People usually mean well when giving gifts but often we run into situations where the gift received was already owned or simply unwanted by the recipient. A common way of dealing with these situations is to either take it back to the store or regift it later to someone who might be able to use it. Of course there is always the chance that the gift will become  notorious for being regifted.

In my family, during the “Pig Wars”, my mother was given a Babe stuffed pig for Christmas. The next year she gave it to my cousin, who then gave it to me the following year and so on. I believe the pig finally found its forever home with one of my cousins who has children.

After the holiday season, you may be looking at several gifts that you are not sure what to do with. Regifting is something to consider before you throw them out or give them to Charity. Its a good way to save money and find a home for that item that just does not fit in your life.

Before you decide to regift, you will want to ask yourself some questions to determine whether the gift is appropriate for this purpose.

Below are some guidelines to get you started.

Is your gift suitable for regifting?

• Nope:
  • handmade
  • signed or monogrammed
  • customized or personalized
• Yes, regift away:
  • good unopened bottles of wine
  • new unopened items
  • household items
  • jewelry
  • new clothing
  • unopened DVD’s, BluRays
  • unopened CD’s
  • games

What is the overall condition of the gift? If your gift is used or damaged then it is probably best suited for the Goodwill bin,. However, if it is new or in good shape, there is no reason not to pass it on.

Presentation: When regifting, be sure to rewrap the present in new wrapping paper and if you are re-using a gift bag, make sure it is in good condition.

Ultimately, regifting is not a bad idea and a good way to save money, but you want to be sure you know who you received the gift from so that you do not give it back to them! You may also want to only give the gift to people who do not know the original giver, in case they may be offended that you gave their gift away. However, honesty is the best policy and letting people know that their gift is a regift is not necessarily a bad thing. The goal is to find the perfect home for your gift and if your recipient is going to love the gift, does it really matter where it originally came from?

Do you have any regifting stories or ideas? Be sure to share them in the comments. We would love to hear from you!

Madhouse

A star-studded cast highlights this chilling creepfest, marking a decidedly new route for the familiar genre trope of an insane asylum that isn’t quite what it seems. Soon after his arrival, Dr. Clark Stevens (Joshua Leonard, THE CHRONICLES OF RIDDICK: ESCAPE FROM BUTCHER BAY) begins to suspect something amiss at the Cunningham Hall Mental Facility, home to some of the most notorious psychiatric patients in the country. He undertakes an investigation of the hospital’s history with the help of one of the nurses, played by Jordan Ladd (CLUB DREAD), but what they uncover may cost them their lives. The cast also includes Natasha Lyonne (BUT I’M A CHEERLEADER), and Lance Henriksen (HELLRAISER: HELLWORLD).

Last Man on Earth

Last Man On Earth is one of my personal favorites and Vincent Price was a master of Horror. If you have not seen this movie, now is the time. If you want to read the book, I Am Legend by Richard Matheson,  you can compare prices and find it here. Last Man On Earth is about a man who survives a global plague only to be stalked nightly by zombie like victims who call out his name.Vincent Price stars as Robert Morgan, a scientist who tried desperately to come up with a cure for an airborne virus that was killing people around the globe. Although he could not develop a serum in time to save his family, he himself seems to be immune from the disease. Thus, he is left to wander the streets by day, staking zombies, then barricading himself in his house each night as the zombies try to break in and kill him. Price is excellent in the role, going about his horrible business as if it were just another day: waking up and eating breakfast, putting on a suit, calmly staking the zombies, making dinner, listening to records at night. But when he suddenly sees what looks like another living soul out in the daylight, his world is suddenly turned inside out.

Night of the Living Dead

Yes, I know, I said that a Zombie list was coming soon, but i could not resist adding another one of my favorites! I love the Zombie genre and this movie was instrumental in the development of the Zombie craze. Night of the Living Dead was also partly inspired by Richard Matheson’s I Am Legend. Seven people are trapped in an isolated farmhouse and living an unspeakable nightmare. Cannibalistic zombies have been awakened from the dead and are on a relentless killing and eating binge. Re-make of the 1968 George Romero classic.After you watch this movie, I expect you to insert “They’re coming to get you, Barbra!” into your daily conversations. Trust me, it will make you look cool.

Creep

London. Midnight. Unable to find a taxi, model-agency broker Kate (Franka Potente) heads underground. Waiting for the last subway train, she dozes off…and awakens to find everyone else gone. Gripped by panic, Kate realizes she’s locked in. But she is not alone. Lurking in the pitch-black maze is something unimaginable. Something that calls a deranged laboratory home. And something that’s determined to make this subterranean hell Kate’s last stop!

House of Voices

House of Voices tells the chilling story of a woman who discovers the frightening secrets of an abandoned orphanage. Starring Virginie Ledoyen (The Beach), this film brings a terrifying new look at ghost stories, with a twist ending that is sure to shock you!

Silent Night Bloody Night

A man inherits a mansion, which was once a home for psychotic people. He visits the place and begins to investigate several crimes that occurred in the past, which results in making the townspeople very fearful. This movie has been credited as the movie that birthed the modern slasher flick.

Carnival of Souls

Made in 1962 on an extremely low budget, Herk Harvey’s classic CARNIVAL OF SOULS has become legendary for its ability to create a tensely creepy atmosphere with virtually no special effects. A young woman (Candace Hilligoss) is involved in a car crash when her car falls off a bridge while drag racing with some friends. After she pulls herself from the river, she moves to a new town to take a job as a church organist. Meanwhile, a distinctly eerie and hollow-faced man seems to be following her wherever she goes, while an abandoned lakeside amusement park beckons her with an almost gravitational pull. The effective organ score enhances the film to great effect, as do the bleak landscapes of Utah’s salt flats.

REC

REC continues Spain’s stranglehold on the European horror market. A TV journalist and her cameraman think they’re just tagging along on a routine mission for their local fire department, but when they arrive at the apartment building, they discover that something far more dangerous is happening.

Cujo

A friendly St. Bernard named “Cujo” contracts rabies and conducts a reign of terror on a small American town.

Frailty

Steeped in gloomy atmosphere, Frailty locates its horror in the tyranny of religious fanaticism. Bill Paxton’s directorial debut, FRAILTY, has been hailed for its originality by author Stephen King and director Sam Raimi (THE EVIL DEAD). The film opens on a stormy night when an intense man (Matthew McConaughey) walks into FBI headquarters in Dallas and tells Agent Wesley Doyle (Powers Boothe) that he knows who the “God’s Hand” serial killer is. He tells a compelling tale, shown in flashback, of how he and his brother lived with their kind widower father (Bill Paxton), a mechanic. One night, their father woke them to tell them he’d had a vision, and that God had commanded the family to slay demons in human form. The older brother, Fenton (Matt O’Leary), doesn’t believe a word of it, and assumes that their father has gone mad. The younger brother, Adam (Jeremy Sumpter), is more easily swayed. Soon the father is bringing people home, supposedly chosen by God for them to slay. When Fenton tries to resist his father’s plan, he finds his own life in danger.

Leave a comment with your favorite horror movies!