The wine-and-appetizers group I meet with every month or so is doing a Yankee Swap. I’m not sure how widely-known that term is, so I will briefly describe the set of rules I’m familiar with. Everyone brings an unlabeled wrapped gift (usually there is a set price range, or sometimes it will be specified that the gift should be something from your house you don’t need anymore). Gift-opening order is set randomly, such as by drawing slips of paper. The first person picks any gift and unwraps it. The second person picks any gift, unwraps it, and can either hang onto it or swap it with the first person’s gift. The third person picks any gift, unwraps it, and can either hang onto it or swap with either of the other two opened gifts. And so on. At the end, the first person can then swap with anyone. The whole thing is very unfair. I have enjoyed Yankee Swaps MUCH more since I learned to go into them expecting NOTHING BUT HEARTBREAK. My mantra is “If I really want that item, I can go buy it for myself.” Then I can just enjoy the hijinks, without getting EMOTIONALLY INVESTED.
ANYWAY. Our group has set the limit at $10-15. I’m inclined to browse HomeGoods or Marshalls and let something jump out at me: the real fun of a Yankee Swap, as far as I’m concerned, is getting to buy one of those things that seems like it would make a great gift for SOMEONE but it doesn’t seem right for anyone on my list, or else it seems like kind of an odd present (“Here, have a rainbow bouquet of spatulas!”).
It occurs to me that that although I prefer to get gift cards for teachers, some of these gifts would work well for teachers too: they meet the same “buying a gift for someone whose tastes are completely unknown” standards. But with a Yankee Swap, I think there is an additional level of Winning that involves “causing a sensation” and/or “bringing the gift people fight over.” So that enters into it too.
Here are some of my ideas so far:
1. Bottle of wine plus something else. Since we are a wine-drinking group and we are always making jokes about wine, I was thinking I’d get a bottle in the $10 range and then a $5 something: little box of nice chocolates, probably.
(screen shot from Amazon.com)
2. Christmas earrings. I bought these for myself this year. I’m not sure this particular pair would arrive in time, but I’m sure I could find something in a store. Downside: so small, I don’t think people would be able to see them well enough to know if they wanted to compete for them.
(screen shot from Amazon.com)
3. Cute holiday labels. These are only $5, so maybe I’d get a few sets of them, or maybe the labels plus the perpetual calendar, or maybe get an assortment of labels at a store, or maybe get labels plus some nice gift bags and the super fancy bows that are like $2-3 each. I would compete for gift-wrapping supplies this time of year. But perhaps the idea is too much practical and too little fun.
4. Coffee mug, bag of coffee. But I think many people in the group get drive-through coffee, or have a Keurig. A similar idea would be $15 coffee-shop gift card. We have a new coffee shop in town, so that might be a fun place to get it from.
5. Nice bath product. This isn’t one of the ideas I’m going to use, because I think in my particular group the general spending level is higher than mine—so what I think of as “nice” (Aussie 3-minute Miracle) the others are likely to think of as “cheap drugstore.”
6. Something DELIBERATELY awful. I’m not sure any Yankee Swap is complete without the white elephant item—ideally something that can be brought back year after year. Heavily-jeweled letter-opener. Largish decorative animal figurine.
7. Fancy eats. I’ve been shopping for similar things for Paul’s sister’s Christmas box. I found some fancy teabags that come in little pyramid boxes, and a tin of Starbucks hot cocoa, and thin Swedish ginger cookies, and the little Lindt Santa-and-reindeer set that’s about 1 ounce of chocolate for $3, and so on.
(screen shot from Amazon.com)
8. The Good Mother Myth: Redefining Motherhood to Fit Reality. I have this on my own wish list this year, and all of us are mothers, and this sort of topic has come up before in our group. But I think I want something more FUN for the Yankee Swap: I don’t picture tipsy women fighting over this book.
(screen shot from Amazon.com)
9. Something wine-themed, such as these silly insulated wine glasses, or this glass with different levels marked for good day, bad day, or “don’t even ask,” or this collapsible wine flask, or the “Wine: How Classy People Get Wasted” retro metal sign. You would think we were a bunch of utter lushes by the number of wine-themed jokes we send each other on Facebook. I think playing into that theme would lead to an increase in fun.
10. Christmas nail polish set—something with sparkles and/or art pens. Most of us have at least one daughter, too.
11. Mrs. Meyer’s Iowa-Pine-scented stuff. They have this at Target. I could get a bottle of hand soap, a bottle of countertop spray, a candle.
