Tips For Gifting Preloved Gifts.
Sadly our love of giving presents, with all the best intentions, often results in a lot of waste. It is thought that last Christmas resulted in £42 Million of unwanted Christmas presents and 114,00 tonnes of plastic packaging sent to landfill rather than being recycled. With stats such as these, there is no doubt that shopping and gifting secondhand is something to be encouraged and thankfully it is increasing in popularity and becoming more acceptable. (You may also want to read my blog post on Why It’s Now Socially Acceptable to Give Preloved Presents).
By reusing items, we reduce the demand for new products and the resources needed to create them. This means fewer greenhouse gas emissions from manufacturing, transportation, and disposal of unwanted items. In addition, it helps to reduce the amount of waste that goes into landfills and reduces pollution.
In recent years, there has been a growing awareness of the need to reduce waste and the impact of consumerism on the environment. As a result, many people are seeking alternative ways to shop and gift that align with their values. This is driving the growth of our circular economy, which offers the added benefit of supporting charities and small businesses.
Far from being a ‘cheap’ option, preloved items can be unique and one of a kind. ‘Vintage’ is now viewed as trendy and often seen as a great option for sourcing something unique and personal. Trawling charity shops or car boot sales searching for ‘treasure’ has become an enjoyable pastime for many and the sheer joy of finding something you love amongst assorted jumble of items is far greater than walking into a high street shop and picking something from a well filled shelf. If you don’t have the time to go to car boot sales or search your local charity shops, you may want to try Rumage, which searches all your favourite marketplaces at once and you can even add a location filter to find sellers near you so you can save on the postage.
While giving preloved presents is becoming a little less niche, it is still not the norm and not everyone feels totally comfortable about it. So, if you are going to embrace it, I would encourage you to keep in mind my ‘etiquette’ suggestions below:
- Honesty. Be upfront about where your gift came from, don’t try to pass it off as new. My Preloved Presents wrapping paper is great for this; designed to make it clear that the present is preloved, while highlighting the benefits of this, so everyone feels good about it.
- Quality. Make sure it is good quality and in good condition; it’s also worth giving the present a wash before you gift it.
- Thoughtful. Put some thought into the gift selection and choose something you genuinely believe the recipient will love.
- Mix it up. If you aren’t feeling totally comfortable about gifting preloved or you aren’t sure how the recipient will feel about it, then consider pairing a preloved present with a new one, such as a new princess book with a matching preloved princess dress.
- Personalise: Adding a personal touch to a preloved present can make the gift feel more thoughtful and special, whether its a handwritten note, customised wrapping paper or perhaps you’ve upcycled the gift and added the recipients name.
- Practical. Some items are less suitable for gifting preloved, such as underwear, swimwear and makeup.
- Wrap with care. Beautifully wrapping your preloved present can help to make it seem more special and more valued, making it more of a vintage treasure than a charity shop bargain. Why not try my Preloved Presents wrapping paper, designed to make gifting preloved a little less awkward.
Gifting preloved presents is a great way to reduce waste and find unique and one-of-a-kind gifts that can be loved again and again. I’ve found some amazing princess costumes for my daughter on Vinted and because they are so much cheaper than buying new, she has ended up with a pretty good selection of them, which has given us countless hours of entertainment. All her costumes have been carefully chosen with her in mind, washed and beautifully wrapped and she couldn’t have been happier!
