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11-19-2012 at 1:56 PM
SpartyKim
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What to do with all the nice gift bags from the shower?

My baby shower was last May (baby born in july) and today as I was cleaning, I came across all the gift bags that the presents came in.  I have about 20 and they're all in baby colors & most are girl-specific.  We're a military family so I don't ever have many friends in the local area that I can use the bags to "re-gift" them (and even if I did, most of my friends are still single so no babies in sight.) So what the heck do I do with all these bags?  Anything useful?
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11-19-2012 at 2:21 PM
Andindria
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I'd hold on to them. You never know when you may need a little pink bag for a birthday or something. Even so, babies are born every day. There may be that one friend who surprises you and has a baby. Bags are horribly expensive. I just can't justify throwing them away when you can easily save yourself money in the long run by giving them to someone else with your gift.
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11-19-2012 at 2:39 PM
littleredf...
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Mine are stashed away with the rest of the Christmas/Birthday/Wine bags. One day they will be used again I'm sure. I've even lent some to my friends and mom for other showers we've gone to. Until then they are in the top of the closet with the rest of the wrapping things.
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11-19-2012 at 2:55 PM
1026pumpki...
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Not sure if you're pumping/freezing milk, but a great tip I got on here was to take a gift bag and cut a small slit at the bottom (large enough to pull out a frozen bag of milk).  It keeps your frozen bags contained and makes sure you use the oldest (at the bottom) up first, and just add your new ones to the top and they'll freeze flat.

 
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11-19-2012 at 3:25 PM
526SadieSa...
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If they're in good shape, I'd hang on to them. Flatten them out and tuck them away with any other gift-wrapping supplies you have. Like someone already said, you never know when you'll need a gift bag. Even if you don't reuse them for a baby, I've wrapped a gift bag in seasonal paper and repurposed it to a holiday gift bag in a pinch - things that are odd sizes always look nicer in a gift bag. You just need some well-placed double sided tape and a hole punch for the handles.
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11-19-2012 at 4:11 PM
wittyschaf...
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I am voting for holding onto them.  If you have any neighbors you're close to, you could let them know you have a ton and are willing to share too. After my nephew's showers were done, my sister sent an email out to the rest of my nuclear family asking if any of us wanted to shop in her bag pile for future events.  It was awesome to get bags in good shape that I didn't have to pay for.  Just needed a little tissue and they were ready to go!  She kept a few of course but between all of us, we were able to take quite a few off of her hands without being inundated ourselves. 
 
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11-19-2012 at 6:13 PM
SpartyKim
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Thanks for all the ideas folks.  I'll hold onto them for now but since we're a military family & need to keep our possessions down (military only pays for certain # of lbs of household goods when we move) then who knows if I'll keep them whenever we move next. 
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11-19-2012 at 6:54 PM
StarBe
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you could always donate them or sell them on craigs list!
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11-19-2012 at 8:09 PM
sabrina69b...
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Do you scrapbook? A friend of mine used the bags from her shower for her baby's scrapbook.

 
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11-19-2012 at 9:07 PM
rhubarb123
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I hold on to all of the gift bags I get and if I haven't used them in about a year I sell them for 25 cents each at a garage sale.  Just make sure no writing is on the little cards that are sometimes attached.  I have used a lot of the shower ones and wedding ones though.
 
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11-20-2012 at 12:11 AM
Spacebunny...
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The ones in good shape, I've managed to reuse, but the ones kind of beat up, I let my daughter play with.  She loves carrying bags/purses, and so she puts toys in them and carries them around.  If they get wrecked, I toss'em.
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11-20-2012 at 11:05 AM
markhamgur...
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Freecycle!  Yahoo Group based upon your location ... look it up :)
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11-20-2012 at 1:41 PM
danieliza1...
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SpartyKim:
Thanks for all the ideas folks.  I'll hold onto them for now but since we're a military family & need to keep our possessions down (military only pays for certain # of lbs of household goods when we move) then who knows if I'll keep them whenever we move next. 

 

Just donate them to Goodwill or toss them.  You don't have to keep them just because other people do.


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11-20-2012 at 2:44 PM
RoxyLynn
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Personally, I've never had good luck keeping gift bags looking pristine through a move.

Is there a hospital relatively nearby with a maternity wing?  If so, they may be able to give them to new Moms who often leave with cards and prescriptions and what have you, and a cute bag would be nice.
I think it can be done well, and I would have loved it, but taking all of the crappy parts of school away from a kid isn't good for them in the long run.

There are lessons like "Not everyone likes you" and "Some people are douche bags" that you don't learn without socializing in a large group of poorly supervised children.
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11-20-2012 at 5:24 PM
I Heart Th...
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If they are in good shape can you donate them? 
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11-25-2012 at 7:12 PM
Ms Molly
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I saved all of the ones that weren't too wrinkled and have been recycling them as I go to showers. 
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12-08-2012 at 7:22 PM
sthomas122...
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I have a gift bag/wrapping paper tote. Full of wrapping paper and bags from my wedding 5 years ago, birthday wrapping paper, Christmas stuff, and now tons of baby gift bags. Every Christmas I use a lot of the stuff and then it gets replaced when we get home with our gifts. 
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