In defense of gift certificates

[Piratelvr1121]

I love gift cards and for a long time used to give my brother an iTunes card so he could get anything he wanted since I wasn't sure what music he had and didn't have.   My mil asked me last year what I'd like and I said an Amazon gift card for books and I got a check instead which was fine with me as it was a nice amount.  And this year I mentioned pj's and she couldn't find the ones I liked but instead got me a pair with Minnie Mouse and a pair with gray pants that had black crossbones. She knew they weren't what I asked for but couldn't find what I had wanted but instead of getting me a gift card she just bought others.  I liked the pirate ones (naturally) but wasn't too crazy about the Minnie Mouse pj's. 

I returned them today and got a gc for the amount she spent on Minnie Mouse and the Angry Birds pj's she bought DH.

[siamesecat2965]

My grandmother got me a GC to a local butcher.  Sounds weird, right?  But she knows that they have awesome cuts of meat that I won't buy because they're too expensive (I shop there for our meat every other week, but only buy the basics - roasts and such, forgoing the steaks because of the price).  So she got me a GC for it and the look on my face was  because I was so excited.

So I was able to get a couple steak and a ham.  Now my mouth is watering over the ham and I can't make it for a few more days!   

Not at all! I'd love a gc to any type of fancy gourmet store. butcher, or otherwise.  i'd be thrilled.  then again, my grandfather was a butcher, so i'm a  bit spoiled in that respect.

[Jelaza]

I usually only buy presents for my nieces and nephews and my mom, but this year, I got GCs to a nice restaurant for all my siblings and their SOs that were at Christmas.  "Here, I got you two a date!"

[happygrrl]

Another lover of the gift card. Love them, love them, love them! I got a $50 to Sephora, and a $50 to TJMaxx for Christmas, and I can hardly wait!! I enjoy the whole "I don't know exactly what I want, so I get to wander the whole store looking for it" thing.
Love!

[pearls n purls]

I've been complaining about needing new make-up for a while now.  My DH gave me a $50 gift card to Sephora because now I have to use it to buy make-up.  The money's already spent, so I don't need to feel guilty about getting something.  (He also got me non-gc presents.)

[LadyJaneinMD]

My father is blind and can't shop anymore, so he gets gift cards.  I love them.  In addition, I got other gift cards from other people, so I'm sitting on $100 in gift cards this week.

I also have a medication to refill that'll cost $70 in copays.  Merry Christmas to me! I'm getting drugs!

[gramma dishes]

...    Merry Christmas to me! I'm getting drugs!

 

Now THAT'S a sentence I never expected to see on Ehell!! 

[123Sandy]

Why people hate gift cards...

This year I got one with no value written on it and it's for a shop that's over 100 miles away.

[magicdomino]

Why people hate gift cards...

This year I got one with no value written on it and it's for a shop that's over 100 miles away.

Do they have an on-line site?

[siamesecat2965]

Why people hate gift cards...

This year I got one with no value written on it and it's for a shop that's over 100 miles away.

Ugh, I'm sorry you got that.  I also got one this year, from a friend, to a movie theater chain that isn't near where I live.  It is, however, near my cousins and my mom, so i can either give it to one of them, or use it when I visit.

[lady_disdain]

My father is blind and can't shop anymore, so he gets gift cards.  I love them.  In addition, I got other gift cards from other people, so I'm sitting on $100 in gift cards this week.

Do you mean "he gives gift cards"? Otherwise, I don't understand the logic.

[Rohanna]

Why people hate gift cards...

This year I got one with no value written on it and it's for a shop that's over 100 miles away.

What about a site like giftcards.com and swap it for something else? There should also be a phone number to the store on the back (or online) that you can call and check the balance. plasticjungle.com has a section that helps you check card balances.

[TylerBelle]

I too am a lover of the gift card. If the stores are quite a distance away, I hope your cards can be used online. That's what I did with a 'Vanilla Visa' I got once. Also the cards sometime come in interesting shapes, like I've got one I've kept that's shaped like a cut-out of a candy cane. 

[123Sandy]

Why people hate gift cards...

This year I got one with no value written on it and it's for a shop that's over 100 miles away.

What about a site like giftcards.com and swap it for something else? There should also be a phone number to the store on the back (or online) that you can call and check the balance. plasticjungle.com has a section that helps you check card balances.

Thank you so much for that. I had no idea those sites existed. 

[Shea]

I adore gift certificates. This year I got one for a local quilt store, which was perfect because a good friend of mine is getting married and I want to make her a quilt for her wedding present. I also got something like $100 in Amazon gift cards. I'm drooling at the thought of how many books I can get!