12. A little live holiday plant. Our grocery store has a couple kinds of pine trees and also a little holly bush.
(screen shot from Amazon.com)
13. Page-a-day calendar. I’ve had this Metropolitan Museum of Art one for the past two years and have been very happy with it. But again, not something I’d think of as a HOT TICKET item.
That’s my preliminary list, before going shopping. I was wondering if any of you had Yankee Swap experience and could recommend Hot Ticket items.
[Also see Yankee Swap Gift Ideas, Post 2.]
It seem so mundane, but really soft or plush throw blankets always do really well at those kinds of swaps! They’re pretty universally liked and since they’re so neutral I think they’re a popular item for people who don’t necessarily like the other options presented (maybe they don’t drink wine or wear earrings or enjoy baths …. whatever. If they don’t like any of the available options, they will still probably like something soft and warm that their family can get use out of!)
First of all, I pulled the trigger on Wet Brushes for the girls based on your review, so thanks for the push I needed!
My husband’s family plays this game AND his office does, too. The office leans more toward the White Elephant end of the scale, but years and years of bringing a crap gift gets tiring so we try to chose something nice. In my experience, you can rarely guess what the hot ticket item is going to be. One year at the family party it was a nice wastebasket.
I think you have a lot of great ideas, any of which I would be thrilled to bring home. Last year we ended up with a smoke detector from the office game.
The insulated wine cups!! You can’t go wrong with those, given what you have said about the group. Done and done!
Scratch tickets are always popular. Scratch Tickets with a Christmas ornament maybe?
I love the no-spill wine tumblers. I’d be fighting for those!
#6- for years, my friends and I have done a swap, and every year, someone goes home with a Chihuahua shaped taco holder. It’s fabulous.
OMG- Wonder Woman Snuggie! http://www.amazon.com/48-Inch-71-Inch-Sleeves-Northwest-Company/dp/B004ESK8L0/ref=pd_sim_sg_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=09QBRDZEZWJ5NR10FYSC
We were invited to a party that happened tonight and I only read the comments to here. I saw Wonder Woman Snuggie and bought one right then! Ours was an outrageous/silly exchange, and I won the award for bringing the hot ticket item! Thanks for this! :)
This sounds much better than the white elephant parties my work used to do, where the general understanding was “Bring the crappiest/weirdest thing you can think of.” I didn’t even want to participate. I like that you all bring actual, nice gifts, with maybe a funny/weird one thrown in. (I’d LOVE a rainbow set of spatulas! So fun!)
I also prefer not to buy gift cards for swaps, and almost never do, but they’re always the most fought over items. I can’t think of any item that’s been stolen more than, say, a Coldstone creamery gift card. Or one to the fancy cupcake shop. But I like to shop!! I want to have fun with it!
This year I have to buy four swap gifts – two events, both requiring one from my husband and one from me. So far I only have one item: a Humans of New York hardcover book.
Oh, and I’d totally have bought a book for each swap, but I bought on black friday when you could get it for $10.50 on Amazon. You could only buy one, though, and now it’s $17.99. The guidleline for our swaps is $10ish. This is why I like to shop – I can find deals and get something more expensive.
Wine drip ring/drip stopper/collar? http://www.beveragefactory.com/wine/accessories/coasters.shtml?i=all&o=1
Brix chocolate? http://brixchocolate.com/
I am intrigued with different Yankee Swap rules. One of my favorites was family with a $10 limit on the most random items (box of chocolates, dish soap and a scrub brush, jeweled framed photo of controversial political figure, $10 in change, etc) and no one could shake or open anything until every gift from the pile was distributed. Over the years it turned into crazy unique wrapping jobs. It is so bizarre to see what becomes the coveted hot item. I have never been to one where you open a gift before deciding whether to steal a different.
Personally I would try to steal the practical gift tags and wrapping supplies, but I also love the idea of gaudy/bedazzled item to laugh over (though seems more mean if swapping is always done unopened.)
A couple of things I’ve brought to Yankee Swaps (we don’t call them that, but now I can’t remember what we do call them) that have done well:
1. Two or three unusual spices/ingredients and handwritten recipe cards to go with them (maple flakes, lavender, that sort of thing). This is usually my go-to swap gift and it has never failed me.
2. A big popcorn bucket, popping corn and oil and a few different popcorn flavorings.
3. Wine jelly, usually one jar of cabernet and one jar of chardonnay, complete with the fabric/ribbon/labels on the jar to match the season. (This is probably more effort than you’re willing to put in, but it’s surprisingly easy to make and tastes SO GOOD. You cook the alcohol out of it so you’re essentially left with grape jelly that tastes like your favorite wine.)
