Gift cards guilt free spending -- Ha ha ha

**imagine** · 01-10-2011, 10:47 AM

I use to think gift cards were guilt free shopping . We received a gift card to Walmart for Christmas. I still feel guilty. I can keep thinking is I shouldn't buy that with this I could buy food.

Mom bought me a gift card to buy drive thru sodas guilt free and I had just as much guilt when I bought one with it as if I had bought it with cash. I kept thinking about family food.

So no reprieve from guilt with shopping especially for me.

I did buy something for me with the walmart card, a Robe on clearance. I didn't have a robe (everyone else does) and thought it might be useful in the evenings and mornings since we keep the house at 60 degrees in winter. I had been drawn to a particular robe since it had come out. Even time I would past it in the store I would long for it, for months. So when it went on clearance I bought it. It went in and out of the cart many times that shopping trip (guilt free shopping right?) but ended up cart at check out and I bought it with part of the gift card.

It was/is prefect it keeps me warm in the evening, lazy weekend mornings, and late night internet checking. It is so comfortable, feels very indulgent. I truly love it but I feel guilty every time I put it on. I feel so selfish. So gift cards no guilt free spending, I laugh at that at least for me.

I think I might need to learn to spend or at least that spending is okay. Maybe not have such a strict definition of need?

**AspiringToBeFrugal** · 01-10-2011, 11:28 AM

I have EXACTLY the same problem! I got a couple of WalMart gift cards for Christmas and keep thinking..."well, I could buy a lot of things for our stockpile with this money." I have a really hard time with this "free" money...I feel like it should go toward something useful, not just something that will take up space. Is there a self-help group for people like us?!?!

**Jamielane** · 01-10-2011, 11:34 AM

My brother got me a gift card for the bookstore for Chrsitmas. He knows how much I love to read and that I am to cheap to buy a book there . I usually go there, browse and write down what I think I may like, come home look at the amazon reviews and then see if my library has it or can get it from another library in our library network, Well I was so excited and I went there and looked all around for well over an hour. I had a terrible time spending it because nothing seemed worthy of using my precious card on. LOL. I did finally get two books off the reduced rack and am looking forward to reading them. I still have money left on it and I will hoard it until spring I think. I also won a 100.00 prepaid visa from a blog contest and I ended up buying myself a few long sleeve tshirts on clearence for 4.00 and a couple subway subs for me and my dd the rest I spent on groceries. I just can't stand the idea of wasting it when I could buy food . So not a guilt free experience for me either.

**imagine** · 01-10-2011, 11:34 AM

Originally Posted by AspiringToBeFrugal

. Is there a self-help group for people like us?!?!

If you find one let me know or we could start one. LOL

I'm trying to just talk to myself and tell myself that a few wants are truly needs.

**imagine** · 01-10-2011, 11:38 AM

Originally Posted by Jamielane

My brother got me a gift card for the bookstore for Chrsitmas. He knows how much I love to read and that I am to cheap to buy a book there . I usually go there, browse and write down what I think I may like, come home look at the amazon reviews and then see if my library has it or can get it from another library in our library network, Well I was so excited and I went there and looked all around for well over an hour. I had a terrible time spending it because nothing seemed worthy of using my precious card on. LOL. I did finally get two books off the reduced rack and am looking forward to reading them. I still have money left on it and I will hoard it until spring I think. I also won a 100.00 prepaid visa from a blog contest and I ended up buying myself a few long sleeve tshirts on clearence for 4.00 and a couple subway subs for me and my dd the rest I spent on groceries. I just can't stand the idea of wasting it when I could buy food . So not a guilt free experience for me either.

I so know how you feel about precious gift card. My MIL gave me a gift card to a store that just sold Ladies clothes since I needed clothes. She picked one to that store so I couldn't buy anyone else clothes. I still have some on that card and she gave it to me Christmas 2009.

**dcompton** · 01-10-2011, 11:55 AM

You might consider that when someone gives you a card with the intention that you will spend it on yourself for something you will truly enjoy, something a little extra beyond bare bones need, you are honoring the person when you do that.

When I have received gift cards, I make it a point of not just thanking the person for the gift, for using it soon and telling them what I bought with it and how much I love it. One of the gifters once told me that when I did that it gave him great pleasure - usually they just fall in a hole and the gifter never knows what comes of it.

So using it as intended is a win-win. The giver gets the joy of giving, you get the pleasure of something you wouldn't have gotten for yourself, like the robe or the books, and if you report back, you will give satisfaction to the giver, who knows the gift was useful and appreciated.

