by Lorelle Noble

Created on: September 06, 2008

Etiquette Guide for Holiday Shoppers

I love the holidays. I love the music, the movies, the decorations, the parties, and even the shopping. It truly is a merry time of year. I love to spend an evening at home listening to holiday tunes and wrapping up the perfect gifts that I know will bring a smile to the faces of my family and friends. Choosing a good gift isn't always easy, in fact, for some people it can be down right frustrating. Is it okay to re-gift items you don't want? How nice should a gift really be? What if someone gives you a gift but you weren't planning to get a gift for that person? Let the suggestions below serve as your etiquette guide to keep you from making a major mess this season.

Everyone should be familiar with the concept of re-gifting. Most people have tried it once or twice. Re-gifting is the act of taking a gift that was previously given to you and giving it away to someone else. If you are going to be a re-gifter, know that certain rules apply. (1) The other person must have a true need for the gift. It should be something that you know that person wants or needs that you would be willing to purchase in a store if you were out shopping for that gift. Re-gifting a spare mp3 player to a teenaged child who doesn't have one is great. Re-gifting a set of coffee mugs that you received through an office Secret Santa is not so great. (2) The gift should be new, never used, and still in its original packaging. Don't try to clean up old items or like-new items. If it's not actually new, don't give it away under the assumption that it is. (3) The gift must not only be new, but current. You don't want to re-gift a brand new but 10-year old model of a portable CD player. The only exception to the new and current rule is if you have a vintage item that someone you know would actually want. (4) You must re-wrap your gift. Please also check the original packaging carefully to ensure that a card addressed to you was not slipped into the side of the box. If that happens, there really is no easy way to explain yourself. If you stick to these four rules on re-gifting, you will still be choosing gifts for the right reasonto make someone feel good.

Choose quality gifts for each person on your list. Quality doesn't have to equal expensive. A gift becomes quality when it is well-made and right for the recipient. People can tell when you waited until the last minute to grab something and really, at that point, can you even call it a gift? Make a list ahead

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