I particularly like #s 1, 9 and 12 from your list. Usually when I’ve done these swaps it’s been with my husband’s relatives and there are some younger participants, so I haven’t been able to do the wine thing except with the jelly. I WISH!
Years ago I bought an inexpensive glass plate (salad size) and used ModPodge to decorate the back side with pictures from a magazine so the pictures could be seen from the front of the plate. I chose Newsweek and their “Year in Review” pictures that were funny (nothing serious or depressing). It was a HUGE hit and became the item no one wanted so when the stealing occurred, the current owner would bribe people to take it. It appeared annually after that until someone “lost” it. In addition to the plate, I included a $10 box of variety chocolates (unusual foods covered in chocolate that actually taste wonderful) made locally. While those are usually coveted, they were practically ignored next to the plate!
After it was lost, someone suggested I make another one out of an Oprah magazine. I never did but it might be a fun idea.
I’ve used Yankee swap and white elephant exchange interchangeably here in the northeast. The gifts that were most popular at our swap last year with a group in our late 20s, none with kids, was a holiday themed pine tree like you mentioned, and cute slippers with that sock money face on them.
At a work one I bought a reusable bag of fancy pistachios. If you like that kind of thing (I don’t) it seemed like a nice surprise. I also recall a New Kids On the Block puzzle being quite popular (younger crowd).
Of your list I would covet the wine sippy cups or the good day, bad day, or “don’t even ask,”. Those are awesome.
We do that in Canada, but the rules are slightly different. The second person either steals the first present OR unwraps one. Then there’s the added element of the gamble: you *could* get something better/more fun if you unwrap, or you could go with what you already know and steal.
The bottles of wine are always the most fought over. One year someone at our work swap brought a sex toy (an@l be@ds) and that was certainly the gift no one wanted to end up with — at least not in front of all their co-workers. There was one rather hideous Christmas-themed sculpted candle that showed up for 4 years in a row. Otherwise, most things were spatulas or other kitchen gadgets, wine, books, scarves, or chocolates.
I hadn’t realized it was a Canadian thing, but we do it the same way as Carmen – you either steal a known, or choose an unknown from the pile and are stuck with it if you don’t like it unless someone steals it from you. If someone steals your gift you have to choose from the unwrapped pile and are stuck with whatever that is whether you like it or not, unless, again, someone steals your new gift.
I’d never heard a specific name for it until my current job, where the francophones call it (in French) a “Chinese gift exchange”. I like your name better though. By the way, none of the francophones can say why it’s called that, but they also call Shepherd’s Pie “Pâté Chinois”, which is roughly translated as Chinese pâté (there doesn’t seem to be a good direct translation of pâté, but it’s a mix of meat and spices cooked together, and is reminiscent of a chunky liverwurst (it’s better than it sounds)), and they don’t know why they call it that either.
I am from Alberta, and these are our rules, too! :)
For a similar party this weekend I bought two packs of Target notecards & envelopes – they have some really pretty designs in packs of 10 cards for $5 or so. Always nice to have notecards around!
OH, also, a great wine-related gift is wine glass charms, to tell everyone’s glasses apart at a party! Christmas-themed ones would be fun. :)
I just bought wine glass markers for stocking stuffers! Easy way to keep track of glasses if you throw parties. They would be nice with a bottle of wine.
http://www.crateandbarrel.com/silver-wine-glass-writer/s241306
What about the hairbrush from the previous post? Presumably, they all have hair! It might be perfect!!!
We do this at church, asking for white elephants specifically, so most people see it as a regifting/decluttering opportunity, as opposed to buying something for the swap. It can be an absolute hoot. The sweetest folks can get really aggressive, especially if they spot something a grandkid would like. There’s this very 1980s wallet that’s gone around for years. Your attitudinal outlook is spot-on; I would also recommend moderate expectations for how one’s contribution will be received. To be honest, I’m still pretty rankled that my item last year became the dreaded thing nobody wanted, because I was expecting it to be the big hit. We also have numerous door prizes, so folks have a good chance of going home with at least one thing they like. Boxes of chocolate are also fun; I got one once and decided to share it right then, which felt good.
Of this list I would want the plant or the wine glass with the “bad day” lines whichi am seriously considering buying myself.
They had SUCH pretty champagne glasses withhold dots at home goods and I think that’s what I’d bring. I also might have to go back and buy those for myself.