**nuisance26** · 01-10-2011, 11:56 AM

~I feel the same way so I do something different with practical gift cards. I write the amount down in my personal spending money and then use the gift card to make purchases I would normally make. The money for me is still in the budget and I can spend it anywhere that way.~

**rskmom** · 01-10-2011, 12:01 PM

I love gift cards. I use them judiciously, but do allow myself some fun!

**McD** · 01-10-2011, 12:23 PM

I have the same problem. For instance, I won a gift card not that long ago and nothing seemed to be 'right' to spend it on. So I held it. And waited. And held it. I ended up finding a nice promotion buy one/get one free and bought a camera for myself and a camera as a gift. I still had 41ish bucks on that card and I held it for more months. And waited. And held it. Finally, I broke down and spent it today and bought a toaster...since ours broke after 5 years of use. And a kitchen knife set...since 3 of our steak knives broke after 5 years fo use.

I still have 8 cents left!

**imagine** · 01-10-2011, 12:40 PM

Originally Posted by nuisance26

~I feel the same way so I do something different with practical gift cards. I write the amount down in my personal spending money and then use the gift card to make purchases I would normally make. The money for me is still in the budget and I can spend it anywhere that way.~

I have a friend that does this she calls it "buying her gift card from herself" She used the Walmart gift card to buy groceries and then gave herself that money from the grocery budget and bought something else she wanted at another store.

**zakity** · 01-10-2011, 08:53 PM

We do that. The gift card goes in the "kitty" and gets spent on household stuff. The cah equivilant goes on our "tab" (kept track of in the bills spreadsheet). When we spend some of the money, it comes off our "tab".

**eofelis** · 01-11-2011, 09:50 PM

Originally Posted by Jamielane

My brother got me a gift card for the bookstore for Chrsitmas. He knows how much I love to read and that I am to cheap to buy a book there . I usually go there, browse and write down what I think I may like, come home look at the amazon reviews and then see if my library has it or can get it from another library in our library network, Well I was so excited and I went there and looked all around for well over an hour. I had a terrible time spending it because nothing seemed worthy of using my precious card on. LOL. I did finally get two books off the reduced rack and am looking forward to reading them. I still have money left on it and I will hoard it until spring I think. I also won a 100.00 prepaid visa from a blog contest and I ended up buying myself a few long sleeve tshirts on clearence for 4.00 and a couple subway subs for me and my dd the rest I spent on groceries. I just can't stand the idea of wasting it when I could buy food . So not a guilt free experience for me either.

I got my sister and brother each $50 gift cards to Borders for xmas. They were having a promo at the time that they give you a $10 off coupon for each $50 in gift cards you buy, so I got 2 of those: $20 to spend at Borders.

The bf and I don't usually shop at Borders, we like the library, thrift store or amazon . com. We looked around for a long time to find books that we might actually read more than once. We ended up getting some comics books (Dilbert & Foxtrot) from the super clearance pile. We ended up paying $3 out of our pocket. Now I hear Borders may be going under. Guess we didn't help them out much. LOL

But yeah, when we have gift cards we still shop around for the best deals as if it was our real money.

**Gibs** · 01-21-2011, 08:46 AM

I read this post and found myself nodding my head in agreement...I definitely am guilty spending money or gift cards that were given to me for Christmas. My dh and I actually took the money that was given to us for Christmas and paid on our Electric Bill, I just could not bring myself to buy something for me..even though there are things I need, I think that I made the right decision.

**happymomof4** · 01-21-2011, 01:57 PM

I have the same problem. The money that I got for christmas didn't go to buy me anything. Even thought I need a pair of sneakers. My current sneakers have a hole in the sole.

Dh and I got a card from the cable company for $200. It was a promotion thing when we went to the Triple Play thing with Comcast. It took us 4 months to spend that money. We did get a few things for ourselves and go out to eat. We spend the most on stuff for the bathroom remodel.

"Free Money" is hard to spend on myself.

**wanna_homestead** · 01-22-2011, 05:32 PM

I am so with you all on this! I love gift cards and tend to hoard them until the *perfect* thing to spend them on presents itself. I've got a couple JC Penney gift cards right now, and am holding out. I intend to buy myself some new clothes with them (I need jeans and black pants especially) but now am finding myself torn and considering spending part on my DD's spring wardrobe.

However...I have a feeling...once I dig through her closet and see all the goodwill and yard sale purchases that will fit her this spring, I will change my mind. So maybe I'll get some new pants after all!

But yeah, with a side of guilt, no doubt!