Christmas present moans

[Miscanthus]

Don't you hate..
1. When people learn you have a hobby like art then buy you stuff for it...but it's never the right quality, colour etc
2. When you receive something one year and politely say you like it...then get it every year
3. When people see you have two of something ie owl ornament and assume you collect them...so you get an owl ornament every year
I'll see myself out!!!

 

[slabber]

I had the 'well sorry I didn't know what size you were' - size 8 and I had size 26 pjs

My auntie used to do this all the time. I'm convinced it was on purpose!!

 

[Sailorontheseasea]

It's really hard isn't it - I think of amazing thoughtful presents for the whole family to buy each other, apart from my boyfriend I help everyone with their present shopping and then when I get my own generic gifts it's a bit disappointing. Like this year my mum knew I wanted a Jo Malone candle (small, £25 or £17 on Black Friday deals) - now this was the only thing I had said I really wanted and in the 3 weeks running up to Xmas mum kept making little comments about how pleased I was going to be with my present - I opened a pack of 4 cheap candles in a box, mum said the jo Malone was too expensive! But she topped my cheap candles up with home bargains tat - I would have preferred the one present that I actually wanted,
I could buy 4 cheap candles for myself any day. I have mentioned it and said there's no point asking what I want if you're going to ignore it but she doesn't seem to get it, she would rather buy presents for the sake of it than what anyone wants! I feel so ungrateful writing that and maybe if I hadn't put so much thought in to everyone's presents for each other it wouldn't be quite as annoying. Luckily boyfriend and mother in law are very thoughtful with gifts.

Yeah this is what annoys me so much - when people “top up” presents with filler presents and just waste so much money!!!! And it’s usually (definitely) utter tat too. I had to drill it into my partners head this year to stop doing it, thankfully he got the message but it winds me up no end, such a huge waste, waste of money, bad for the environment when all this tit inevitably ends up in landfill, bad for my mental clutter because I have no where to put it. Just buying stuff for the sake of it man, stop!!!!!

 

[Octopies]

Where do we stand on giving money for Christmas?

I have absolutely no problem with it. Think it solves a lot of the pressure on people to get the right gift for other people. In all honesty, I would much rather people don’t give me anything or just give me a £5 in a card rather than a Baylis and Harding gift set I can’t stand the smell of!

I appreciate the value of money given growing up we didn’t have much of it. I hate the thought of people wasting their money out of politeness. In my day to day life, i’m tight with my money (I’m not ashamed to say this- I work too bloody hard!) and at this stage in my life I’m big on savings and financial security. Give me £10 in my savings and I could not be happier!

My brother is the same. I popped £50 in a card last year as he’s into playing with the stock markets. He spent most of last Christmas day working out what stocks he wanted to invest in. This year he made a profit and was thrilled when I did the same this year. It was £50 well spent in my opinion, rather than waste money on buying gifts of socks and pants that as a grown man he doesn’t even need to be bought at Christmas.

I get why people do gifts. It’s a lovely concept. I gift my nieces and nephew with crap that I know they will enjoy and I know they like the opening of gifts etc. But buying adults things they don’t want or need doesn’t sit well with me. It feels wasteful. If someone directly tells me what they want as a gift, then I will give them that no problem. It’s the whole ASSUMING someone will like something you give them that drives me mad. That and the impression that giving money is impersonal and rude. It’s not in my opinion!

Secondly, i know I sound like a miserable cow and such a Scrooge but I also like Martin Lewis’ view on gift giving. Every year, he says that Christmas is a lovely time but for most without a lot of money it’s stressful and worrying. If you gift someone something then you are also giving them the pressure of getting something in return with money that person doesn’t have to waste. That honestly hits me so hard.

What does everyone else think?

I would love to get money for Christmas but I feel rude asking, honestly. I don’t know why but growing up it was drummed into me that asking for money is rude. I think being from a family of bargain hunters who like to get gifts at a cheap price means asking for money = being forced to reveal what they’d usually spend!

