Disappointing/weird/inappropriate christmas gifts

This_Year

TopQuark wrote: »

I know this thread is meant to be a bit of a light-hearted laugh and all that, but I can't help feeling a teensy bit uncomfortable with some of the content and intent all the same.

If someone has bothered to spend their time and possibly also money acquiring, wrapping and delivering a gift, no matter how seemingly bizzare, I personally feel it's in bad taste to mock and criticise it.

I often read on MSE (Grabbit especially) someone will point out a glitch on, for example a few years ago, there was a glitch/offer on National Trust gift sets. The thread was littered with people saying "brilliant, that's ALL the aunties sorted now" [like these aunties were not people in their own right with their own likes, dislikes and ideas but were just a name on a list to fulfill] "needed something else for SIL" [same] etc etc and all I could think of was these gift sets being given out willy nilly, just because it made another present under the tree. There's loads of this sort of unthinking spending and I'll bet a lot of it gets regifted.

My local radio station, one of the presenters asked on their facebook page "who should I give this to? I bought it while Christmas Shopping and I don't know who to give it to" :wall:

I always thought that the point of presents is to put a little thought and consideration into it and not just buy the first thing you see and then try to allocate it afterwards.

[Deleted User]

A pink flowery address book. Lovely, except I dislike pink flowery stuff and the person who gave me it bought me an Emma Bridgewater one last year (which I love)!!!

A bottle of Baileys - fantastic, except I knew it was the bottle that I had given her last year, as she'd told me a couple of months ago that she still hadn't drunk it, it was in her shed and thought she was going off it!!!

Other gifts this year include:

A bin for the bathroom (which I really like!)
A can of De-Icer for the car (useful I suppose)
Some WD-40 (?!)
A large old purse in pink, no labels (they like car boot sales)
Car air freshener (it's not even my car, it's my OHs)
Teabags.

Oh well, it's the thought that counts!!!!!?!!!!!

daisygirlmac

My best one was two years ago (I was 25) when my mum got me a hideous black faux leather belt with silver studs on it that spelled out "Jesus Loves You" :rotfl:cue all my sisters wetting themselves laughing, then my mum wetting herself and proclaiming she didn't even remember buying it!

Mojisola

TopQuark wrote: »

I know this thread is meant to be a bit of a light-hearted laugh and all that, but I can't help feeling a teensy bit uncomfortable with some of the content and intent all the same.

If someone has bothered to spend their time and possibly also money acquiring, wrapping and delivering a gift, no matter how seemingly bizzare, I personally feel it's in bad taste to mock and criticise it.

How would you feel if one of your well-intentioned* gifts was derided and laughed at on the internet?

I think an anonymous forum is probably the best place to talk about these things - it's made me laugh quite a few times.

It would be an "ouch" moment if I saw any gifts I recognised being talked about - those of us with houses up for sale approach the https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/3403965 thread with trepidation in case our property appears! That thread also makes me smile and I can't see that it does anyone any harm.

daisiegg

pleasedelete wrote: »

If that is an Emma Bridgewater marmalade festival mug they are very collectable and worth a few bob. They are now about £20 new but a 2011 will be worth more- check it out on ebay. Do international postage when you sell it as they sell well to japan and USA

Wow - that is exactly what it is! How strange! Definitely must be a recycled present then as the spending limit was only £5. The giver could not have realised it's worth anything...nor would I have had you not mentioned it!

garfield33

OH's mother bought him a chopping board with photos of cheese on it - she knows he hates cheese.
His grandfather is also a fan of shopping channels, which resulted in shiny Tutankhamun ornament one year... this now lives in the spare room. On a high shelf. Behind some books.

My nan, bless her, likes to buy me and my sister smellies. Last year it was overpowering lavender ones (thankfully a lady at work has a mum who loves lavender, so they at least went to a good home). This year it was a more practical choice - handwash! Just a standard handwash that you'd see in an office etc.
Oh and one year she bought me some massive lacy knickers. It was my first year at uni, maybe she thought I'd find someone to admire them??

celyn90

At my OH's former workplace, they used to do a "scrap santa" rather than a secret santa - you had to bring in something that you already had and wanted to get rid of - rather than spend £5 on tat. It was always hilarious (plus there was the option to donate the £5 that would have been spent on carp to charity)

In the last one we got a pub quiz board game and gave some novelty chocolate with creatures in it.

You get the joy of secret santa, with no net gain in house crud and a charity gets the cash

Some gifts were very practical - like a collection of those "harvest festival" tins of random from the back of the pantry.

cavework

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Smiffys-29777-Official-Borat-Mankini/dp/B000WAWH68
Bought my 20 year plus 2 sons one of these each ..best contraceptive on the market

Bennifred

cavework wrote: »

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Smiffys-29777-Official-Borat-Mankini/dp/B000WAWH68
Bought my 20 year plus 2 sons one of these each ..best contraceptive on the market

I sincerely hope they didn't model them for you _pale_

mrbrightside842

My nan gave me a trolley key, some impulse and some 'Victoriana cards' which are basically old fashioned Victorian style cards to slot a photo into and mail out to people. I'm in my 20s.

She also wrapped a can of Pina Colada up for my teetotal dad.