We’re having one for our department which is $20 and we have 5 women and 2 men. So. I’m thinking maybe of doing a basket with wine and a Starbucks gift card. Maybe.
Before I saw your list I was thinking of your category 9 since it’s a wine group. I’ve given & gotten the “don’t even ask” glass as a gift & gave a friend one from my Hallmark store that says “Age gets better with wine.” Or accessories – a bottle stopper, glass charms…
Agree with the scratch-off ticket someone suggested above, if of course your state has that sort of thing. It was definitely a fought over item! I can’t remember what I stuck with them but something else small in case the tickets were duds so the receiver would not be completely empty handed. The cards weren’t duds, thankfully!
I would totally fight for #8.
I sometimes do a fake out gift and it usually makes people laugh. I’ll go to Goodwill and get something HIDEOUS. The uglier and larger, the better. Then, on the bottom, I’ll tape a $10 gift card for somewhere fun/tasty and see how long it take people to notice it is there. Sometimes this causes a nice last minute reshuffling of gifts.
Wendy, I LOVE this idea–totally going to use it at my husband’s family party this year. Thank you! :)
I would fight over an Mrs. Meyer’s candle, particularly the pine.
1. fancy bottles (usually 24 oz) of craft beer – lots of women will grab them for men in their lives
2. PooPuri – off amazon, apparently really works and is a fun gift to pass around
I would grab them for myself! but yes a great idea!
My favorite from your list – by far – was #9.
I might also highlight this fun trivia/wine drinking game: http://www.uncommongoods.com/product/zinzig-game
Or this smore maker machine: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B001447LEE/?tag=googhydr-20&hvadid=43946076363&hvpos=1t1&hvexid=&hvnetw=g&hvrand=4017252129782520986&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=b&hvdev=c&ref=pd_sl_1zap423625_b
My partner was a huge hit one year when we went to a friend’s work party – it was a $5 limit, and he was limited to what he could find at the grocery store, since he hadn’t known he’d be going. A *massive* sale on potatoes led to him bringing a 25-lb box with him to the event. They played a version where you didn’t open presents until the end, but his box was fought over viciously until then, and then split up amongst everyone at the end.
I’ve done ones where the rules were like Carmen’s – you get to pick a new gift to open *or* steal, but you’re gambling a bit either way. At those, I’ve had good luck with mugs, fancy tea + honey, or fleecey blankets. I also really like the ideas of fancy spices + recipe cards, fancy wrapping supplies, and taping a gift card to the bottom of an atrocious goodwill item.
I love the wine bottle or Mrs. Meyers ideas,mostly because those are things I would want. The new coffee shop gift card idea is great, too. My idea is to buy something you really want and fight for your own gift. I had a friend do that once ( for a set of mixing bowls, of all things) and it was hilarious to all involved!
Oh wait! I do have an idea, and I’ve seen them for $15ish at TJ Maxx…if it’s a wine group, the rabbit wine bottle opener is AMAZING!
I run with a geekier crowd, but I had a big hit last year with the Hyperbole and a Half book. If that’s too obscure for your crowd you might have good luck with Calvin and Hobbes or Doonesbury, depending on the group.
The cool gift I took home from that geeky yankee swap was a super-cute ninja USB drive (http://www.bonecollection.com/en/products/detail/ninja-driver/)
But the items people fight over the most are gift cards and/or giant bars of chocolate.
I vote going with the fun wine theme, especially since everyone likes it. I have those insulated wine glasses and they are awesome! And I just saw that there are santa themed ones. Perfect.
Would love to hear how it goes, I have never actually participated in one of these.
I am so surprised not to see more people say this event is called a White Elphant gift exchange, which in my corner of the US (Pacific NW) can be either nice or silly/crappy gifts. I’ve also never heard of opening the gift and then stealing. You either steal, or open a new one and that’s your gift. Third person touching the gift keeps it. I sense a poll is needed…
I’ve heard it called a White Elephant Exchange, but only when all the gifts are silly or used—since “white elephant” is a negative term.
I was just having a talk with a friend who lives in the Midwest about this. In her area they call it White Elephant, when I lived in NJ it was Yankee swap, and in Alabama it is mostly Dirty Santa.
I recently was surprised when I brought a set of Pyrex dishes with lids, that I thought was dull, and it was well liked!