 

[bunnyboo]

One of my uncles made a donation to charities matching them up with our personalities (such a lovely idea!), he made a donation in my name to Amnesty International

For one of my cousins, he had made a donation to WWF in her name and 'adopted' an animal for her. He thought she'd love this, as she went on safari last year and got proposed to in front of an elephant herd so it seemed that it fit the bill. But I caught the materialistic witch complaining to her insufferable mother that she wished he got her a present she could "actually use"!? Are you shitting me? She's honestly such a bleep, I can't (sorry, I don't usually use that word but it's deserved in this case).

This is the same cousin who claimed I got "all the attention" on a family zoom call because my grandmother wanted to know how my blood donation went a few weeks ago. Honestly, I don't know whether to laugh or cry with this witch.

 

[Pot2PeeIn]

I really dislike gifts in general- I don’t consider myself difficult to buy for but I’m always disappointed.

I say what I would like when I’m asked, let’s say for example I ask for a BeautyBlender. What I’ll receive is some kind of Amazon knock off which obviously isn’t going to function like the real deal. And that makes me ungrateful apparently. This happens all the time, so maybe it’s just me but if my child or husband or whoever asks for a generic thing like a
Football or power tool I’ll research the best one and that’s what will be purchased. It really makes me feel Unappreciated! Rant over

 

[rosemarina]

I’ve just come across this thread.
I don’t know if it’s been mentioned but every year we’re gifted Christmas ornaments and random Xmas baubles? I don’t get it as they have to go away for a whole year.

This tit drives me mad.

 

[Tinkerbell cat]

I am actually always really happy with whatever I am given as a gift because in my mind that person has thought about me enough to get me something they think I will like.. Although for my birthday my little niece bought me some unicorn glittery slime and a rubber snake

 

[whathastheworldcometo]

I am actually always really happy with whatever I am given as a gift because in my mind that person has thought about me enough to get me something they think I will like.. Although for my birthday my little niece bought me some unicorn glittery slime and a rubber snake

You niece must love you very much

 

[Tinkerbell cat]

You niece must love you very much

She buys me things she would like for herself, so many of the gifts now live at my house and when she comes she always likes to play with them, she also got me some play dough. She is 4 though. little diva.

 

[whathastheworldcometo]

She buys me things she would like for herself, so many of the gifts now live at my house and when she comes she always likes to play with them, she also got me some play dough. She is 4 though. little diva.

That‘s so cute

 

[SavvyBee]

A family friend gave me a Dove - inside is two bottles of regular shower gel. Shower gel in a box? So just extra packaging I need to throw away for something I would buy myself. Not even a luxury like a bubble bath, it’s like giving someone a bottle of fairy liquid!

 

[birdiefly246]

I am actually always really happy with whatever I am given as a gift because in my mind that person has thought about me enough to get me something they think I will like.. Although for my birthday my little niece bought me some unicorn glittery slime and a rubber snake

see I've got to say I disagree. Often people buy bath sets etc for people they HAVE to buy a gift for, not they want to buy one for. How many times have you been shopping with someone and they've said "oh I've got buy a gift for blah blah blah, let's go have a look at the sets". Especially for things like secret santa or extended family members. It's not me being ungrateful, I would rather people not waste their money out of etiquette or necessity.

That said, anything my niece or any child gives me I love. She once made me a bath bomb with a plastic toy in it she got from a set and I've still got the small toy. She drew me a picture of a dandelion one year and I've got that pinned on my wall.

 

[Tinkerbell cat]

see I've got to say I disagree. Often people buy bath sets etc for people they HAVE to buy a gift for, not they want to buy one for. How many times have you been shopping with someone and they've said "oh I've got buy a gift for blah blah blah, let's go have a look at the sets". Especially for things like secret santa or extended family members. It's not me being ungrateful, I would rather people not waste their money out of etiquette or necessity.

