Xmas rules: How to react if you receive a gift that you really Hate!?

You simply say, "Thank you."

The polite thing to do is thank the person, and say, "this will go perfectly with my ______ collection! It's PERFECT! how did you know?"

I say: What the Fork were you thinking? I don't wear men's clothes...

I throw the gift on the ground & kick it like a football, then say "What else ya got?".

I would never hurt someone's feelings for missing the mark on a gift. I say thank you then put it away. If it's clothes that I can return, I might tell them it doesn't fit. But anything else, I just keep until I can find a way to gracefully get rid of it.

How can you return something if you don't have the receipt? And who the heck wraps the receipt with the gift? 'You only spent $9.42!!?? Didn't our little getaway to Aspen mean nothing to you!!??' ... sound of *slapping*! ..... I rest my case .

I remember twice buying what I thought were nice gifts for people and they were WAY up front about not liking them. Ugh. I still feel weird about their reactions. Unless you were raised by wolves you take the gift and thank them.

Later you can use it in a Voodoo ritual if you want, just don't let them know.

I'm very polite, and always say thank you when I receive a gift, even if I don't like it lol If I want to complain later about it, that's why god invented Facebook and Twitter haha

I tend to find a good point about the gift and highlight that. (Even though I might be hating it on the inside). eg, 'What an incredible colour!', 'This jumper should really keep me warm in winter, thanks for using high-grade fisherman's wool!', 'I have just the use for this!'.

It doesn't take much to spare people's feelings. However, with the more heavy-duty relatives, I tend to be pretty direct, sometimes even slightly insulting. Ah, families!

I just say thank you. Even if it's a lump of coal. Life's too short.

Buy presents for children, certainly, but there's really no reason why adults should expect anything more than token gifts. This relentless Christmas consumer frenzy just leads to an atmosphere where the act of buying presents becomes a chore or a reluctant duty instead of being a genuine display of affection.

I say let all Christmas gifts be recycled. Think of the ecological benefits. Besides, it would be fun to see how many degrees of separation it takes to get your own present back.

We used to have "White Elephant" exchanges. Every gift must be something you already own and are willing to part with. The gifts were often gag gifts and we got a lot of laughs from some of them. The trick was to give something useful, yet hilarious considering the receiver's personality.

Of course, you should always be gracious when receiving a gift...

But - you can also learn much from one that is way off the mark, especially when it comes from someone you thought you knew, and who you thought knew you...

Sometimes it shows a lot of thought went into the selection...and sometimes it looks like they got it with none at all...And if it is a casual acquaintance, you never know...

But while on the subject - has anyone else had to play those office xmas party games where someone can take your present if they want - and you have to pick another one, on the off-chance you will get a better one - even if you like the one you have? :confused: and you're supposed to be gracious about it? (after all, it's all in fun?)

Most people won't be honest and tell you that they think your gift sucks. LOL
This is exactly why I get people gift cards and money. This way they can go buy
whatever they want and we both can TRULY smile

'It is the THOUGHT that counts' and so even if you hate it, thank the person sincerely for the thought - and then ditch it -

I have a whole box of brand new things I can give as gifts and many of them were given to me as gifts or 'free gifts' when I bought something - Technically they are 'the gift that keeps on giving'. They can keep on keeping on as long as nobody ever likes them.

The funny thing though is keeping track - I have given my mother the same gift she gave me the year before - not realizing - Thank God she is too senile now to know the difference -

She has given me some beautiful things over the years, but also tons of things that I couldn't use - when I really needed help it would always be the wrong size and I suspect bought on sale so she couldn't exchange it - I would just never hear anything about it again so I guess she just gave it to somebody else.

Interesting sidebar - I read somewhere (please don't ask me to find it but I swear) that there are thousands of dollars in 'gift cards' that are never redeemed - I wonder why that is. I like getting them because so many gifts are 'wrong' and this way you get what you really want - I don't agree that it says 'I couldn't be bothered'). It says I really want you to have something you want.

Dan - on Starbucks gift cards - if you get one - you know they have CDs, bakery and sandwiches? - in addition to coffee and tea? Make it work!

When I got a Starbucks gift card, I afforded all those expensive $5 fancy coffee drinks for a very long time - I can't stand their regular coffee - except they have a new one that is vanilla beans - no sugar - finally!

Just pretend you like it. It's not hard to be polite when you need to be.

I remember being drilled each Xmas as a kid to look excited as some distant relatives bought my brother and I a paper Xmas decoration every year as our joint present from the age of 6.
Remember it's the thought that counts.

If someone cares enough about me to take the time to buy a gift, I appreciate the gesture by thanking them. I try to look enthusiastic about it, even if I hate it. It would be very rude for me to act any other way as I would hate to hurt their feelings.

I guess I am like Terra as I also believe in 'doing unto others as you would have them do unto you.' For me, that goes for a lot of things in life, not just gifts. Of course, there are those people that don't care how they treat others, but that is another issue entirely which is best left for another thread, some other day.