White elephant gift exchange ideas
Let's face it, everybody loves gifts. But what can be better than a gift? A gift which you do not expect - a random gift. Secret Santa is a great way to give and receive Christmas gifts, but have you ever thought about having an even more hilarious way of sharing your presents with your friends or colleagues?
Then you have to try White elephant gifts exchange at your next Christmas party. This new hilarious way to share your Christmas presents is like Secret Santa, but with some sneaky twists.
In this article we will present to you anything you need to know about White elephant gifts exchange games such as what is a white elephant gift, white elephant gift exchange rules, funny white elephant gifts ideas, etc. If this sounds like fun, keep reading.
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What is a white elephant gift?
Essentially a white elephant gift exchange is a more exciting way to exchange presents, most of the time at Christmas parties. This game is suitable for working parties, family parties, in general, celebrations where there is a big group of people attending. For this game you do not need to go extra with the gifts you make, you only need to follow some simple rules and turn your party into a more exciting one.
Official White elephant gift exchange rules
What makes this game different from any other game is, of course, the rules which should be followed. There are different sets of rules, it all depends whom you ask, but we compile a list of the most popular of them. Below you will be able to see which rules you should follow for a proper white elephant game.
White elephant gift exchange rules:
There will be a common pool with gifts, therefore each member should bring a gift to contribute to the common pool.
The party members should write their names on a piece of paper and put it into a hat, from where the party host can extract one name at a time - determining the order of the players.
The players should sit in such a way which will enable them to see all the gifts - further you will see why.
When a member is picking a gift he/she has to make sure the gift is visible to everyone.
When the turn of next person to pick a gift comes, he/she can choose to either pick an unwrapped gift or to steal the gift of the previous person. But keep in mind that a present can be stolen only one time per turn and to a maximum of 3 times.
After all players finish their turn, they get the chance to swap their gifts. Anyone who got his present stolen is, at this point of the game, able to steal someone’s gift as long as nobody has stolen from that person yet.
The game ends when someone decides to not steal any gift.
Creative white elephant gifts ideas
One unwritten rule, when it comes to finding gifts for white elephant game, is that the present should not be necessarily expensive, but it should be funny, creative and/or clever. Below we prepared a list of ideas for white elephant gifts that you should make to your colleagues, friends or family members.
Karaoke Microphone
This gift idea is a cool one. After the unwrap, the party can become more funny with a karaoke microphone. Karaoke parties are always cool and this gift can turn your party into a more exciting one.
2. Coffee mug with a funny quote on it
This is a nice gift especially for the parties done with the working colleagues. Every time you enter the office and see that mug on one of your colleagues' desks, we guarantee it will put a smile on your face as it will be a reminder of that party. So, buy a coffee mug with a funny quote on it, wrap it nice and add it to the gift pool.
3. Mop shoes
This is part of the clever white elephant gift list and we bet that this present will be stolen the most. What is so good about this present? Is the fact that is very useful. It keeps your feet warm and, at the same time, cleans your floors.
4. Cocktail recipe book
This is the type of gift you might actually want to keep for yourself, playing white elephant gift exchange game, this might actually be possible. Fingers crossed.
5. Funny designed socks
Since the white elephant gift exchange game is most often played on Christmas parties, buying as a present some funny designed socks will not make a good gift only because of the funny design, but a very useful one too. Think about it, anybody would appreciate some fluffy warm socks in the cold winter days.
6. Indoor garden kit
We can almost guarantee that this present will be the most desired at any party and it will steal all the attention. This is a very creative and useful gift. The price for an indoor garden kit is not so high, especially when compared with its benefits. Anybody would like to eat some fresh veggies from their own private garden. Buy this gift, wrap it nice and just sit and watch how everybody will “fight” for it.
7. Heart shape waffle machine
This gift will go straight to the heart of a sweets lover, so it is perfect for anybody.. Just kidding. We are sure that this present will be on anybody’s radar once it is wrapped.
8. Scented candle
This gift will be especially cool for candle lovers. Who knows, maybe it will help convert some people to this form of relaxation. If you are planning to buy a scented candle as a white elephant gift for the Christmas party, we have a small tip for you - choose an aroma related to Christmas, this will make the happy winner or your present go more into the Christmas mood.
9. Dessert cookbook
We are back again to everybody’s favourite subject - desserts. This present can be good for you if you are a close friend with its winner, as he/she will spoil you with the sweets he/she just learned how to prepare.
10. Bonsai tree
This is a gift anybody will love. Besides the benefits of having a plant in your house, this type of tree serves as decor and we can be sure it will be the main discussion topic with any of its winners guests.
Here you go! Our complete list of 10 of the best white elephant gift exchange ideas.
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