Mrs. Walker's Class: White Elephant Exchange

My "Last Day Before Holiday Vacation" tradition is to host a $3.00 maximum White Elephant Gift Exchange. I have many hilarious memories from past exchanges and look forward to seeing what this years group comes up with.

For those who have never played, here is some background on the game:

What is a White Elephant Gift Exchange?

All attendees of a white elephant party are expected to bring one wrapped gift. Traditionally, a white elephant present is something unusual, somewhat useless, or inconvenient. Trinkets, strange knick knacks, unidentifiable kitchen items, and the like are typical white elephants, and guests are asked to wrap them nicely and to leave no identifying markings on the presents. Part of the white elephant game is often a series of guesses as to who brought which present.

History of White Elephant Gift Exchange:

The term white elephant refers to a gift whose cost exceeds its usefulness, it's a gift that costs the recipient more than the giver. It comes from a practice of emperors giving sacred white elephants to aristocrats they did not like. You could not, kill, give away, or sell the sacred white elephant. But you had to feed and care for it. For many many years. After a rich man had a few of these, he was no longer rich.

emperor 1, lord 0

How to play:

Usually, attendees draw numbers or cards to indicate player order. Strategic white elephant players try to end up somewhere in the middle of the game. The white elephant gifts are piled in a central location, and game play begins when one person opens the first gift. The contents are displayed to the room, and the next player’s turn begins.
The second player may either open a new present from the stack or steal the first player’s gift. If the second player takes the first player's white elephant, the first player must open a new present. A gift may only be stolen once a turn. After the second player’s turn is complete, the third player proceeds with the same options, and so forth until the game is finished.
Some white elephant parties impose a rule that a gift may only be stolen three times, requiring careful strategizing in the case of large multiplayer games. Sometimes, players band together to create advantageous trades amongst each other, although some white elephant exchanges forbid collaboration. In some cases, traditional gifts make their way back to white elephant parties year after year, and players can trace the history of lavish fur coats, hideous gravy boats, and other examples through the years.

White Elephant Gift Ideas: (Here are some of the crazy things I've seen over the years)

$2.00 bills

A dime in a ring box

Candy

Dog treats

Household items

Toilet Paper Dispenser

Crocheted Potholders

Package of Napkins

Little Girls Make-up kit

Little Dolls

Toy cars