Work gift exchange

[apirateslifeforme]

Other than a 6-pack of "nice" beer (nothing mass produced) and/or those liquor-filled chocolate bottles, these have been popular at DH's various workplaces over the years:

Gift card for Target or Dunkin Donuts/Starbucks
Games (one year he gave "Fact or Crap," purchased at Five Below for $5, and they really fought over it)
Food/candy gift sets
Poo-pourri toilet spray (believe it or not)
Thermal travel mug and bag of coffee/box of K-cups
Wireless Bluetooth speakers
Adult coloring books and colored pencils

I have several things in our closet for this year, just in case - a 4-pack gift set of gourmet hot cocoa, a 4-pack gift set of flavored coffee syrups, the aforementioned thermal travel mug and a "12 Coffees of Christmas" K-cup set, and a Poo-pourri gift set (2 regular size sprays and a pocket-sized spray).

 

[OhhBother]

At our work gift exchange, the most popular items tend to be oversized fleece throws, high-end snacks/treats and newly released books. Least-desired are soaps, candles, etc.

 

[disneychrista]

liquor-filled chocolate bottles.

Funny story about those liquor chocolates. I had some given to me and gave them to a co-worker/friend. He started eating them at work. Let’s just say not the smartest idea.

 

[RangerPooh]

Here are some items that turned out to be popular or that I received over the years during our office's exchange.
-Cookie jar
-Wine glasses, and redneck wine glasses
-Alcohol
-M&M dispenser with extra M&Ms
-Baking dishes
-Movie tickets
-Cougar Gold Cheese [from the creamery that we had on campus]
-University branded items [we worked at a university]

 

[J'aime Paris]

Cash!!!
Always a winner!

Seriously, I make cash xmas trees using origami folds. (You can google a tutoral of how it's done)
I made them for all my older nieces/nephews last year, and they loved them!!

 

[Floridaman999]

Scratch off lottery tickets.

 

[disneychrista]

Cash!!!
Always a winner!

I'm an odd duck, I guess. I dislike cash as a gift more than I dislike giftcards. At least with the giftcard, if the person is buying it specifically for me there is a hope they didn't get me one to Target, Walmart or something I don't like/want but got me one for Starbucks or iTunes.

 

[disneychrista]

Thank you for this ideas. I don't really know these people all that well but they all seem to drink coffee and we do have a Keurig. So maybe a k-cup pack and and a mug would work.

 

[J'aime Paris]

I'm an odd duck, I guess. I dislike cash as a gift more than I dislike giftcards. At least with the giftcard, if the person is buying it specifically for me there is a hope they didn't get me one to Target, Walmart or something I don't like/want but got me one for Starbucks or iTunes.

I've literally never heard of anyone who disliked cash?!?
To each their own....

 

[disneychrista]

I've literally never heard of anyone who disliked cash?!?
To each their own....

I love cash...just not as a gift.

I know a lot of people like to get it so they can buy what they really want. I would rather a person giving me a gift know me well enough to already KNOW what I would like as a gift. In all honesty don't really enjoy the entire gift exchange thing. In fact my family stopped exchanging gifts several years ago.

 

[tarheelmjfan]

I've literally never heard of anyone who disliked cash?!?
To each their own....

My DH despises getting cash for a gift. In his opinion, if everyone is going to exchange money or gift cards, why would you bother exchanging gifts at all? Why doesn't everyone just keep their own money? What's the point in swapping money? We have a large family. DH is the only one of the BILs that everyone puts thought into his gift & buys him something. The others get money or gift cards. It's not because we have the most money & couldn't use more. We have family members with a lot more money than we have. It's simply not about the money for him & they all know that. He'd be fine with us traveling 12 hours to share a meal with them on Christmas Eve, without exchanging gifts at all. He just wants it to be more personal than swapping money, if we are exchanging gifts.

I realize you're discussing office not family, but some do prefer an actual gift, instead of cash for Christmas.

 

[bigbabyblues]

At my previous job, the really cute decorative snowmen were what people always "stole" during the gift exchange, along with a similar Santa one year. There were a couple other popular things, but that was always the biggest.

 

[disneychrista]

if everyone is going to exchange money or gift cards, why would you bother exchanging gifts at all? Why doesn't everyone just keep their own money? What's the point in swapping money?.

My thought exactly. And why we stoped exchanging “gifts”. You give me cash. I give you a gift card. What was the point.

 

[bellebud]

gift cards, throw blankets are always a hit, kitchen items that are used a lot ("good" pot holders/dish towels). I'd stay away from lotions & candles.

 

[allison443]

I understand you don’t like to receive gift cards, but most people probably do. So not sure why the opposition to giving a gift card if it’s something the recipient would like. This is a casual coworker gift exchange not family or friends!

 

[design_mom]

I am also not a fan of receiving cash or gift cards as a personal gift... unless it's something like "I know you're saving for a ___. I hope this helps."

But I think an office gift exchange is different. Since you truly DON'T know who will receive your gift, all gifts will be impersonal. I think gift cards are OK in a situation like that, especially if you wrap them nicely/cleverly rather than just "here's a gift card." At one office gift exchange that I participated in, someone gave a gift card to Starbucks. But instead of just throwing the gift card into an envelope, or gift bag, they also got a clean cup/lid/sleeve from Starbucks. They put the gift card in the cup, put the lid/sleeve on, then wrapped the cup. It was a nicer "reveal" than just a gift card.

Gift cards and nice packaged food items seem to be well received most of the time.

 

[disneychrista]

not sure why the opposition to giving a gift card if it’s something the recipient would like.

Two reasons...ONE - How do I know what gift card to get for people I don't really know. Do they like Starbucks? Chipotle? Do they shop at Walmart?. TWO it sounded like a physical gift was intended.

 

[Southernmiss]

I've decided that for our family dirty Santa I am going to Dollar Tree and buying $20- $25 of random stuff- toilet paper, toothpaste, kitchen items, snacks, decorative item, paper plates, can of corn, whatever strikes me.

 

[disneychrista]

I've decided that for our family dirty Santa I am going to Dollar Tree and buying $20- $25 of random stuff- toilet paper, toothpaste, kitchen items, snacks, decorative item, paper plates, can of corn, whatever strikes me.

The last years that I filled stalking for my then older teen/adult daughters it was all practical stuff - deodarant, toothpaste, shampoo, body wash etc. Stuff they were by then buying themselves. Of course I added a few treats (candy, gum, etc).

 

[Christine]

We have a White Elephant every year. Our old boss set a limit of $20. The new one has us at $10 (which is tough). We have a range of employees from ages of late-20s up through late-60s, mostly women some men.

Over the years, the most popular gifts are:

1. Booze of any kind.
2. Appliances or cookware (they went wild over some pyrex baking dishes and a pizza stone).
3. Really nice to-go thermos type mugs.
4. Amazon Firestick (you used to be able to get these for $20 on certain days of the year).
5. Movie Passes with candy
6. Gift cards