“It’s the thought that counts”. Bah Humbug, not always. Used ironing boards? A half-filled bottle of old perfume? Perhaps a gift you gave last year was regifted back to you? You’re not ungrateful, they really are the worst Christmas gifts – and you’re not alone in receiving them.
It’s a battle of worst Christmas gifts…
We asked our Mum Central Facebook community what were the worst Christmas gifts they’ve ever received and the responses you gave us, had us in absolute stitches. They varied from horrifying to funny to brutally honest (there’s a whole lot of re-gifting going on in families!).
Not ungrateful, honestly
Cynical I may be, but I’ve been dealt MANY over the years. In fact, my husband and I don’t exchange gifts anymore because of it. A case of I love you, but please save your money and save my heartache by not panic buying at the newsagent or chemist on Christmas Eve. Some might say I’m ungrateful, but I’d rather just save us both the angst by putting an end to it. So please huz, keep your rose-scented hand cream to yo’self.
Alas, I digress. Join me in a chuckle over the crappy, worst Christmas gifts people have received – the takeaway here is YOU’RE NOT ALONE.
A hot dog warmer, undies and a set of mustards is the tip of the worst gift iceberg
From Avon samples, dishwasher tablets and ALL the mugs to dodgy Secret Santa and Kris Kringle gifts, you folks have received them all. Some of our favourite worst Christmas gifts included:
“Sunscreen and a kids hooded towel. I was 27.”
“Lacy G Strings off my grandma and then have her tell me to show everyone.”
“My husband got me a 15kg washing powder and said how awesome it was because I didn’t have to buy any for 6 months.”
“A mug as my Kris Kringle present… pretty sure it had been used.”
Take a look at the fabulous collated list of dodgy worst gifts below, all of which no one asked for EVER.
Grandparents rank VERY highly as main offenders…
It became abundantly clear that grandparents are some of the main offenders for giving the truly questionable gifts of all. Don’t get us wrong, we love Nan and Pop but their gift-giving can leave A LOT to be desired.
- Hotel toiletries and socks
- Shampoo and conditioner with tape over the reduced price stickers
- Underwear from the op shop
- Second-hand tea towels
- Full brief underwear, three sizes too big. Always.
The practical…
Being on the receiving end of a practical gift that everyone in the family can use, also sucks. Almost as much as the new vacuum cleaner, you just unwrapped.
- Windscreen wipers
- Can crusher
- Cutlery sets
- Pack of three flea bombs
- Step stool
- Can opener
- Food processor
- Clock radio
- Vacuum cleaner
- Bottle opener
- Soap
- A box of toothbrushes
- Laundry basket trolley
- Pegs
- Self-closing toilet seat
- Dishwasher
- Irons, ironing boards and ironing board covers
Gifts from Partners with ‘great ideas’…
It appears there’s plenty of husbands and partners out there with ulterior motives, working on kitting out their shed or otherwise, via Christmas gift-giving. BAD MOVE FELLAS. If you’re thinking of doing this, I have this advice for you – DON’T.
- Leaf blower
- G-strings and various underwear
- Yabbie nets and fishing gear
- Saucepans
- A bucket and car cleaning products. WHAAAAT
Then there are the downright odd gift choices…
From the weird uncle who doesn’t know you AT ALL to the token Kris Kringle gifts that leave you feeling REALLY ripped off, you guys have received them ALL.
- A singing cookie jar
- Scratchies…. already scratched
- Toilet paper
- Crocheted coathangers
- A wheelbarrow
- Paper planes
- A puzzle book with some of the puzzles already done
- A post-it note holder
- Used cosmetics
- KFC sauce sachets
- A can of paint
- Avon samples
- Expired gift cards or gift cards with no money on them #HANDY
Weird gifts from your kids don’t count… yet
Now to be clear, random gifts from your young children don’t count as being the worst gifts. I used to give our children money to buy parents gifts and they LOVED presenting us on Christmas morning with their random boxes of paper clips and other supermarket finds along with a story on why they chose those items. #BLESS #NOTYETACRAPGIFT
What generally DOES count as the worst gift is something that is given without a care or a thought in the world for the person receiving it. And as you can see from the small snippet above, this happens A LOT.
Worst Christmas gifts be gone!
It’s not too late to buy OR SEND A HUGE HINT for a fabulous gift and race to the shops at the very last minute. Check out our extensive range of awesome gift guides here, they’re brimming with brilliant gifts! Worst Christmas gifts, be gone.
1 Comment
As part of a present I have given Avon to an elderly person (not samples) I know uses it and had in fact asked me to get some. Another elderly person loves to receive a large hamper of food she could never afford to buy herself. She gets excited about it, “can’t wait” to see what goodies are in it and apparently tells her friends about it. Her treasures last her a few months. I usually do a carton of groceries (from the kids too). She has to rely on people to do her shopping for her or somebody to take her. She lives in a country town about 4 hours away from us so we can’t visit as often as we would
like to. Many years ago my Mum asked Santa for an electric cake mixer. She did most of the relative’s birthday cakes (usually sponges) and also made icecream which she learnt from her Grandma and Aunties how to make it. It tasted nicer than bought icecream too. My parents always asked each other what they would like as presents, and diplomatically asked other people what they would like. Some didn’t even realise that Mum was asking as she add it in a general conversation. Yes, she asked Santa for an ironing board too. Prior to that she had used a woollen blanket which sheets on the top on a wooden table……………..until my little brother decided to help her while she was in the toilet and switched the iron on, not off. The power point was high up on the wall (table height). “Little darling” pushed a chair over to the power point. She was able to put a “barricade” around the ironing board.