Roberta Jeeves, Author at White Elephant Rules

Finding a White Elephant Gift Around the House

Some people are old-school when it comes to White Elephant gift exchanges. To them, the idea of shopping for a present is absurd. No, a White Elephant gift should be something useless laying around the house – the shabbier, the better.

Of course, just because you’re old-school doesn’t mean everyone else is. Before you start ransacking your basement for something to bring to the upcoming gift swap, you should pause to consider whether used items are welcome. If there’s any doubt, you might want to lean toward bringing something new, just to be on the safe side.

With that caveat out of the way, let’s talk about White Elephant gift ideas from around the house.

You know the saying: “One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.” The item you’re looking for could be a perfect example of that. Or it could be something that’s just plain funny. Here are some options to consider:

1. Christmas Decorations. If you’re like most people, you have unwanted Christmas decorations gathering dust in a box somewhere. Some may even be on the corny side, which is pure gold for a White Elephant gift.

2. Food. Your pantry is a potential treasure trove of misfit food items. Anything from old canned goods to leftover Halloween candy could make for a great gag gift.

3. Gift Cards. Maybe it’s a gift card to a store you don’t like or a restaurant that isn’t in your area. Or maybe you just haven’t gotten around to using it. In any case, a gift card that’s just sitting in your junk drawer could be a sought-after item at a gift exchange.

4. Kitchen Gadgets. That quesadilla maker seemed like a good idea at the time, but now it’s just taking up space in your cupboard. Why not pass it along to someone who will appreciate it (at least for awhile)?

5. Alcohol. Buying wine and liquor can be a real crap shoot. If you have a bottle of alcohol sitting around that you regret buying, consider putting a bow on it and bringing it to the gift exchange. Don’t let the fact that it’s half-empty stop you.

6. Funny Photo. First, find a funny picture or printable on the internet – or better yet, print out a goofy photo of yourself. Then put the picture in an old frame you no longer need.

7. CDs/DVDs/VHS Tapes. Most of us who are over 20 have piles of unwanted and outdated media stored away in our homes. These can make good gag gifts, especially if you can find a cheesy and/or nostalgic title to give. The fact that people might not be able to play the media is beside the point.

8. Coffee Cup. Novelty coffee mugs make easy, no-brainer gifts, which is why many of us end up with more of them than we need. Pick a humorous or tacky one from your collection and re-gift it.

9. Clothing. Bringing clothing to a gift swap is normally a big no-no, as people differ by size, gender, and style. But for a gift exchange where no one expects to walk away with something valuable, pretty much anything goes. So feel free to re-gift that loud sweater you’ve never worn (provided you don’t need it for an ugly sweater contest, that is).

10. Homemade Gag Gift. One classic gag is to put some batteries in a plastic bag with a note reading “Toy Not Included.” For other options, check out this article on homemade White Elephant gifts.

Those are just a handful of the more obvious ideas for White Elephant gifts you can find around the house. Once you start rummaging around, who knows what prizes you’ll find!

3 Gift Exchange Games For Large Groups

I hate to say it, but there are situations where a White Elephant gift exchange might not be the best choice for a holiday gathering. One of those situations is when you’re dealing with a big group of people and a limited amount of time. With all the turn-taking and gift-stealing, a game of White Elephant can get unwieldy when a lot of people are playing.

So, what are some good Christmas gift exchange games for large groups? To my mind, the qualities we’re looking for are:

Fast-moving, with little or no decision-making involved
Suitable for people of all stripes
Conducive to mingling and getting to know people (admittedly a tall order, but especially desirable for office parties)

White Elephant can meet those criteria if you tweak the rules to limit trading. But if you want a gift-swapping game that’s tailor-made for a crowd, consider one of these options:

1. Prearranged Gift-Swapping

The rules and can be customized to your liking, but the idea here is simple: Gift-swapping is dictated by you, the host, rather than through the slow process of players taking turns. Perhaps the most popular way to do this is to have people sit in a circle and pass gifts according to cues in a story or poem (see this article on the left-right passing game for details). While there’s not a lot of interaction under these rules, the game goes fast and will keep any Christmas party on schedule.

Another option is to assign each player a number and have them swap according to predetermined instructions (again, using cute rhymes works best). If you have a little more time, you can allow players to make some of their own decisions. For example, you could give a player the option to trade with anyone wearing a Santa hat, or anyone not wearing red.

2. Musical Gifts

The best part of this type of game is that it allows you to incorporate everyone’s favorite holiday songs. Just have people sit or stand in a circle and pass a gift around as a Christmas classic plays. When the music stops, whoever is holding the gift gets to keep it (and goes out of the game).

To make it more fun, you can unwrap the gift before passing it around. When a gag gift is revealed, watch as it races around the circle like a hot potato.

3. Secret Santa

Secret Santa works well with larger groups for a couple of reasons. One, most people are at least somewhat familiar with it, so there’s less confusion about the rules. And two, each instance of gift-giving is between only two people, so you don’t need to have everyone’s attention for a long period of time.

There are lots of flavors of Secret Santa, but one that’s worth considering for office gift exchanges is the “conspiracy” version. In this game, people are divided into small groups, each of which is assigned a single person to buy for. It’s up to each group to decide on an appropriate gift – great for team-building and just getting to know each other.

As you may have noticed, gift exchange games for large groups generally require more preparation in advance. If you’re the one in charge of organizing things, remind yourself that it’s well worth the effort. Party goers are always a little more jolly when things run smoothly.

The Ornament Exchange Game: How to Play

Ornaments will always be popular gifts around Christmastime, for reasons that are easy to understand. They symbolize the holiday season more than almost anything else. They fit into the perfect price range for token gifts. And, unlike many gift options, just about everyone can use one more.

