White Elephant Gift Ideas?

[singingpixie]

For our work Christmas party, we've decided to do a White Elephant exchange, with a $10 price range. I'm totally at a loss as to what to get!

We're about half women/half men. I'm the youngest at 23, and the oldest is in his late 30s (but acts younger). Most everyone else is in their late 20s.

Any ideas? I'm terrified of providing the gift that no one wants!

 

[Christine]

Pardon my ignorance but is a "White Elephant" exchange the same as a dirty santa exchange? Never heard the term White Elephant.

 

[Southern4sure]

I thought the idea of the white elephant gift is NOT to want it and you wind up with it.

Dirty Santa is you want the gift and steal it.

 

[Christine]

I thought the idea of the white elephant gift is NOT to want it and you wind up with it.

Dirty Santa is you want the gift and steal it.

Ahhh, that makes sense!! Just never heard of White Elephant.

So, to me, White Elephant would mean to buy something stupid, like a gag gift (my co-worker bought a great flatulance machine--with remote--at CVS for $9.99).

 

[Hercules10]

Depends on your office atmoshere. But one year I went to our "Condoms to Go" store and they had a whole isle of mostly adult white elephant gifts. I bought a Santa hat with a little red flashing ~ahem~ 'do-dad' on the top. Two women fought over it cause they wanted to wear it to their own Xmas parties (One moonlights as a DJ).

 

[Southern4sure]

About 3 yrs ago, I was the recipient of a box that contained leftover 1999 New Years party hats, horns and etc. The gift does not have to be new.

 

[PRINCESS VIJA]

I think it depends on the area maybe, because white elephant up here is a gift you want.


One year I did a gift certificate to blockbuster and scratch off lottery tickets. EVERYONE wanted that gift!

 

[Christine]

I found this definition on www.santalady.com:

Traditionally, a "White Elephant" is something lying around the house that you don't want (some horridly ugly item that someone gave you as a gift or some other item unwanted for some reason). I am of the belief that in most parts of the country, if you tell someone to bring a White Elephant gift it will almost certainly be a gag gift and not something genuinely useful or desirable.

Based on that, I guess you buy a stupid gift.

But, if don't want to do that, what has REALLY gone over well at our office exchanges are ANY gifts containing alcohol. Unique microbrews of beer are good or a bottle of wine. Lottery tickets are another popular item.

 

[Mkrop]

yeah I am confused too.

If you are looking for the gift everyone wants, at our office it was always alcohol, or one year and I won it and my kids love it, was a Phila Eagles Dr Suess Hat.

If it is a bad gift, and you dont have anything at home, you could always do a Chia pet.

 

[marshallandcartersmo]

Yikes! I guess I need to change my Christmas party invitations.............

We call ours a White Elephant gift exchange, but it's not for a crappy gift. Everyone just brings one gift to exchange and you can pick the gift you'd like based on the number you draw out of a hat. Here's our instructions I put on our invitation:

White Elephant Rules: Each person that brings a gift draws a number from a hat. Person with #1 gets to choose whatever gift they would like to open. Person that chose #2 gets to either open a new gift, or they may take the 1st persons gift in lieu of their gift. If that happens, the 1st person goes and chooses anther gift to open. Game continues with 3rd person getting to take either the 1st or 2nd persons gift or they can open a new on, and so on with the remaining people. At the end of the game, the person who drew #1 gets to choose any gift in the room they would like and exchange their current gift with that gift, or they may keep the one they already have.

 

[Christine]

Yikes! I guess I need to change my Christmas party invitations.............

We call ours a White Elephant gift exchange, but it's not for a crappy gift. Everyone just brings one gift to exchange and you can pick the gift you'd like based on the number you draw out of a hat. Here's our instructions I put on our invitation:

White Elephant Rules: Each person that brings a gift draws a number from a hat. Person with #1 gets to choose whatever gift they would like to open. Person that chose #2 gets to either open a new gift, or they may take the 1st persons gift in lieu of their gift. If that happens, the 1st person goes and chooses anther gift to open. Game continues with 3rd person getting to take either the 1st or 2nd persons gift or they can open a new on, and so on with the remaining people. At the end of the game, the person who drew #1 gets to choose any gift in the room they would like and exchange their current gift with that gift, or they may keep the one they already have.

