if a friend gave you a gift you had no use for ..
By laken02
@laken02 (3065)
United States
April 8, 2012 1:00pm CST
Hi. i was jusy wondering about this thinking of my mom and thought of it.. what would you do if a freind gave you a gift that you knew you had no use for.. would you keep it and say nothing .. or would you give it away later or what.. this happend to my mom alot her sister would give her tons of stuff that mom did not need she would take it to keep from hurting her feelings and put it on a shelf and then one day we had a yard sale and i said mom why dont you get rid of all that junk .and declutter your house.. and she would say but(delphie) gave it too me and i really dont need it but hate to get rid of it because she gave it too me.. and then she would go on to say well waht if she comes over and sees it in the yard sale .. she woud be hurt..
and one time a guy at my husbands work gave him a funny gift from his home town and after awhile i was decluttering and ask if i could give it to someone else and he got offended and said no you dont give stuff away that someone gives you.. so we still have .. i personaly think it is ok to regift and if someone gives me something i will now say i think so and so would really like this better do you care of i give it to her and they usualy say sure no problem.. that is becasue me and my friend shelly are always giving each other stuff and i give her alot and she told me that anything i give her she cant use she saves it for a charity that gives to the poor. they come buy her house weekly and she saves stuff for them... which is nice i just dont think you should put a good product away on a shelf if you dont even care about it much and then you could be giving it to someone who would love it. and use it and make them happy.. i guess i just love to give.. what is your take...
2 people like this
13 responses
@celticeagle (159173)
• Boise, Idaho
9 Apr 12
My grandmother used to do the same thing. She would give the things she got that she didn't need to others who could use them. I remember a pile of stuff on the box in her room. It was all stuff she didn't need. Whenever it came up that someone didn't have a gift or she needed a gift for someone she go to that stack of stuff and find one.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
so did my sister, it always worked out well for her of course then she had a huge home with a basement and 2 car garage and tons of space.. she had a chest that she put in the basement and when the kids had birthday partys she would get things they did not like or get the same gifts she would soperat them and thone ones they did not want would go in the drawer and when the kids had birthday partys to go to she always had a gift .. she had a boy and a girl so that wokred out well as they were popular and always going to birthday parties..
1 person likes this
@starsailover (7829)
• Mexico
8 Apr 12
Hi laken: In that case, I think I won't tell my friend that I don't need that gift. Instead I would try to find an use to this gift, for me or at least I would find someone (my brother or sister for example) that would find this gift nice for them. There must be an use for this gift, I am sure. But I won't keep it without doing anything about it either.
ALVARO
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
that is a great idea, i am the type person who gives alot of gifts out to people i care about and friends... and i would rather give then recieve.. like my hubby told me he hated a necklace that i got from my 90 year old lady freind in the nursing home and. i really like it and this i wanted to wear becasue it reminded me of her and she's 90. so.. anyhow he told me yesterday it looke dlike something a kid would wear so i took it off and im planning on giving it to the little girl who comes by my house alot..just have not seen her yet but she will love it..
so everyone is happy, im happy becasue i get to make a kid happy. as well. thanks
1 person likes this
@starsailover (7829)
• Mexico
22 Apr 12
Aww, that's so sweet and a good way to spread love on the world.
Thanks for sharing this example with me and for the best response of course, have a nice day.
ALVARO
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
that is very nice that you have special freinds and sounds ike you treat them well
i only have 1 close friend and we share alot, time on the phone, and other items and when she gives me something i dont like i will keep it for awhile and then later ask her if she cares if i give it to so and so and just says you did'nt even have to ask hun.. so that is nice i have her in my life as well..
@Porcospino (31366)
• Denmark
9 Apr 12
My parents deal with those gifts in very different ways. My mother would never tell the giver that she didn't like the gift or didn't find it useful. My father is a very honest and if he doesn't like a gift he doesn't pretend that he likes it. I think that I am like my mother, and in most cases I don't tell the giver that I didn't like the gift. At first I just keep the gift and the next time I go through my things I decide what to do about the gift. I would usually choose give it away to a friend who appreciates it more than I do or donate it to charity. A garage sale is another option and last time I had a garage sale I sold some gifts that I received long time ago but never really used.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
i use to do very good at yard sales we had a much better location then with a garage and i did well.. but here where i live im closeto town but kinda hidden in a court the end of it.. so you cant see my house from the road.. and i hate making signs and putting them out and last yard sale we did horrible ended up taking the rest to the goodwill and i swore i would not do that agian..
i think regifting a gift that someone gives you is ok as well.. take care
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
11 Apr 12
When I was younger I was one of those people that would tell someone that I didn't have any kind of use for the gift that was given to me. However, now that I'm an adult, this isn't something that I can do because I know how easy it is to hurt someone else's feelings.
So, I will either later return the item to the store that it came from or I will regift the item a little bit later. An example of this is a cookware set that my husband and I got as a wedding gift. We'd already bought a very expensive set and didn't need a cheaper set. However, my brother and sister-in-law didn't have any cookware, so I gave my extra, unused set to them as a Christmas gift a couple years later.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
21 Apr 12
that was a great idea, my sister was like that she had a bigger house with a tow car garage and lots if space basement and all and she had a chest that she put in her basement and it would be full of new items that she had gotten at her kids birhtday and they had gotten the same gifts from othe people so she would give it to her kids friends when she needed a birthday gift she just opened the drawer and took her pick nice gifts as well.. worked great for her.
