He has to wait until someone robs him again, giving him an opportunity to snag the hat back from Zelda.Īnother rule limits the number of total thefts to three. So, if Zelda steals a knitted beanie from Scott, Scott can steal anything except that beanie. To keep things manageable: Play by the rule that an item can only be taken once per turn. Turn by turn, each player can purloin any previous gift from any other player or choose a new one.When a person’s present is stolen, they then have an opportunity to steal from another player or grab another wrapped gift from the pile.The second player can either steal that item or unwrap a new present.(It’s best to sit in a big circle to facilitate everyone’s oohs, ahhs, gasps, and laughs.) ![]() 1 unwraps a gift and shows everyone else. ![]() After that is when things can get complicated-or not. That’s because there are dozens of different ways to approach this activity, as well as oodles of options for the gifts themselves.Īll white elephant swaps start the same participants bring a wrapped gift and then pick a number out of a hat. Once you’ve decided on a white elephant gift exchange for your annual Christmas cocktail soiree, family gathering, or nondenominational holiday office party, it’s smart to specify game rules in advance. Unfortunately, no one was willing to swap their scented candle for the pachyderm. Their care and keep was almost certain to bankrupt the recipients of the king’s backhanded beneficence. So, how did such an over-the-top ostentatious gift that would have fit right in with the Neiman Marcus Fantasy Gifts catalog, come to symbolize a rejected present? Turns out that white elephants consume 500 pounds of food a day-an expense few could easily fit into their budget. You’ve heard of pink elephants, trippy animals that are visible only to alcoholics and Disney fans, but what do white elephants have to do with swapping silly or unwanted presents? One legend, which is probably apocryphal, explains it as a throwback to ancient Siam (now Thailand), where the king would present this extravagant gift to enemies and those who had displeased him. RELATED: 12 Easy Party Themes for Your Holiday Gathering The (Purported) Origin of White Elephant Parties No matter what you call it, one of these swap parties is a guaranteed good time-and a great way to de-stress during the hectic holiday season. Most commonly, however, it’s called a white elephant party. It’s also been named cutthroat Christmas, thieves’ Christmas, and steal-a-thon. ![]() Some people know this activity as a Yankee swap others call it dirty Santa. There’s a wide variety of holiday party games in which participants “steal” gifts from one another, often to the chagrin of the victim and the chortles of everyone else. ![]() RELATED: The 37 Best Gifts Under $50, Handpicked by the Bob Vila Team for the Holidays I’m Dreaming of a White…Elephant Keep reading for all of the variations on and best ideas for a white elephant gift exchange. Not all white elephant parties encourage regifting, so your first task as a white elephant party host is to settle on the type of gifts you want your guests to steal from each other. And in those instances, the tackier, uglier, sillier, weirder, or just plain worse your gift is, the better! While most folks do their regifting discreetly, there’s one occasion when it’s de rigueur: the white elephant gift exchange.
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