That said, anything my niece or any child gives me I love. She once made me a bath bomb with a plastic toy in it she got from a set and I've still got the small toy. She drew me a picture of a dandelion one year and I've got that pinned on my wall.

Oh i get where you are coming from, but I love all those kind of wee sets although I do know they have just picked it up in Tesco or home bargains and its been last minute haha. I am very easily pleased though when it comes to like a bath set or something... However, secret Santa kind of gifts to me would be rubbish, you know those wee gin sets you get with like 2 mini gins and a big glass? I'd much prefer a big bottle.. as they are around the same price anyway! they look pretty them gift sets but they are really pointless.

Yeah i always get silly little gifts from my niece and nephews. My nephew who is 5 got my partner a magic set because the magic set said my partners name on it which is very cute of him..

 

[birdiefly246]

Oh i get where you are coming from, but I love all those kind of wee sets although I do know they have just picked it up in Tesco or home bargains and its been last minute haha. I am very easily pleased though when it comes to like a bath set or something... However, secret Santa kind of gifts to me would be rubbish, you know those wee gin sets you get with like 2 mini gins and a big glass? I'd much prefer a big bottle.. as they are around the same price anyway! they look pretty them gift sets but they are really pointless.

Yeah i always get silly little gifts from my niece and nephews. My nephew who is 5 got my partner a magic set because the magic set said my partners name on it which is very cute of him..

contrary to what I've said I actually am easily please, my friend bought me vegan sweets once and I very nearly burst into tears
I think just mostly feel guilty when people have wasted money on me for things I know I can't/won't use.


That is super cute of your nephew!

 

[Tinkerbell cat]

contrary to what I've said I actually am easily please, my friend bought me vegan sweets once and I very nearly burst into tears
I think just mostly feel guilty when people have wasted money on me for things I know I can't/won't use.


That is super cute of your nephew!

Oh no! I would have done the same.. haha!
I'm actually going to strike my original comment, an Ex years ago bought me these like gold plated hoop ear-rings which had like fake crystals on one side... I absolutely hated them but I had to just smile and say they were gorgeous.... He would then ask why I would never wear them so I would have to find the courage to wear them but they really stood out and went with nothing I wore so i was really self conscious. One day the silver part actually fell off the rest of the hoop! I was so happy... I never wore them again... I wasn't ungrateful just didn't have the heart to hurt his feelings!! Jesus thinking back, they were awful.

 

[Autumnleaves123]

I hate perfume gift sets so much. My parents would get me one every year and always a nice perfume but would get the set as I think they thought it was a better present. Reality is I would end up with a collection of rubbish perfume scented ‘body lotions’ I would never use and a bottle of perfume I would use. Told my dad last year if you buy perfume don’t buy a set even if the shop tell you it’s better, it’s not

 

[Geranium]

I hate perfume gift sets so much. My parents would get me one every year and always a nice perfume but would get the set as I think they thought it was a better present. Reality is I would end up with a collection of rubbish perfume scented ‘body lotions’ I would never use and a bottle of perfume I would use. Told my dad last year if you buy perfume don’t buy a set even if the shop tell you it’s better, it’s not

Nice one! I agree about the gift sets. A few years ago I said to my family please don’t buy me any more body lotion as I have a ton to use up! Finally this year I used it all up and actually put some on my wish
List

 

[it’s not been changed?!]

Nice one! I agree about the gift sets. A few years ago I said to my family please don’t buy me any more body lotion as I have a ton to use up! Finally this year I used it all up and actually put some on my wish
List

Haha I can totally relate! I have some from years ago (scented body lotions from perfume sets) that I’ve never used but can’t bear to throw them out. They probably smell funny now

 

[Peartree]

Not really a moan, but for the past 4 years my mum and dad have bought me a lego set. So far I have had a VW camper van, London bus, Harley Davidson and this year a land rover defender.

I just want to point out I'm a 47yr female and not sure where they got the idea I like Lego