Hey everyone, this is the Gift Whisperer checking in. Believe it or not, I have received my first question and its a doozie! JoAnn used our Question Submission Form to submit the following question: Is regifting an acceptable gift giving practice? I often receive gifts that are quite lovely, but they just won’t work for me. Rather than go to the trouble of returning them (and also risk offending the giver), I would just as soon regift them. Is this OK to do?

I was expecting a softball question for my first one but I guess I’m jumping right in with both feet!  ReGifting has been going on for as long as gifts have been given.  It was really brought into mainsteam vernacular on a hysterical episode of Seinfeld called The Label Maker.  In it, Elaine calls Tim Whatley a regifter after he gives her an underperforming label maker that he had received as a gift from Jerry Seinfeld.  Of course, hilarity ensues, making this an all time classic sitcom.

I digress, back to the issue at hand.   ReGifting is an often debated practice and, as such, there is no real right or wrong answer.  All I can do is give you my opinion.  I think my thoughts on thsi probably goes against popular opinion.  In short, I’m all for regifting, with a few stipulations.

1) The gift in question must be a quality gift that just will not work for you for one reason or another.  Examples here include clothing in the wrong size,  gifts that won’t work for you due to lifestyle choice (a liquor flask for a tee-totaler or a meatloaf dish for a vegan), or a gift in a style that is just not your style (a southwest themed piece of artwork for your art deco themed apartment).

2) The regift recipient must be part of a totally different cross section of your social life.  For example, you cannot regift a sweater from your mother-in-law to your sister-in-law.  In other words, there has to be no chance that you can get “busted” regifting.  Tim Whatley should have known that Jerry and Elaine were friends and never even thought about giving here the label maker.

3)You must include a gift receipt.  This is a tough one and may prevent you from regifting many items.  It also makes sure that regifting is held to a higher standard. It insures that you are regifting because you think that the gift in question will make a great gift for someone else, not because you are stuck with it.  Insuring that you regift with a gift receipt is a way to self-police the whole regifting industry!

4) The fourth and final stipulation is one that should be obvious.  The regift needs to be in mint gift giving condition.  All tags should be on it, it should not be used and it should be packaged beautifully.  We are not, under any circumstances, regifting used or damaged merchandice.

So there you have it, my thoughts on regifting with some helpful (I hope) advice for JoAnn and any other potential regifts out there.  I welcome your thoughts on regifting in the comments section below.  I’m always open to other opinions and perhaps even changing mine.

-Pete

We’d like to give a big welcome to the newest member of our staff, the Gift Whisperer. The Gift Whisperer has come on board with us to answer your toughest gift giving questions. You’re going to be hearing more about the Gift Whisperer in the coming weeks but we want to give you, our loyal blog readers, the first introduction.

We all know that giving gifts can be a nerve racking, anxiety inducing experience. You want to get just the right gift without spending too much or too little, without giving the wrong message but making sure you give the right message and all without spending a ton of time!

Well, I’m sorry, but we can’t solve this problem for you completely. But we can help! Go to our Question Submission Page and submit your gift giving questions to our Gift Whisperer. He will answer your question within 24 hours right here on our blog. You’ll get the answers you need and, hopefully, one of our readers that may have the same question will get some help they didn’t plan on too!  So go to our Gift Whisperer Question Submission Page and ask the Gift Whisperer your toughest gift giving questions!

-Pete

So we just issued a press release about our Groomsman’s Survival Kit.  This is a really unique gift idea that incorporates all the activities a typical groomsman may partake in on his buddies wedding day.  It includes a flask, a cigar holder, a cigar cutter and is packaged in a case that doubles as a wallet (so if the party continues on at a local establishment, you’ll have your ID, credit cards and a few dollars!).  Like I said, as a groomsman on your buddies wedding day, your main activities will be drinking (thank you flask), cigar smoking (thank you cigar holder and cutter) and making sure the party continues on until dawn (thank you holder/wallet).

