White Elephant Shopping for the Holiday Season

But just what is a white elephant party? Why do they call it a white elephant party?

According to Wikipedia, a white elephant is a supposedly valuable possession whose upkeep costs exceed its usefulness, and it is therefore a liability. Apparently in East Asia a white elephant has no use, but because they are sacred they must be taken care of!

Okay, at today's white elephant holiday party you would not actually bring a white elephant as a gift. Unless, of course, it was a ceramic white elephant I suppose. The idea is to wrap up a tacky, odd, strange or 'what the heck is that' kind of gift. Most parties set a spending limit of $25 or less.

Ideally, you would have at least 6 people present with gifts for the white elephant party. The rules are pretty simple. Everyone draws a number to see the order they go in. The first person chooses a gift and opens it. The second person chooses a gift and opens it. If they like it, they keep it. If they would rather have the first person's gift - they can take that and give the first person their gift. Each person who opens a gift has a choice to keep it - or take someone else's gift!

If someone takes your white elephant gift, you get to choose a new gift, or take someone else's! Most games put a limit on how many times a gift can be taken (usually 2 or 3 times).

What kind of gifts are white elephant gifts?
Bad Movies (visit Target or Walmart and you'd be amazed at the plethoria of bad movies for $7 or less).
A box of condoms
Velvet paintings
unidentifiable kitchen gadgets
anything "As Seen On TV"
very ugly knick knacks

The list can be endless! Visit your local Goodwill or Salvation Army and find many types of gifts there. You can also visit eBay and do your shopping there if you don't want to leave the house. There's no rule it has to be new. The white elephant gift must be wrapped nicely though. Some people regift!