Strange and surprising unwanted gifts revealed

Christmas presents can be a funny thing. You may not always get quite what you want. Plus, if you've upgraded your stuff, especially electronics, you may also find your old stuff doesn't hold quite the same sway anymore.

But there's no need to clog up your home with unwanted clutter. Whether it's an old item you no longer want, or a new gift that simply doesn't reflect your tastes, you can always sell. But what was the most traded-in item this year?

According to trade-in website musicMagpie, festive trade-ins were at a record high this year. More than 2.3 million CDs, DVDs, games, phones and electronic items were sold in 48 hours. Trade-ins peaked at 4pm on Christmas Day and 1pm on Boxing Day, including £250,000 of unwanted electronics.

Top traded item – are you surprised?

One Direction – Take me Home album

One Direction's Take me Home album topped both the CD charts, and the overall charts on musicMagpie, with 31,468 copies traded in. Where are the Directioners when you need them, eh?

Other top trade-ins on musicMagpie included Adele's 21 album, with 25,897 trade-ins, The Lego Movie with 23,245, and Ed Sheeran's X album, with 22,170 trade-ins.

Unwanted Christmas presents – the weird and wonderful

A quick look through Gumtree and eBay under 'unwanted Christmas presents' dug up some slightly more bizarre items. Would any of these interest you?

Washer and dryer

A very practical gift – but would it excite you to unwrap?

Handmade wooden meerkat

Maybe Compare the Market meerkats are to blame for the increase in meerkats on the market (that's a bit of a tongue twister).

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Perhaps most intriguing of all – an unwanted still wrapped Christmas present. What could it be?

I want to sell – what should I do next?

Does this sound like something you want to do? Don't worry, it's simpler than you'd think.

Check out our video of first-time seller Angela and how she made some dough

This article is provided by the Money Advice Service.