How to Handle the Ugly Gift

Like most of you, I've been on both sides of gift exchange when the recipient was less than thrilled with the results. I've been through some harrowing moments of opening gifts when my inital reaction was "Ewww" (thought, but never verbalized). But I've also given some gifts that were returned. Once, a friend blatantly told me she was returning the handbag because it was too big for her and she didn't like it (yep, I resisted the urge to tell her that the bigger the bag, the smaller the butt looks.) Because gift-giving is so personal and feelings can be hurt, it's important to handle even the ugliest of gifts with grace. Find my suggestions for handling the ugly gift (and no: regifting is not an option!).