For all those same reasons, a Christmas ornament exchange game is a fitting – not to mention fun – activity for a holiday party. So, how do you play? Well, for better or for worse, there’s no one “official” set of ornament exchange rules. If you’re hosting an ornament exchange party, here are some options to choose from.

White Elephant Ornament Exchange

Perhaps the most common type of ornament swapping involves the familiar “stealing” mechanic of a white elephant gift exchange. Players bring one wrapped holiday ornament, then take turns either opening a new gift or stealing a previously opened one (for detailed rules, see our main article). As with all gift exchanges of this type, it helps if the ornament pile includes a mix of the desirable, the undesirable, and the downright funny.

Ornament Exchange Poem

Ornaments work especially well for a left-right passing game, which revolves around the reading aloud of a special Christmas-themed poem. In this game, people sit in a circle and pass gifts left or right according to cues in the aforementioned poem (you can find the rules and a sample poem in this article). The main advantage of this game is that it goes quick, even with larger groups. Because it’s straightforward and not at all competitive, it also allows for both kids and adults to participate.

Pick an Ornament From the Tree

In this simple ornament exchange game, participants bring unwrapped ornaments and hang them on a Christmas tree as they arrive (a miniature tree that can fit on a tabletop is often best). People then take turns picking the ornament they would like from the tree. One fun alternative is to blindfold players and have them feel for an ornament – just like Pin the Tail on the Donkey.

Random/Grab Bag

Okay, this one stretches the definition of “game.” However, if you’re looking for a truly simple way to dole out the ornaments, just randomize it. One way to do this is to assign a number to each wrapped ornament, then have players draw to see which one they get. Another option is to put the ornaments in a large sack and let players reach in and blindly take one.

Of all the great things about ornament exchange games, perhaps the greatest is that they make it easy for everyone to participate. By specifying the type of gift to bring, there’s less shopping and decision-making involved. You can even ask people to re-gift an ornament in their collection – because hey, who doesn’t have a few to spare?

Of course, it’s even easier on guests if the host provides all the ornaments. That’s probably not an option in most cases, but it could be the right choice if it’s a smaller group and/or you have the budget. Even if ponying up for everyone’s ornaments isn’t feasible, you might want have a few extra on hand in case people forget.

For more ideas on hosting an ornament exchange party – or any kind of gift exchange, for that matter – check out this article. Good luck, and Merry Christmas!

7 Ideas For a Fantastically Tacky Christmas Party

Christmas is the one time of the year where everyone has permission to be tacky. In fact, it’s hard to avoid, seeing as how so many holiday rituals involve glitter, loud colors, and mushy sentiments. So rather than resist the cornball charm of the Christmas season, why not embrace it in all its gaudy glory?

That, in a nutshell, is the rationale behind tacky Christmas parties. This aggressively festive party theme is associated with things like white elephant gift exchanges and ugly sweater contests – but there’s so much more to it. To illustrate, here are seven tacky Christmas party ideas that poke fun at some of the holiday’s most splendiferous traditions.

1. Send out tacky invitations

The first step to hosing a truly tacky Christmas party is to send out invitations that let your guests know what they’re in for. Whether you’re sending paper or electronic invites, try using clashing colors, funny characters, and sparkles – lots and lots of sparkles – to grab their attention. Throw in some groan-inducing puns to top it off.

2. Turn the party venue into a festive eyesore

Whether you decide to deck the halls with shiny tinsel and flashing lights, or just put up a few funny holiday props, your choice of decorations is important for setting an appropriately tacky tone. Fortunately, when it comes to tacky Christmas decorations, there’s a lot to choose from. In fact, you probably already have a few “treasures” from yesteryear stored somewhere in your house.

3. Run an ugly sweater contest (duh)

This one’s a no-brainer – in fact, it’s the whole point of many tacky Christmas parties. Be sure to have some suitably tacky prizes lined up for the contestants (don’t worry – they needn’t be expensive). Consider giving out a prize not only for the ugliest sweater overall, but for different categories such as “Most Colorful” and “Best Homemade Ugly Sweater.”

4. Serve “tasteless” food and drink

I don’t literally mean “tasteless,” of course. What you’re looking for is yummy food and drink that fit your tacky theme. This could include kitschy holiday favorites such as cheese balls, fruit cake, and the like. Or it could be a funny presentation, like mustachioed gingerbread men or wine bottles adorned with miniature ugly sweaters.

5. Put together a funny holiday playlist

There are oh-so-many Christmas tunes to choose from when putting together a playlist for any holiday party. You can always include the sentimental favorites, but for a tacky Christmas gathering, be sure to also make room for the goofy, the corny, and the downright hilarious. Some good choices include “Grandma Got Run Over by a Reindeer,” “Hanukkah Song,” and “Mr. Hankey the Christmas Poo.”

6. Have guests play goofy Christmas-themed games

Along with the usual gift exchange and ugly sweater contest, consider running other Christmas games that encourage people to drop their inhibitions and get silly. To name just one example, you could have a contest to see who can unwrap a present the fastest while wearing mittens. Obviously, the best games to play depend on the makeup of the crowd, so do your research and collect some ideas before deciding.

7. Make sure your gift exchange is tacky, too!

Even if you’re just using the basic rules for your gift exchange, you can be sure that many people will show up with a variety of presents, including the always popular (and often tasteless) gag gifts. However, if you want to push the tacky theme to the max, add a little twist to the rules. For example, you could ask participants to bring re-gifts, homemade creations, or even ugly Christmas ornaments.

These tacky Christmas party ideas are all worth considering, but they’re only the start. For more tacky holiday inspiration, just look around – there are schlocky signs of the season wherever you go!

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