Yeah, I *might* change the name because "white elephant" signifies something unusual or odd and that might confuse people. What you are doing is a "dirty Santa" because of the gift stealing. To have a good gift "fight" you need to have a good gift.

But, hey, if everyone in your area is on board with White Elephant meaning good gifts then you have no problem.

 

[singingpixie]

From what my boss is describing, it sounds like we're going with something people might actually want. With the $10 price range in mind, booze might be the way to go. I can't think of much else generic enough to please anyone, but not some random gift set or something that's really impersonal. (To me personally, those kinds of things always make me feel like it was a "have to get her something!" situation, ya know?)

 

[BroadwayGirl]

What about a holiday coffee mug (can get one from the $1 store) filled with scratch off lottery tickets. Its great for a man or a woman and while the cost can be around $10, the value could potentially be much higher.

 

[Green Tea]

If it is an athletic group, or even people who just walk occasionally, www.roadid.com is my suggestion for a real unisex gift for an exchange (we call it Dirty Santa) You can get a gift certificate for the amount of an ID plus shipping and enclose a flyer so they can personalize it with their own ID info and allergy/medical information. That is what I am taking to my Dirty Santa game, and I expect it to get stolen many times!

 

[Thats_for_Shore]

I wouldn't worry about buying something that's unisex.

A guy getting stuck with a scarf or fuzzy pink slippers would be funny to watch and joke about. At a $10 limit, it's more about the fun of it all, and not so much about getting the perfect gift.

At the dirty Santa party I went to, no one even knew who brought what gift, so unless you want to announce and brag that the "best" gift was yours, then no one will even know.

 

[terri01p]

Funny story....a lady at a job where
I once worked gave a christmas mug with a couple of lottery tickets inside, the guy that got it scratched off the tickets, one of which happen to be for 250.00 the lady that gave the mug insisted that the man share the winnings, he wouldn't and to this day they still don't speak because of that.

 

[Cindyluwho]

last year at our office party one of the favorite gifts was the Magic 8 Ball That one got "stolen" at least a half dozen times. Other popular ones are the Jesus statue that's like a magic 8 ball, kind of a "what would Jesus do" with the little answer thingie in the bottom. Kinda cool. hmmmm, another one was the toilet paper with pictures of Pres Bush on it. You gotta be careful not to offend anyone. Well, not at our office party, but at some office parties.

 

[momof3disneyholics]

Funny story....a lady at a job where
I once worked gave a christmas mug with a couple of lottery tickets inside, the guy that got it scratched off the tickets, one of which happen to be for 250.00 the lady that gave the mug insisted that the man share the winnings, he wouldn't and to this day they still don't speak because of that.

Do tell more of the story! Why on earth would the woman have thought the guy would have shared with her? It was HIS gift!!!

 

[Disney1fan2002]

We call ours a White Elephant gift exchange, but it's not for a crappy gift. Everyone just brings one gift to exchange and you can pick the gift you'd like based on the number you draw out of a hat. Here's our instructions I put on our invitation:

White Elephant Rules: Each person that brings a gift draws a number from a hat. Person with #1 gets to choose whatever gift they would like to open. Person that chose #2 gets to either open a new gift, or they may take the 1st persons gift in lieu of their gift. If that happens, the 1st person goes and chooses anther gift to open. Game continues with 3rd person getting to take either the 1st or 2nd persons gift or they can open a new on, and so on with the remaining people. At the end of the game, the person who drew #1 gets to choose any gift in the room they would like and exchange their current gift with that gift, or they may keep the one they already have.

We call that a YANKEE SWAP up here.

 

[sweetandsassyfl]

I've heard it called a Chinese Gift Exchange.