unwanted gifts

I have a Kenneth Cole watch gifted to me by my in-laws at our engagement party. Its HUGE on my wrist, ugly and I hate designer brand watches. Cheap Miyota quartz movement inside of it, obviously. 

Anyways, I wore it once out of respect for them but I'm stuck with it now and I'll never wear the thing ever again 🤷🏻‍♂️

It’s the thought that counts. Most people know not to gift me a watch unless I’ve dropped a MASSIVE hint. 
The only obscure watch I’ve had gifted to me was a Holzkern by my significant other - but it has a Kona Wood case and Basalt dial which are important for a number of reasons, so it’s genuinely something I wear. The logo text on the glass is not very legible against the basalt so it may as well be sterile.

I was given a Breil watch a few years ago( probably more than 12 years ago) by my wife who liked it and knew I liked to support Valentino Rossi who was sponsored by the brand at the time.

So as a gift I appreciate it in those terms even though it isn't my usual style or something I would have chosen. It's the thought behind it that makes it special I guess. It doesn't get worn very often if ever these days though.

Not sure if this Italian fashion brand is even still in business tbh?

That's a tough one. Wear it at family gatherings and similar occasions? But that bears the risk that you will receive more watches like that in the future. I think you will just have to be honest.

This whole marketing approach of these shopping channels is rather intriguing, as the offerings seem to be very targeted, quite in contrast to the regular market for watches, which is looking for a broader appeal.

"The perfect gift is something they wouldn't get for themselves."

I always read that as buy a gift the receiver wouldn't normally splurge for. Apparently your families read it differently.

Twenty something years ago my sister-in-law worked for Fossil. I could always expect a Fossil for Christmas or my birthday. I knew that these watches were practically free to her, but I didn't have the income to buy anything better.  They were an upgrade for me.

The only one that I remember was a green dial "diver" with a fixed gold-tone bezel. It was rated to "you may wash the car if you don't splash too much." It went to the landfill when the last two batteries lasted weeks rather than months.

"It's the thought that counts." Yes, but that was in my case also the issue: there was not much thought - mum merely threw money at the problem, not thoughts. We have some nice watch boutiques in town where she could have picked decent watches for the same/less money that are aligned to our personal style and lifestyle.

For instance, this watch has screw-down pushers, for month- and day-adjust. My dad, who received a near-identical watch, would find it too cumbersome to use the TV remote to change channels, instead he would ask other people [usually: my mom] to do it for him. Chances that he'd ever engage the screw-down pushers on his watch were nil.

It's a bit different if the gift comes from outside the family, from people who know you less well.

I was wishing for an Omega snoopy speedmaster for Christmas but my family got me this instead. Anyway, it is still the perfect gift to me 🤣.

I have been working with my wife on a list of watches she can give me for gifts ever since she got me a Relic skeleton watch. She has progressed from Relic to giving me a Bulova Hack and a Casio A100 Pac man, so definite progress there. I still love the Relic because it was a gift from her, although I don't wear it much. 😂

I've come across many people posting about this idea. For me, anything given with the intention of a gift, that intention is infused into the item itself. For a watch, perhaps its not my style or something I would wear, but I would definitely treasure it. In fact, one of my most treasured watches is a swatch I was gifted. I think you have to see it as more than simply a watch, depending on the gifting circumstances and who gifted it to you. In the OP's gifting circumstances, I could understand if the watch wasn't very meaningful to begin with

Great post!

love the sediment from the gift but please mom if you are reading this 🛑 stop buying those cheap wal mart / kohl’s watches for me. I love you but no more. Lol….

I can't say I've ever been given an unwanted watch. The only watches I remember receiving as gifts are a Swatch I asked for as an 8 year old kid, and a novelty Game Boy watch from my sister just last month. My family seems to know that when it comes to something like that, a gift card is best.

I try to manage the risk by giving my wife a list of acceptable watches within price ranges that can fit most anybody in the family giving me a gift. Let's face it - unless you're a serious watch snob - there are so many cool watches ranging from under $50 to $500. I would much rather receive a Casio Duro or Citizen Promaster than a QVC or HSN watch.

I’m not quite sure how to respond to this without trying to say you sound ungrateful because you do a little (sorry). Perhaps she thought it was a nice brand (Constantin is in the name, perhaps she thought it was VC Constantin-related), perhaps she was stressed out with purchasing multiple presents for multiple people and thought she could solve most of them via QVC. Perhaps you upset her and this was her response… It’s a gift from your mother, just roll with it. My nan once got me one of those tacky glass dolphin statues with a clock in it for Christmas, and I adore it because she was an absolute legend who never failed to crack me up with the darkest sense of humour; I know she bought it for £2.50 in a charity shop (it still had the label), but I miss her and it always makes me smile when I see it. I know she thought that it was incredibly tacky, so wondered if I was going to be polite enough to keep it; I always clocked her reaction every time she saw it, it was a game for us.

Crap, this thread is making me tear up. In the mid 80s when I was in high school, my Mom (who has passed on to a better place) bought me a digital watch that transformed into a robot for my birthday. She was really excited to give it to me and I remember feeling too old for such a kids watch (BUT was fortunately old enough to not show my embarrassment). I didn't wear it much except when she asked me where it was but I found a prominent place for it on my desk at my childhood home for her. 

Unfortunately, that watch is long gone but I would give a lot to get that watch back to give me a tangible link to my Mom and what I think of now as a golden time in our lives.

I realise that I sound ungrateful (on this occasion I actually am, literally) - though I never let her know about this, these are just my reflections on this affair. My mum is a QVC-addict and does a lot of impulse-buying of their products, though it's usually less problematic. There was no stress involved, these were not gifts for a special occasion, just random gifts - which is the way we generally do gifts between us. I very much doubt she ever heard of VC, she's not a watch expert. But she's not stupid, she's an intelligent woman, making this purchase all the more shocking.

Very cheap gifts can carry a lot of thought and love, and this was an expensive one with very little thought. In a strange way, these were more gifts for herself than for me or my father.

TBH my parents are not rich, but well-off enough that the odd consumerist aberration does not hurt too much, and there were quite a few between them.  Mum's costliest unwise purchase was a huge Jaguar motorcar. Unwise, because they live in the medieval part of our city with no place to park this thing anywhere near the house. So, she got herself a permanent parking space in a garage - about 10-15 minutes walk from the house. At the time, my parents were in their mid 70ies.

BTW in case you are wondering about the annual calendar function: the big date goes all the way to 39.

This made my morning!  There are star systems where 39-day months would make sense.  Hold onto that badboi - it will be a valuable heirloom when we are an interstellar race.

Your story about the dolphin clock reminded me of a gift that I received from my grandmother. After Christmas dinner we would each open little presents bought by my grandmother. These were not gag gifts, but small things that would not fit in a stocking. I think that it was just an excuse for her to spend a little more.

Through the magic of the internet I was able to find the single most hilarious thing that she ever gave me.  She saw absolutely no humor in it.  She knew that I had been putting together fighter jet and race car models. Behold the greatest model produced in 1979:

It came with no instructions, but the picture was helpful. If she were alive today I would tease her again about this.