National Re-Gifting Day
There is really a national day that celebrates re-gifting and the date is before Christmas. To be specific, it’s always celebrated the Thursday before Christmas. I would have thought this national day would be after Christmas so that we could celebrate all of the presents that we receive that we are not going to use.
But before I dive into the topic of re-gifting, I need help with something. When we receive a gift and the gift receipt is attached, it usually means that the person who is giving the gift is perfectly fine with us exchanging it for something we want. The reason I bring this up is because I am trying to figure out the best way to teach my kids. On one hand, this is when a little white lie is often used to spare feelings. On the other hand, if I say that little white lies are ok for sparing feelings am I teaching them to be fake? So I’m taking an unofficial poll. Do you:
A) Exchange it and tell the gift giver what you got instead.
B) Say thank you for the gift and exchange it privately.
C) “Marie Kondo” it - she opens the gift and uses it no matter what to see if it sparks joy. If not, she gives it away as is or tosses it.
D) Say thank you but then re-gift it to someone else
On March 21, 2017 I wrote a post entitled Re-Gifting and I shared a few mistakes that I made when I re-gifted. I was curious about this national day so I logged onto Nationaldaycalendar.com to learn about it. Here’s what I found out:
Bill Ritter Jr, the Colorado governor, made National Re-gifting Day official in 2008.
The site offers a link called 8 Tips Every Re-Gifter Should Know and it is fantastic!
The site answers the FAQ - is re-gifting tasteless?
The site lists some great gifts items that could be re-gifted.
Lastly - the site lists three ways to make the experience of re-gifting better.
“Pair the item with a gift card.
Create a culture in your family where regifting is acceptable. Agree that the gifts must be handmade, repurposed, or regifted.
Pair the gift with baked goods.”
I really like the idea of re-gifting because I’ve been on a big “reduce, recycle, re-use” kick these days. I think it’s totally appropriate to save gas, time, money and ideas if the situation is right. This national day, National Re-Gifting Day, is the bomb! I love it. The three suggestions above for making the experience of re-gifting better is right up my “thoughtful pinch” alley.
Pairing whatever the item that is being re-gifted with a gift card is something that I have done in the past and didn’t really think much about it until I read that it was suggestion on nationaldaycalendar.com. Basically by pairing the re-gift with a gift card, we are ensuring that the gift as a whole is really thoughtful. Pairing accomplishes two important things: 1. We don’t have to hold onto something that we won’t use and 2. The re-gift is not the center of attention, it’s a package deal. The items compliment each other. The re-gift, along with the gift card, no matter how little or expensive it is, becomes simultaneously significant and equal to the gift card. In other words, alone the re-gift can be a pinch that is good but together with a gift card it helps the gift card become a better gift as well.
Here are some examples of gifts you that may have received but need to re-gift:
Kitchen towels (you have so many). Pair the towels with a gift card to Sur la Table or Crate and Barrel for a whole “kitchen” theme.
Slippers (you prefer to wear socks around the house). Pair it with a gift card to a pedicure.
Wallet (the style is not something you would use). Pair it with a gift card to anywhere.
Coffee mug (you love paper cups better). Pair it with a local coffee venue to support local businesses.
Creating a culture within our village in which re-gifting is not only acceptable but encouraged is also a “thoughtful pinch” way of thinking. I know a coach’s wife who enjoys throwing a pajama gift exchange party at her home during the holidays. Her rule is that the gift for the exchange cannot be something that was shopped for. Meaning it has to be something that is already in your home. She is thoughtful because she knows how crazy our lives are - the last thing she wants is to add another “to-do” by shopping for a gift. I LOVE that rule and I bet all of the wives appreciate it too. We all have plenty. Finding something that someone else would also like and use and giving it away is liberating. Thoughtful pinches are meant to be small gestures and what makes me love this culture for exchanging gifts is that no one has to try to “Top Off” anyone. There is no “Keeping up with the Jones’.” We are open to receiving things that someone wants to share with others. If I ever throw a holiday gift exchange or maybe I will throw a “Spring Cleaning” party, I will incorporate re-gifting.
As for the advice to pair re-gifts with baked goods - I agree; this advice is spot on! There is nothing sweeter than homemade baked goods. It’s like a warm hug that money can’t buy. The giving and the receiving of baked goods is such a win-win. Homemade baked goods is the answer I tell people when they need a gift idea for someone who has everything. So when I read pairing with baked goods was a way to re-gift, I began to imagine how the pairings would look using the same examples as above.
Kitchen towels - wrap some homemade bread in waxed paper, use the kitchen towel to wrap the whole thing and tie a bow around it. The card could read: You’re the best thing since sliced bread.
Slippers - place some brownies in a Ziplock bag and “slip” them inside the slippers. The card can read: Hope you get a chance to slip away to enjoy these!
Wallet - make cookie dough and place it in an air-tight container. Add the wallet on top and tie a bow to keep both items together. The card can read: Thought you could use a little dough these days.
Coffee Mug - stack some chocolate chip cookies inside and wrap with cellophane. The card can read: Hope your cup runneth over with sweetness!
More ways that baked goods can add a little bit to a re-gift are:
Re-use a basket to fill with the lotions, soaps or any other beauty products that you won’t use and then add something baked. It’s now a basket full of “self-care” items.
After you received flowers in a cool vase, run it thru the dishwasher and fill it with cookies.
A purse that you won’t use - you can put a little something sweet inside it to sweeten the re-gift.
Books are perfect gifts to go with baked goods.
Alcohol and baked goods go great together too.
Special items, like a piece of jewelry that you want to pass along to someone could be enhanced with a homemade treat.
Clothing items that will be re-gifted could pair nicely with a cake or pie. Be creative!
National Re-gifting Day this year falls on December 23rd. You may already have all of your gifts for all of your peeps so this post may be too late. But on that date, consider doing a little treasure hunting around the house and collecting items that you want to re-gift. After the holidays there are plenty of occasions to re-gift. The next “giving” holiday is Valentine’s Day so you can put it aside and give it on that day. Birthdays, Get Well, Sympathy - these are occasions that could use a re-gift pinch. Or better yet, look thru the National Day Calendar for National Hat Day (or fill in the blank) and give away the hat (or whatever) that you received a year ago that you won’t use and give it away to celebrate that national day. So fun!
No matter how you answered the poll above - you may have even answered E) All of the Above (which wasn’t an option) - here’s hoping that you can enjoy a little re-gifting before Christmas!
Pinches,
Barb
