Secret Santa Guidelines
A friend asked me yesterday if there were any hard and fast Secret Santa guidelines that she should be following, as this year is her year to plan her office Holiday Party. While I'm not aware of a Secret Santa rulebook out there, I was able to come up with a few guiding tips for her, and thought I'd share them with you, too. If you're in charge of planning the office Holiday Party this year, holding a Secret Santa among friends or are simply curious as to what a Secret Santa is...not to fear! Penelope is here.
Traditionally, Secret Santa is the simple exchanging between a group of people of Christmas or holiday presents. The benefits are that, generally, a price cap is set for gifts and each participant is in charge of only one gift for the exchange, as opposed to several for each group member. Each participant draws the name of one group member, and is in charge of a) buying that member a gift and b) managing to keep it a secret until exchange time rolls around (I can never do this).
Some tips if you happen to be planning or participating in a Secret Santa this year:
- Set a limit for the total amount each person should spend on the gift they buy or make. This will keep the Secret Santa exchange from being awkward when one person brings an iPod Nano and another brings a handknit scarf.
- Make sure that the people participating in your Secret Santa exchange know one another at least fairly well. By this, I mean that they've had a conversation before and are familiar enough with one another to know the other's likes and dislikes. This will keep your Secret Santa exchange intimate and thoughtful.
- If you do happen to be participating in a Secret Santa and you don't know the person whose name you drew very well, some safe gift options that are sure to please: a gift certificate to a store like Best Buy, Target or iTunes, a massage at a local spa or a prepaid card at a local coffee shop.
- Lastly, be sure to have other activities planned for the day of your Secret Santa so that it doesn't feel like a dine and dash (or, in this case, gift and go) situation. Plan dancing, karaoke or a silly competition such as speed gift wrapping to keep the party upbeat and fun.
So choose a few favorite holiday CDs, break out the cookies and punch, and have fun at your Secret Santa!
Enjoy Planning.
Penelope