white elephant parties presents a unique challenge: Can you find something interesting or fun enough within a set budget that a group of people, who are potentially strangers, will fight to take it home?
If you’re headed to your first white elephant gift exchange, here’s a brief explanation of what’s about to happen. Everyone will bring a wrapped gift (often for a certain price, like $25) and place them in a pile or in a central location, and then each person will draw a number to see the order. When your number is called, you can choose and unwrap a gift from the pile, or steal one that has already been unwrapped by someone. Most exchanges will have a limit on how often you can steal a gift (usually about three times), so if you have the best gift in your hands, there’s no guarantee you’ll be able to keep it. If your gift is stolen, you can unwrap a new one or steal a different gift (no returns, sorry).
The real thrill comes from finding something great among a bunch of who knows what. Some people bring joke gifts, others bring alcohol to be safe, and some gifts will look like trash to you, but jewelry to others. Here are some gifts I recommend bringing, from quirky to cool. There’s also something in this guide for every potential price limit.
Looking for more gift ideas? Don’t miss our other amazing gift guides, including the best gifts under $30, the best gifts for cold people, the best gifts for moms, and the best gifts for outdoor people.