I’m from the PNW as well, and have always heard it called a white elephant exchange, because the gifts are supposed to be of low cost/value/just for fun rather than serious gifts, and then you add in the stealing aspect of it. My workplace is doing one this year where each gift can only be stolen twice, so if you’re the second one to steal an item, you get to keep it. Should be interesting.
My church youth groups always did these, and I hated them. My family was really, really poor when I was a kid–like, we got gifts from the gift tree at the bank kind of poor, you know, the ones where you take a tag labeled “14 year old girl” or “3 year old boy.” So the white elephant exchanges were a special hell for me, because I would get a gift that I liked and would be happy to keep, and then it would get stolen. And if I was lucky enough to end up with another cool gift, it would get stolen. I was always the kid going home with a set of Christmas-themed dishtowels or similar. But now, thanks to Swistle, I have a new outlook on these: I’m a grown woman now, with a job and money, and if a cool gift gets stolen from me, I can go out on Sunday and buy one for myself–and of course, nowadays I realize one can always use more dishtowels! ;)
Sort of in category 6, an over the top/ugly Christmas decoration or garden ornament. Provides much entertainment at the time, but also because it’s either seasonal or can be hidden in the garden, is less of an imposition than other deliberately weird presents.
If you play it so that each person can either open a gift OR steal a gift, how do you handle (1) the people who don’t have a gift because theirs were taken and (2) the presents left over? Does everyone who doesn’t have a present anymore get to open another? If so, in what order do they do that, and at what point in the game?
If yours gets stolen you get another turn right then. Then it goes to the next person in line. That’s how ones I’ve been to have worked.
I mention how this works above under Carmen’s post.
My old work used to play with these rules too – either steal, or open a new one. If yours was stolen, then you could go right then – either steal, or open a new one.
We also had a limit on steals though – each item could be stolen three times max before it was “retired.” This stopped us from getting into an endless cycle of stealing a hot item over and over and nothing ever getting unwrapped.
We call that Dirty Santa. The last one went to, I had bought the Christmas elf car decoration. That turned out to be the most stolen gift that night.
We draw numbers. #1 chooses a gift, but doesn’t open it. #2 chooses or steals. If he steals, #1 chooses another. When all have a gift, #1 opens, or trades and opens, #2 opens, trades and opens or perhaps trades for #1’s. And so on. By the end of round 2, all are open. Then however many rounds you like of stealing, usually 3, with #1 getting a final pick.
I’ve only ever been to these when they’re explicitly White Elephant Gift Exchanges….which is why my favorite thing to bring is a can of sardines (or something similar.) Here’s the reasoning:
1) My husband and I actually eat & like sardines
2) If someone gets the sardines and is sad about it, I can later make them happy by swapping my gift with them. This makes me happy because there is very rarely anything in a gift exchange that I like better than something I could buy myself, and a can of sardines is just savings off of our grocery bill. It’s a little grinch-ish, but it makes the gift exchange more fun if people actually do trade gifts, and nobody feels obligated to pretend they want to keep sardines if they don’t.
I suppose not appropriate for this particular exchange, but I was at one once that had the HUGE bottle of Absolut from Costco. That thing flew around the circle SO fast (well, we had a limit to the number of steals a gift could go through – 4?) Anyway. The person who finally ended up with it, cracked it open, and…. filled with water. Oh how we all LAUGHED at that! Such a good one.
So interesting to see the variations in the game! I have only played it where everyone starts with a number, 1 picks first and opens, then 2 either steals or picks and opens. If 2 steals from 1, 1 picks and opens next, then 3 either picks and opens or steals from 1 or 2. It seems like opening then rejecting what was opened would lead to more hurt feelings?
Also: I would totally fight for the cute labels. I have actually picked in the past based on cutest/most reusable bows or ribbons. (It is possible but probably unethical to sweep cute bows that *decorated* the gift you opened into ones’ lap after opening, not to be stolen as the game moves on….)
This is what I got for my dept.’s white elephant since they are all wino’s. Also got a cute corkscrew to go along with:
http://www.fredandfriends.com/party/wine%27o/WINEO.html#start=11
My favorite gifts for these types of exchanges are things from the company Fred and Friends. They make around-the-house type products (mostly kitchen and office supplies) that are designed to look like other things–for example, measuring cups shaped like nesting dolls and scrub brushes that look like magic wands. They have some wine-themed items as well! Most of their stuff is in the $10-ish range and available on Amazon.
Hot ticket items have always been alcohol, gift cards, and throw blankets at the swaps I have been to.
This year I am putting i.n something I would like to end up with (some cool modern Christmas decorations) if there isn’t anything else that sticks out to me. I kind of despise getting useless junk and trying to figure out what to do with it.
