30 Crowd-Pleasing White Elephant Gifts Everyone Is Going to Steal (2024)

FAQs

Can you steal a stolen gift in white elephant? ›

A gift cannot be immediately stolen back from the player who just stole it. Once a gift has 3 “owners,” the 3rd owner of a gift gets to keep it – it is retired and can't be stolen again. The gift exchange ends when the last wrapped gift is chosen and opened.

“There [are] some things that you can't go wrong with in general: beeswax candle sticks, pretty stationery, a box of chocolates, lottery tickets, a small bottle of rum if it's the right crowd to give alcohol to,” Smith says. “There are certain general things that can make for really fun gifts.”

Each gift can only be stolen three times in the game. Each gift can only be stolen once per turn. Everyone who has had a turn must have a gift. For example, if you took the first turn and your gift was stolen, you must unwrap a gift.

The premise of white elephant if ur not familiar is everyone brings a gift, you take a turn choosing gifts, and then the next person choosing can either steal a gift or open an unwrapped present. It's all in good fun- but it can sometimes get a bit competitive.

Setting the Ground Rules

Of course, the most important rule is to have fun! Everyone participating must bring one gift to exchange. The white elephant gift is not supposed to be ordinary. That generally means no gift cards, nice clothes, or common home goods.

Toilet Paper—$24.99

The best White Elephant gift for 2020 is surprisingly useful and potentially hard to find — toilet paper. You can score this locally, or you can pick up a 24 pack on Amazon for under $25, which is actually a deal in 2020.

As far as white elephant gifts ideas go, candles are always a winning option.

The rules for a white elephant gift exchange are simple: Everyone brings a gift already wrapped. Gifts should all be valued at roughly the same amount, usually $20 or $25. The gifts are strictly anonymous -- no one should know which gift you brought.

The person with #1 starts the game. The game begins once #1 selects a gift from the pile (after much thought and deliberation, of course), opens it, and shows it to everyone. The person who drew #2 then goes and has the option to steal #1's gift (aka "Dirty Santa") or pick a different gift from the pile.

What are the rules for Dirty Santa? ›

Whoever drew #1 selects a gift from the mysterious pile of gifts, opens it, and reveals what it is to everyone. Whoever drew #2 can either select a gift from the pile or choose to steal #1's gift (this is where the dirty in "Dirty Santa" comes in). If #1's gift is stolen, they must choose a new gift.

Gifts for Dirty Santa are typically fun, new, unique, and in good taste. Unlike the White Elephant gift exchange, Dirty Santa gifts are usually items recipients will want and use!

If you're hosting a white elephant with a group you may not know very well, $10 should be appropriate. White Elephant Rules advised setting a limit rather than a target, and keep the monetary commitment low. This should encourage everyone to participate. Not all white elephant gift exchanges require you to spend money.

“Pink elephant” is another name for the “white elephant” game. During one of these games, participants exchange gifts, usually of low monetary value (e.g., under $20) and intentionally selected to be silly, tacky, or useless.

A present can only be stolen once per turn, which means players who have a gift stolen from them have to wait to get it back. After three swaps, the turn automatically comes to an end (otherwise things could drag on for a long time).

Whoever drew #2 can either select a gift from the pile or choose to steal #1's gift (this is where the dirty in "Dirty Santa" comes in). If #1's gift is stolen, they must choose a new gift. They cannot steal their original gift back.

All the gifts are pooled. Guests take turns to choose one to unwrap. Or they can choose to “steal” a gift already opened by someone else. The person losing their gift then gets the same choice: open a wrapped present or steal someone else's.

Donation or Regifting: In some cases, despite your best efforts, you may find that upcycling or DIY isn't the best option for a particular white elephant gift. In such situations, consider donating the item to a local charity or regifting it to someone who might appreciate it more.