We've got a few "white elephant" parties this season. Y'know...the ones where you bring some funny gift and play the round robin game and hope you don't get stuck with the fuzzy dice/New Kids on the Block CD/Chia Pet at the end.In the past I've given some good ones. My favorite: a box of really nice chocolates all wrapped up pretty with a big bite taken out of every one.
At one party I attended, a wife donated an 8x10 framed photo of her husband. He is quite handsome, so it went around several times.
Another guest came empty-handed and then "lifted" a few items from the hostess' family room, wrapped them up (quietly, in the powder room) and popped them onto the gift pile.
Also, there was a plastic Abdominizer that went around for several years.
But this year I'm fresh out of ideas. What are some great White Elephants circling around in your neck of the woods?
20 comments:
I've never been good at this kind of thing. Good luck coming up with something good. Let us know what you decide on!
Once Russ wrapped an empty box and when I opened it, he promptly jumped up and started a strip-tease to reavel a funny disco-type shirt. Cheryl was mortified. She had no idea he had planned that. It was hilarious and it is still going around.
Another great one a few years back was someone had gotten an 'employee of the month' plaque made up at a trophy shop. She made it for McDonald's and hod some of the men from the party put on the plaque. Of course, that got passed around and fought over big time!
My crazy cat lady action figure is pretty funny. This year we bought cat butt stickers, but we can't go to the party this year, so I'll save them for next year.
I'd say this is a perfect opportunity to shed yourself of one too many Andean hats...
Really, though, you should surprise yourself and your husband with a trip to Peru. Lima is nothing to write home about, but Machu Picchu is stunning as is most of the rest of the country - you would not be sorry.
Not sure the gifts from the host's house can be topped! Seriously? That took a lot of nerve--and stealth.
Good luck, I'm always at a loss for these types of things.
Three things:
One Viagra pill.
A do-rag. Do you know what that is?
A box of Magnum XL condoms (I know, there's a theme).
Good luck. I wish I could come. No one's invited me to anything this year. I wonder if it is due to the gifts....
Rochelle! That Russ...I can totally imagine it. I would love to hang out with your crowd. Soooo much fun.
CeliaFae! Someone did bring the medication you mentioned one year. No one wanted it...
Linsey! Good hat idea. And, yes, I want to head to Peru. Will you still be there in a couple years?
Rochelle's are awesome.
I've always been confused about the white elephant gift giving. I always thought they were supposed to be funny gifts, but the last few parties I've gone to they were nice gifts, and not at all funny. Do people prefer the nice boring gifts?
I once received a package of depends, no one tried to take it away from me.
Do you have a DI or Salvation Army near? I bet you could mull around there for a while and get lots of ideas. Anytime I go there I wonder what people were thinking when they once owned many of the items. Good luck!
I'm always scared that the nice gift I gave last year will turn up in the white elephant pile! What do you say? Do you acknowledge it? Would the person you gave it to be embarrassed if they realized? Or do you pretend it was meant to be a joke (even though it took weeks to think of and cost plenty)? I don't have the right sense of humor for this game. I just don't get it.
Okay, this might not be as funny as the other ones, but I've done it twice and it's always a big success. Go to costco and buy a gigantic thing of mustard for like 5 bucks. Put it wrapped beauticfully in a big box. It's cheap and it's pretty funny. I mean, who wants that much mustard? REALLY? I'm going to keep checking other people's ideas because we have a party coming up and I need something good. I like Celia's idea. But where do I get a viagra pill?
and Celia, why the DO rag? I don't get the do rag part.
A good Kirk Cameron poster. Except they are hard to disguise, so put it in a large box, or wrap it in a towel so it looks bunchy.
Oh these are so good. I have about 5 parties coming up. I'm going to try the chocolate thing, but I will be taking the bites out myself. And spitting it out because I don't want to wreck my diet, of course. We like lingerie at Mormon parties. Also, a picture ornament with a picture of yourself (husband) in it. Our big gift one year was a Wonder Woman Barbie. Hot. Maybe I should bring a McDreamy doll.
I love all these ideas; they'll go to good use next month! I am also always surprised at how many people bring NICE presents to white elephant parties! (They're called Yankee Swaps out here.)
We've done Homer Simpson chia pet, lame chip and dip server with Christmas frogs on it, and chicken chucker (a play gun that shoots mini rubber chickens) and seen lottery tickets, a bunch of clown noses, a magic 8 ball work really well. Um...I'm all out of memory! Have fun!
I think the chocolate idea sounds great. One year that got a Anna Nicole bobblehead (before she died) I thought that was pretty funny. We once got a dancing singing James Brown at KB toys. Good luck! Your party sounds like fun.
This is making me want to go to a white elephant party so bad! I haven't been to one in a long time but the last one I went to I wrapped up Dave's old see through speedo... sick I know but it was funny!
Anything you already wanted to get rid of from your kids toy box. Maybe a potpourri of McDonalds toys, a Barney movie or better yet I have a T-shirt with the Taco Bell chihuahua that says "Viva Gorditas."
Nothing beats the Viagra though. That's great Celia.
Jessica! Someone brought a Kirk Cameron poster to one of our parties once! I fought for it. I lost...
I didn't actually attend this party, but it's very funny: the hostess contacted the women and told them to bring something very dear to their husbands that someone else would see as a white elephant. (One woman brought her husband's scriptures from his mission--after all they were just hanging around in a box, etc. Another brought a favorite golf club. You get the idea) As each gift was opened, the expressions on the men's faces were priceless. It took them a while to catch on because they didn't want to make a big deal in front of everyone. Each man did get his treasure back at the end!
to take something to another's party, here are some funny ones that our cousin found: mullett shampoo (it really does exist), a "boob" topper for a beer can, a leopard-print thong for a man. She often gets them at her office white-elephant and keeps them for the next year.
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