Getting Rid of Unwanted Christmas Gifts

Long before an episode of the popular sitcom Seinfeld made the term "re-gifting" common, people played a Christmas game named White Elephant Gift Exchange. The premise of the game is that each guest arrives to the party with a wrapped gift, and ultimately each guest leaves with a different gift, not necessarily intended for them. A re-gift is a present you've received for Christmas, have determined you don't want, and then you rewrap it and give it to someone else.

The trick is to make sure that the unwanted gift doesn't wind up back with the original giver. Many years ago I gave my Grandma a lovely pocketbook for Christmas. When I received the same pocketbook for Christmas a few years later from Grandma, I feigned surprise when I opened the package in front of her. Then there was the time I received a hideous ceramic clock the size of a large dog from my ex-husband. I eventually knocked it to the floor where it shattered into pieces, declaring that it was an accident—reminiscent of the leg lamp in A Christmas Story.

Just what do you do with unwanted Christmas gifts? With a little ingenuity, you can get rid of unwanted Christmas presents. Here are some tips to answer that age-old dilemma:

• Donate. Donate unwanted gifts to charity. Contact your local Salvation Army Store or Amvets chapter and ask if they will come to your home to pick up items or if you need to drop them off.
• Re-gift. If you do decide to re-gift, make sure that you are giving the present to someone who doesn't know the original gift-giver. Always rewrap the gift in a different wrap.
• Special occasions. Use birthdays, anniversaries, graduations, and other special events as an occasion to give away unwanted presents.
• Remove identifying marks. Keep gifts in their original packaging, remove price tags, and all personalization. Check books for inscriptions before donating them or giving them away. Never re-gift a personalized article of clothing.
• Sell. Sell unwanted gifts on eBay, craigslist, or at a yard sale.
• Keep track. Always make a list of unwanted gifts and the name of the person who gave it to you. It would be tacky to allow the giver to receive the gift he gave to you several years earlier.

Whether you donate, sell, or re-gift the items, always take care not to offend the giver of the gift. If you've received a gift from dear old Aunt Sally, and if she visits once a year expecting to see the what-not upon your shelf, it might behoove you to keep the gift and take it from storage when you know that she will visit. That way, you won't offend her during the visit and you can put it away once she leaves so the item won't offend you!