I won this game with a can of Spotted Dick. It’s a British dessert item, but you can just imagine. World Market has it, and last week I saw it in the English foods section of the local supermarket. Not sure how to top that this year.
I didn’t know what to bring to one of these, once, so I brought an Elephant Butt Calendar. You heard me. Surprisingly, people swapped for it.
The next year, I saw another calendar, and thought it would make a good swap gift. It was “Famous Cheeses” and then they were named things like “Paris Chilton.”
This is just a great gift list, period. Any of these would be awesome for everybody. (“Awesome for everybody” is a phrase that my now-21-year-old used when he was about 5, and my sister and I use it to describe anything that is, well, awesome for everybody. It’s yours now, too)
My girls just got invited to a party in which this kind of game is going to be played. Can I just say that I appreciate it that none of the names you guys gave for this was what was listed on their invitation. The invitation listed it as a “chinese gift exchange.” I can’t even begin to tell you how much this set me off.
You have some great ideas here! Just want to throw a thought into the mix. It’s possible that you know that everyone at the event celebrates Christmas, in which case, no big deal. But otherwise, you may want to think twice about items that are only for people who celebrate Christmas (e.g., Christmas tree earrings). I once went to an event like this at work. I know that the point isn’t necessarily to get something that you really want. But it was uncomfortable for me that although it was called a “holiday” party, at least half of the items were Christmas themed. So some of the items that were coveted for others were actually not useful to me (e.g., Santa themed comfy socks) and it made me not want to participate in the future. Just a thought to keep in mind…
One of the other comments also reminded me that years ago my friends and I did this and there was a lava lamp that kept returning every year. The trick was to guess which was the lava lamp so you didn’t end up with it, so every year people would wrap it more and more disguised. Great fun.
A Lava Lamp!?! I would SO steal that!!!
I know, right? My office used to do this exchange, and the year someone brought a lava lamp, half the people wanted it. (I know I did!)
Yes, you’re right: I do know they all celebrate Christmas. Otherwise I probably wouldn’t risk the specifically Christmas things.
At My librarian staff party the hot item is always a holiday decoration.
#9 struck me as a great gift for the group you’re describing. Tim Horton’s gift cards are stolen in the office exchange here BIG TIME. I try to avoid the generic toiletries/tea/coffee/candles/chocolate because they are the fallback when you have no idea what to get people so they don’t really stand out as particularly interesting, but they are certainly safe. I am a photographer so I’ll often include one of my mini-calendars with something else so there’s a bit of a personal touch.
If you have time to get something shipped though, Etsy is my go-to place for super-cute, unique handmade gifts. Or hey, Etsy also does gift cards that many of the Etsy shops take, and I know that I and most of the people I know would LOVE to get one of those!
I love the wine tumblers and/or wine sign. I always get a hot movie on sale at Target on Black Friday (Magic Mike/Pitch Perfect) for our Bunco gift exchange. I love movies but don’t like to buy them for myself, so I like to gift them. I also agree with the throw blanket idea.
Just read about somewhere these new pens that you write on wine glasses with–keep your own glass sorted out from everyone else, no trying to remember your “charm” which I never do BUT I never miss my great big cursive L like Laverne used to wear!!
ok found them on amazon!! http://www.amazon.com/Wine-Enthusiast-3-Pack-Writer-Metallic/dp/B009SLJDYG/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1417851653&sr=8-1&keywords=wine+glass+pens cool no??
I just put the Superman Snuggie in my Amazon cart for my family Yankee Swap. Great idea! I’m going to check out the lava lamps before I click “BUY”.
We called this a White Elephant Swap in college. My go-to was something random from the Container Store. One year I picked up a bunch of those clear acrylic boxes and nested them together like matroshka dolls. It was a good size and got fought over. Then it was unwrapped and the guy that won it kept opening boxes and got increasingly confused.
Oh, this is a good reminder to keep my expectations for my office Yankee Swap NICE AND LOW. The first year I got a Target gift card so I think my expectations were unrealistic last year when I got a water-infuser bottle thing that I ended up regifting.
THIS year I read this post and the comments and immediately went out and bought a cozy throw blankie from Marshalls. Let the bloodbath begin.
I am planning one of these exchanges for our staff holiday gathering in January (for about 40 people,) and have been puzzling over how to lay out the logistics to ensure efficiency AND fun; this post has been extraordinarily informative. I think I’m going to create a hybrid!