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Put the gifts on display with empty cups or jars next to them. Once everyone finds a present, gather in one room and have each person open the gift they found for a fun surprise-do it one at a time or all at once! Be sure to be creative when spreading the gifts throughout your home, and if you're participating, prepare to think like a curious kid!įor a little friendly competition, set a price point and have everyone buy a gift that they leave unwrapped, so everyone can see what they are. You can limit it to a basement, the backyard, or even the whole house. Have everyone in your crew buy small- to medium-size gifts and wrap them. Make It a Scavenger HuntĬhannel your inner child with a gift-based scavenger hunt. This is another great option if you're celebrating in different cities, and might even make mailing your gifts more fun. Try to pick a theme that everyone can get behind, or you can even have everyone submit a theme on a piece of paper and have someone draw one out of a hat. The structure is up to you, but the concept is what matters-everyone buys gifts that fit a certain theme. You can buy gifts for everyone or follow the general rules of a Secret Santa or Yankee Swap if you'd like-it really just depends on who you're exchanging gifts with. If you don't want your gift, you can switch it for something else, but the risk is yours to take! More for a crowd with a sense of humor, the gifts you choose for a White Elephant swap can be just about anything (again, under a set price limit) from things you already own and no longer want to the strangest things you can find at the store-something another person might actually want or be able to use, but weird and unique nonetheless. Gag gifts, funny gifts, gifts under $25-it definitely is an exchange that brings in a lot of laughter. In a White Elephant gift exchange, participants follow the same rules as a Yankee Swap, but with one major twist: you can choose a rule for the gifts. White Elephant is another classic that brings in a lot of entertainment (and a little drama). Recipients can choose to steal one of the open gifts from someone who went before them (those who already opened one would get to open a new one, in this case), or open a new one. The first person will open their chosen gift before the second person chooses, and so on. Come exchange day, everyone draws a number, and each number represents the order in which people get to choose their gifts. Rather than draw names and shop for specific people, in a Yankee Swap, each person buys one nice, quality gift (that stays at or below a chosen price point) and wraps it, keeping their gift a secret. While it is very tempting to investigate who is shopping for your gift, you're also motivated to find something amazing in the hopes that everyone is putting in the same effort! You can easily do a Secret Santa exchange via mail if you're celebrating long-distance-you can even reveal your identities over Zoom! Yankee Swap
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Then, gifters can either reveal their identities as they pass out gifts, or you can have everyone guess who their Secret Santa was. The name they chose is who they have to buy a gift for. You really can't go wrong with the classic-and it works in just about any setting, too (the office, friends, family, classrooms, etc.) If you've never done a Secret Santa or Secret Snowflake gift exchange before, it's a pretty simple concept: You set a price limit that works for your group, and then each participant draws a recipient's name from a hat without sharing who they got. But most importantly, they make sure everyone has a little extra fun in the process. Plus, they ensure that everyone gets a thoughtful (or, at the very least, memorable) gift.
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But there's no reason to resort to a gift card: If you need some inspiration to get you through your shopping list or make giving gifts easier and more fun, we've got some clever gift exchange ideas that make the season merry! Whether you're celebrating together in person or in different cities and need some mail-friendly options, these festive gift exchange ideas can work for just about any group of people. Shopping for the perfect gift for your friends, family (and coworkers, if you do an office gift exchange!) can be a challenge-and honestly, sometimes it's easy to slip into going through the motion of gift-giving during the holidays.
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