Like I said, we have issued a press release which you can find here:  Groomsmen Gifts Alert: The Groomsmen Survival Kit Has Arrived .  We want to get the word out about this unique gift and we’re hoping this will help do the trick.  You can help too, just tell every single groom-to-be about this gift idea (you can’t know too many!).

-Pete

I found this interesteing article in the Vancouver Sun detailing wedding etiquette for modern times.  The inspiration for the article seems to be a 22 page etiquette guide that was issued to all attendants of the Royal Wedding.  Please don’t ask, “which royal wedding?”    Apparently royal wedding etiquette, along with commoners wedding etiquette,  has evolved to reflect modern times.

While the article doesn’t address our particular area of interest, personalized groomsmen gifts, there is plenty of information here that you may actually find useful.  From knowing how long you have to send a gift, to the proper attire to wear, there is a lot covered.  I hope you enjoy the article and would love to hear your thoughts on it below.

-Pete

I’m not sure what to feel about this product. I just stumbled upon this review of an iPad 2 case made of kangaroo leather.  Yes, kangaroo leather.  The reviewer is unsure of how to feel about the use of kangaroo leather as well, though according to the products creator, kangaroo leather is among the finest in the world.  It is lightweight and durable.  Still, kangaroo’s are cuddly, lovable animals.  Right?

Not so,  down under people know that you don’t try and approach a kangaroo for any reason.  If you try and cozy up to one, he or she is very likely to attack you.  I am so glad that I came across this review.  Had I not, and ever found myself in the outback, I surely would have approached the first kangaroo I saw!

Back to the iPad case.  It seems to get very good reviews.  As I said, the leather is light, yet strong.  It has a bevy of features, including easy access to charging ports, iPad buttons, and the  camera.  There is a built-in kangaroo leather business card holder and a handy folding lap-stand.  Also included is Aranez Leather Conditioner and a micro-fiber cleaning kit.  Not bad for the $199 price tag.

Anyway, I’d love to know your thoughts on this iPad case and, more importantly, how you feel about kangaroo leather!

-Pete

I came across this article in the Globe Gazette about a special Father’s Day gift that David Snyder of Clear Lake, Iowa received this year.  It was a tooth shaped sculpture that his daughter, Melanie Kay Snyder, made for him to use as a lapel pin or a tie tack.  The reason this particular gift is so special is becuase Melanie passed away 17 years ago after fighting a long battle with leukemia.

Melanie was an 18 year old college freshman at Cornell College in Iowa when she succumbed to her disease.  Before this, she was a  student at Clear Lake high school with many interests, including art.  She was a student in a talented and gift art program run by Anne Denney.  Melanie decided one of her projects would be to create a sculpture of a tooth for her father who ran, and still runs, a dental laboratory.  She figured he could use the small sculpture for a lapel pin or a tie tack.  The gift never got delivered, until this past father’s day that is.

Anne, who now lives in Kentucky, was back in Iowa to help clear out her mother’s home.  She found the unique sculpture and immediately know that she must deliver it to Mr. Snyder. It just so happened to turn out that the delivery was made on Father’s Day.  When he opened his Father’s Day delivery, Mr Snyder said “Oh my.  That’s great. In fact, it’s about as good as it gets. And on Father’s Day, too.” I thought this was a great, heartwarming story to share on Father’s Day.

-Pete

Well, I’m not the biggest follower of pop culture but when it collides with sports, count me in! When we’re throwing groomsmen gift into the mix, look out! It looks like the wedding of reality star Kim Kardashian and basketball star Kris Humphries is imminent. Kris, along with his groomsmen (and future brother-in-laws) Lamar Odom and Scott Disik have visited upscale men’s clothing shop Ermenegildo Zenga to get fitted for some tuxedos. You can read all of the nitty gritty details at Hollywood Life.  The image showing Kim and Kris walking down the street makes taking a look worth it all be itself (she is tiny and he is massive).  I digress though, what  I’m more interested in is the groomsmen gifts Kris might be getting the men in his wedding party.

