During the holidays a friend of mine asked that I write a
blog sharing my thoughts on re-gifting. This isn't a topic that I would ever
think to write about, but I'm happy for the request; especially since I haven't
been on the blog as much as I used to be.
Although the holidays are over, the opportunity for gift
giving never expires. There are birthdays, baby showers, anniversaries, recognitions
of achievements and gifts from the heart for no reason other than to express love
and appreciation. Each of these occasions opens the door for someone to walk
through it and hand you a re-gifted gift.
I have lots of silly stories filed away in this brain of
mine and I’ll share one with you.
After doing a favor for a friend, she handed me a perfume
gift set, in its little gift bag, as a thank you for helping her out. Even
though I knew my friend really appreciated me and my help, there was still a
tiny pang inside of me because I knew the gift was a re-gift.
The reasons I knew: My friend isn't a hoarder (like me) so
she doesn't keep random items in her house that she knows she will never use.
My friend is more of a tomboy, not a girly kind of girl so I knew right away
that she did not go out and purchase this gift set for me because she wouldn't have
known where to start.
The gift set was an expensive one, and I knew she
wouldn't spend that type of money on me unless it was my birthday or some other
special occasion. I knew that she would never wear such a girly perfume herself
and due to her lack of hoarding, she needed to get the item out of her house.
Was I offended? Just
a tiny pangs worth, but once that feeling passed (and it passed very quickly)
I got over it and enjoyed my new perfume set. The perfume became one of my
signature scents. I always get compliments when I
wear it and I have my friend to thank for introducing it to me.
Now, that story was nothing compared to the experiences some
have had with re-gifting.
When someone close to you gives you a gift that has obviously been re-gifted it's like a
slap in the face. It's rude and offensive that this person couldn't take the
time and effort that you took to get them something that you knew they would
enjoy. Especially when they know that your birthday and Christmas are the same
day, every year and they had 365 days to think about what to get you.
Have I re-gifted? Yes, I am guilty of passing along a gift
card or two when I’m low on funds and have gift cards in my possession. Would I
actually re-wrap a packaged gift that someone gave me and present it to someone
else as new? I don’t think I would.
I personally get joy out of seeing someone light up at the
sight of the gift I have chosen for them. Some people don’t feel this way,
which is why they are sloppy when they re-gift. They know that they have to get you something and they think
you should be happy that you got something from them at all because you could
have gotten nothing; which isn't very considerate towards you.
I’m not totally against re-gifting because in this day we
are living in, some people just don’t have as much money as they used to. And also because
you might be able to think of someone who would enjoy the gift more and get
more use out of it than you would.
If you have to re-gift for whatever reason, don't be sloppy or
lazy about it because it shows that you really don't care. And why bother
giving a gift if you don't care? Take the time to scan the gift to make sure
that it cannot be detected as a re-gift. And if for any reason there is a slight chance that it could be detected
as a re-gift, don't pass it along. It's not worth offending someone close to
you just because you want to be cheap.
Put a little more thought into the person who will be receiving
your gift. Don't just pass along something that was given to you because you
don't want it. If you don't want it, what makes you think that the person you
are giving it to does?
And if you can't think of anything at all to gift them with,
buy them a gift card. I've never heard of anyone who hated receiving a gift
card. (Macy's is usually a winner for all.) Even if the gift card is for a
small amount of money, it's the thought that counts. Being lazy with your gifting isn't
thoughtful at all.
I love you for reading!