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
i dont try to give out things unless i feel the otehr person needs it or can make use of it most of the time im right on it and then there are rare occasions that the persin did not like it.. but for the most part i do good giving as i feel i can read people. pretty good and that helps take care.
@TrvlArrngr (4045)
• United States
9 Apr 12
I will either re-gift, return, or donate the item. I am trying to de-clutter my house again so going through our bookshelves and boxes in the closets. It's a never ending chore.
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
i agree totaly , i just de clutter my living room and then yesterday i did my kitchen cabinets and its starting to look nice in there and now i just pick up the clutter and if i cant use it i get rid of it..no matter who gave it too me. i cant stand a cluttered house but im always nice to thank for a gift.. and would never hurt anyone on purpose..
@kingparker (9673)
• United States
8 Apr 12
Your mom is a nice person though. But anyway, if I give someone a gift or present, he/she might have no use of it, he/she can do whatever he/she wants with it, since it is already his/hers. I won't care about it. If someone gave me a gift, and I have no use of it, I might regift it to someone else who has good use of it, or sell it for some money. So, tell your mom don't worry about it. Get rid of some of the stuff she doesn't need.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
she has since moved and had to go thru everything and she found out she needed a storage so she got rid of all she could so she could get a smaller storage for the rest she moved in with my sister in china..thanks for your kind words take care and have fun today.
@PointlessQuestions (15397)
• United States
8 Apr 12
I do not like clutter at all. If I had no use for it someone will get it for Christmas or birthday. I keep the box it comes in and will regift. I've done it a lot. It's just stupid to hoard stuff because someone gave it to you. I can't stand having stuff clutter the house.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
my point exactly, but not my mom.s , she is not a hoarder but she dont like to hurt peoples feelings.. i have never regifted as a birthday present i did one time for christmas and it worked out great hubby had a new pair of shoes he did not wear at all nike's brand and for christmas i gave then to my then son in law he loved them.. i do find alot of gifts at the godwill but if someone give me something i cant use i dont have storage room so i will find it a new home in good use..make someone else happy .. thanks
@jvincent_129 (4994)
• Philippines
9 Apr 12
If i will give someone a gift, I have to really know what he wants. He might not appreciate the gift and in the end the gift will be useless. Whenever I give a present, I make sure that the person loves it because I wanted also someone to give me a gift that I love. It makes me happy and glad to know that someone was really happy for the gift. It's ok and fine with me that a person expresses himself that he didnt like the gift given to him. At least he is honest, and I like people who say what they truly feel. But of course you cant do that to people, it might hurt their feelings, its human nature. You can just give it to someone who needs them or to charity. When the Sendong Typhoon struck in our place, I was involve in a community program to help those who were affected by the calamity. We donated things we wont need like extra clothes, utensils, and bedsheets with accessories. It feels very fulfilling to help and share to them.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
very good post thanks, you are so right in everything you said.. i love helping others and i give more then i get.. and im ok with that.. i just get a goood feeling helping others and espically if they are down on there luck then people will be glad to get anything.. amd i npw dont get mad as easy as i use to learning to be a better person as well.. take care.
@dazzledlady (1618)
• Philippines
9 Apr 12
Maybe I am more like your husband and mother. If someone gave me a give, no matter how useless they maybe I will keep them because it was given to be as a gift. It is free and it was given with a thought that I should have them. I think it is not okey to give away the things given to you and i would also be hurt seeing my gifts given away to someone else unless maybe it is for charity but it would still be nice if they could keep it.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
well i do keep it for awhile until i figure out who im gonna give it to, i always show my appreciation and never try to hurt there feelings and i know who i can talk to straight up about it and who i cant like my best freind we will ask each other is it ok if i give this to so and so she will love it.. and we never get mad. im always giving her stuff and i will say if you cant use it give it to someone else so it will go to good use..so now she has someone come buy her house on a reg baisis and she gives them things for there charity home.. great idea
and very nice..so now i look for the junk in my home and give it to her to give to them.. i love helping others..
@olivia52779 (66)
• United States
8 Apr 12
When friends or family members give me gifts that I have no need for or that I do not like, I of course show them appreciation and thank them. It is the thought that counts, as I see it; that is the most important thing. I usually try and think of someone who could use the item and give it away if I can. I think it is better that someone can get good out of it than it sit around my house as unnecessary clutter. I try and give it to someone who is not around the person who gave me the gift though as I really do not want to hurt the giver's feelings. They were very nice to give me a gift even if I could not use it or did not like it.
1 person likes this
@laken02 (3065)
• United States
9 Apr 12
me and my friend have a good relationship with giving, i give to her everything i dont need and she uses what she can and she give the rest to a home called cedar lake they come to her house once a week and she usualy has stuff as other people give her stuff to, and that way i know im ellping others and no one's feelings gets hurt at all.. im the same way if she gives me stuff.. and i know alot of times what she likes and she keeps most of my stuff as were almost the same size..
so really appreciates it as well..
@honest_efforts100 (1607)
• India
23 Jul 12
Most times we get gifts from loved ones that we have no use for. The question is do you keep them or do you give them away. There are things that can be good keep sakes like jewelry or even a jewelry box even when we don’t use them. However things like blenders and coffee makers are better given away to people who may find them useful.
