Keep the Christmas Spirit Going with a Regifting Party

We all receive gifts we can’t use from time to time. Maybe we already have one of that particular item, or it simply doesn’t match our style or interests. Whatever the case, it’s a shame to stash a perfectly good present in an out-of-the-way closet, never to be seen again until moving day.

Fortunately, there’s an easy solution to this “problem” – and it’s also a lot of fun. If you read the headline, you know I’m talking about a regifting party. There are a few different ways to do it, but a regifting party is essentially about finding new homes for those things we don’t need.

Of course, a regifting party is also just a fabulous opportunity to get together with friends and family. One nifty advantage of this type of Christmas party is that you can do it after the holidays. Not only do you get a chance to immediately offload those superfluous gifts, but you get to have your gathering at a time when people’s schedules aren’t so crunched.

Gift Exchange Options

To get those gifts in the hands of their new owners, you’ll need to run some sort of gift exchange. Here are the best options.

White Elephant

No surprise here. White Elephant is the obvious choice for a regifting party, and quite appropriate considering the game’s legacy as a way to offload unwanted items. Most people are familiar with this type of gift swap (even if they know it by another name). However, you don’t have to limit yourself to the standard rules. There are oodles of variations, which you can throughout this site.

Auction

In this type of gift swap, players are issued fake money to bid on the presents. It’s a nice way to spotlight each item and give it the attention it deserves. Before the bidding starts, the re-gifter can introduce the gift and perhaps tell the story behind it. For printable money you can use, check out this article.

Grab Bag

If simplicity is what you’re after, here is the option for you. Simply assign a number to each gift and have people draw from a hat to see which item they get. This goes more quickly than a true gift swap, and gives participants time to discuss the presents. Also note that there’s no need to wrap the gifts, which is in keeping with the re-gifting party’s purpose of avoiding waste.

Regifting Etiquette

Okay, so we all know how wonderful regifting can be. However, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention the tricky etiquette here, and you may want to mention it in your invitation as well. It basically boils down to this:

You should never, ever regift something if there’s a chance that the giver could find out about it.

First and foremost, don’t regift something that someone at the party gave you (awkward!). Also, don’t give away something that the giver will expect to see in your home when they come to visit. And don’t ask someone if it’s okay to regift something they gave you – that alone is enough to cause hurt feelings.

There’s another, more subtle issue when it comes to discussing the gifts. Some of them may be real stinkers, provoking laughter and “what were they thinking?” types of comments. While that can be fun, it can also get out of hand and reflect poorly on the host. To avoid this situation, you might want to make a statement upfront that while the gifts belong with someone else, the thought behind them is always appreciated.

Parting Thoughts

With that uncomfortable business out of the way, here are few miscellaneous questions or issues to think about when hosting a regifting party.

New or used?

Gift exchanges generally call for the participants to bring new, unopened items. However, for a regifting party, you might want to consider allowing (or encouraging) lightly used items. Whatever your policy is, be sure to state it clearly in the invitation.

To wrap or not to wrap?

Gift swaps also typically ask for wrapped gifts. However, if you’re all about avoiding waste, tell your guests to bring unwrapped presents. None of the gift exchange games I mention above require the gifts to be wrapped.

Charity

Since we’re redistributing items to those who need them more, consider taking it a step further by incorporating a charitable element into your get-together. There are lots of different possibilities. For example, you could invite people to bring extra items to donate, or contribute swapped gifts that they don’t have a use for.