What does a basketball superstar get for the guys that are standing up with him and for him on his big day?  Well, I’m sure the members of this wedding party are well off, and sports lovers, so here are a few ideas:

1) Money Clips and/or Wallets.  No doubth these are a bunch of fairly wealthy men.   Some type of vessel to hold their cash will no doubt come in handy!

2) NJ Nets games tickets.  Getting tickets to a sporting event is a big trend with groomsmen gifts.  If the groom in this case is going to go this route, why not have all the groomsmen come see him play!  He can cover all the expenses.

3) Barbecue Accessories.  No real tie in here to this particular wedding between Kris and Kim.  BBQ accessories are just cool.

4)Personalized Cufflinks.  Engraved cufflinks are a great gift for any guy.  You can add each groomsmen’s initials so they can wear anytime they need formal wear.

5) Personalized NBA themed barware.  From flasks, to mugs to cocktail shakers, there are a ton of cool items out there.  He can get all the groomsmen Net’s themed items except for Lamar Odom.  He would, of course, get him LA Lakers themed barware!

I don’t want to go too crazy here, I think that the above list is a good starting point.  I’m sure Mr. Humphries has some ideas of his own too.  What about you?  Any advice for groomsmen gifts for Kris Humphries?

-Pete

I found a very cool article with some unique gift recommendations on a site called Trib Local.  The title of the article is: More is More Mom, Gift Ideas for Dear Old Dad… and I don’t just like it because they recommend many gift items that we carry at Executive Gift Shoppe.  I mainly like it for that reason but that’s not the only reason!

Some of the gift ideas include cufflinks, wallets and money clips,  hard cover books (a great gift in the age of the kindle, these are almost like novelties now!), BBQ accessories and leather desk items.  Like I said, many of these fall right into our wheelhouse, which is probably why I consider the writer of this article a genius!

-Pete

I found a couple of interesting news items showcasing the Swiss Army Knife design being used for other things.  The first news item is in the form of a post over at Gizmodo and it highlights a product called the Eatensil.  The writer, Adrian Covert,  doesn’t seem to be too crazy about this unique item, or really see the value in it at all.  I have to say, even though I’m a lover of any and all types of Swiss Army Knives, that I agree completely.  I mean, there’s a pizza cutter on this thing.  A pizza cutter!  While you could possibly argue that the rest of the utensils (a spoon, fork, knife, chopsticks, bottle opener and a wooden chip fork) might be of some value on a picnic, there really aren’t too many situations you’ll find yourself in food-wise where you won’t have access to any/all of the tools on the Eatensil.

The sec0nd Swiss Army Knife themed item that has nothing to with a Swiss Army Knife is the Swiss Army Bike.   The reviews on  this item seem to be a little better, at least in The Sun, where this article is published.    Andre Marcel and Eric Collombin took 5 years to design this folding bike that has a top speed of 15 miles per hour.  They say that they didn’t set out to replicate the Swiss Army Knife, but after completing their design, saw the obvious similarities.   Marcel and Collombin’s company, Voltitude, already has 1000 orders for the Swiss Army Bike.

What do you think of these 2 items?  Do you like them, dislike the or have absolutely no feeling one way or the other?

-Pete

Its great to see the new Zippo Hand Warmer getting some love over at Geek Alerts. You can see their review on it HERE.   I have to agree with the review completely, this new product from Zippo, Inc. is a massive improvement on traditional hand warmers in every way:

• It is much more powerful, providing 10 times as much heat as then hand warmers we put in our mittens growing up.

• Zippo’s hand warmer lasts up to 12 hours – much, much longer than any other hand warmers out there.

• It is refillable with Zippo lighter fluid, which makes it convenient, economically prudent and environmentally friendly.

• It’s thin size is perfect for holding conveniently in your hand or in your pocket.

• Best of all, it’s made by Zippo, so you know it is built to last.
  
  

  What do you think of Zippo’s new hand warmer?

  -Pete

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  • Tags: Personalized Gifts, zippo, Zippo Hand Warmer