By Rachel Rnoh

You frantically tear open the wrapping paper, excited to see what goodness lies inside that box. And then, you see the gift. “Ew! You got me socks” is probably what you are thinking in your head. Instead, you are probably going to just forcefully show your teeth and say thank you.

We’ve all received a bad gift at least once in our lives, such as some really out of date pants, ugly sweater, or a gift card to some random store that we would have never even thought of going to. But how are we supposed to respond to horrific gifts? As much as we may want to just cry, or tell the person to take it back and bring back another one, that would be just rude and heartless.

So what do we do?

Well if you’re lucky, the person has sent the gift but is not actually present to see you open it in front of the crowd. All you have to do is just politely acknowledge the gift and move on. You’re off the hook until the thank you letter.

But that might not be the case. Most likely, the person who is giving you the gift will be there to see you open it and you are obliged to act politely. So, here are a couple of advices on how to react to a bad present.

  Tip number 1. Just state what the gift is. “Wow! It’s face roller…” And then, you might want think of something to say about the gift. The compliment does not have to be grand. Just think of one nice thing to say: “Thank you, I’ve never had one of these before,” “Wow, this is so unique. It looks interesting” Or you can just go with, “This is so nice of you.”

Tip number 2. If you don’t know what the gift is, think of an adjective to describe it. Simply state what you see: “This color is so pretty,” “This is such a cool thing that I’ve never seen before.” Just make sure to never have a confused look on your face when you see an alien present.

Tip number 3. If the person asks you if you really like it, it’s probably wise to just say yes. “It’s very thoughtful of you” should suffice and just give them a hug.

Now, what exactly do you do with this gift? Well, once some time has passed, you may want to just get rid of the gift by donating it, returning it, or exchanging it for something you would really like. Of course, you can always regift it for someone else or save it as an emergency present for the future. However, keep in mind that you would know how the person feels when they receive a bad gift.