don't ask for something, she buys me stuff anyway. The clothes rarely fit and she often buys colors that guarantee she has never seen me wear. There is all kinds of stuff I don't want or can't use and feel terrible donating it as soon as I get home, so I hang it in the closet for several months.

[stripe]

Telling them not to buy anything doesn't work for me, either. I've even said I will donate future stuff to charity. The stuffed animals keep rolling in. And, by the way, the box is getting ready to be donated.

[LibraryLover]

My kids go through shower gel like crazy. I never give any of that away. Even the very scented stuff doesn't keep a teen boy from smelling like a teen boy for long. But he does smell nice fresh out of a shower. It's something. ;)

 

We don't have a lot gift exchaning going on, so it's not often I get something that I truly can't use. I have a SIL fond of itchy, lacy foo-foo sweaters. The very few times she's given me one, I've rehomed with my mother or great aunt. :D

Edited December 4, 2010 by LibraryLover

[Farrar]

Ill-chosen books. Things that I just have no interest in reading. Certain people seem fond of getting them for me. Yes, I love to read. No, that doesn't mean I'll read anything.

 

I'm a scarf addict so send scarves my way. And I'm forever losing my gloves, so that's always a welcome stocking stuffer.

[ThatCyndiGirl]

This reminds me of the thread I read on TAO. One woman (Jewish, married to a Gentile) received a plaque from her MIL that read,

 

 

"Even though you're a Jew Jesus still loves you".

 

 

Another winner was the mobious scarf, which the recipient couldn't figure out. It took a few pages of that thread for other board members to explain it.

 

Oh, and the pornographic stallion door pulls. Apparently, the horses were all rared up on their back legs and one had to open the door by pulling on their.....well, 'horsehood' that was, ....ahem......erect. :001_huh: How in-laws could pick something like that out and GIVE IT AS A GIFT with no tangible sense of irony is beyond me. :lol:

[sandellie4]

My in-laws favor their other son and his family, see them a lot more, and know them better. So for gifts, we get almost identical gifts of whatever the other family likes. If the cousin gets a red trike, our child of similar age gets a green one...so everybody is treated the same and everything is "fair." If my sister-in-law collects cheap knick-knacks, guess what I get?! :thumbdown::thumbdown:

 

Sandy

[FlockOfSillies]

You can have my snowman candle. I think it's still in the original cellophane in my buffet drawer.

[Nakia]

This thread is killing me!! I love it!! I never get any of this crazy stuff, thank the Lord!!

 

Beth, can I just say I love you even more than I used to because you said EGADS?!?! :lol::lol::lol:

[Nakia]

This reminds me of the thread I read on TAO. One woman (Jewish, married to a Gentile) received a plaque from her MIL that read,

 

 

"Even though you're a Jew Jesus still loves you".

 

 

 

 

Some people have a lot of nerve. Or maybe some people have no tact. :glare:

[Peela]

I find it hard but I receive it all as graciously as I can. My mother usually makes me amazing hand woven items. No problem there. But my step mum- dad's wife- sends all sorts of strange things. I am very fussy about creams, bath products etc (I wont put chemicals on my skin) and they kind of know how wierd I am, but they try hard and often get it wrong. Last year they asked me if there was anything I would like...I said, well, I knit socks so you could send me some lovely sock wool. Well, I knew what I meant (I had a picture of a lovely ball of Opal wool in MY mind) and I really shouldnt have presumed they did, because to me, pure wool or other natural fibre is the ONLY way to go...and they bought me a whole pile of acrylic sock wool. It was a pretty colour though. I kept it, agonising over it, for a few months...then it went to the op shops. Someone will like it. Life's too short to knit with wool you don't like :)

 

On Boxing Day we have a party with any friends that want to come- usually there are 20 or so people. It is a tradition that we do Secret Santa - and everyone brings along one wrapped present- something they dont want. Its a great place to bring unwanted Christmas presents. Everyone picks a number out of a hat, and the presents are all in a pile in the middle. Number 1 goes first- chooses a present and unwraps it. Number 2 then can choose to either TAKE number 1's present OR pick a new present out of the pile. If they take number 1's present, number 1 gets to pick another. Each present can only change hands 3 times. Number 3 can either take no 1 or number 2's presents, or pick out of the middle. Etc.

THe chances of ending up with something worse than what you originallycontributed are fairly high but sometimes you get something pretty cool :) And its very fun.

 

I am good at ditching things I don't want. I also have a drawer for things I might like to give someone else - a gift drawer- its pretty good for those soaps and things.

[Tammyla]

Snort...:lol: That candle sounds beautiful, but I do hope it is scented.

 

I can't believe you don't like Chester! Your mom and I shopped for WEEKS to find him! When we saw him, we knew he was just "you!" ;) Oh, and we were hoping you'd make a nice upside-down cake from that pineapple and nuts. (Thanks for nothing, on that count.)

 

But hey, he was better than some off-brand shower gel and a faux cashmere scarf from Marshall's, right? :D

 

This year, I'm giving you a giant snowman candle, so you won't know what to do with it after January 1.

Send me your address. :sneaky2:

 

Cat

[Onceuponatime]

Scented candles. I am soooo tired of them.

 

I wouldn't mind getting a pineapple and nuts. :-)