Stupid Secret Santa (bah humbug)

[Asleeponasunbeam]

So what can I get for the woman I don't know? Officious organiser insists that it must not be 'serious', it's got to be 'a bit of fun' or 'maybe a little bit rude'. Oh what joy.

£5. What have you seen that fits the criteria?

[Hercule]

A friend of mine once got anal beads as her secret Santa present. She was stunned/speechless . Apparently it wasn't a particularly racy workplace and she didn't know who bought them.

Personally I has never heard of anal beads (sheltered life) !

[Kellymn]

I tend to buy chocolate to be on the safe side if I don't really know the person, but where I work now we all are friendly and close to each other so we tend to have good grasp on each others likes and dislikes which is really the ideal Secret Santa situation.

[Staywithme]

I'm really boring. I just get nice candles and find they're very well received.

[CheckpointCharlie]

I have got a mug that says 'I am a twat' on the bottom haha!
And some sticky post it's that say 'fuck this', 'fuck that' etc etc

I got them from amazon. Am looking forward to our secret Santa!

[Asleeponasunbeam]

See, this thread illustrates another thing that's awful about it! I can't believe people actually get upset because they don't like the present (I don't mean the 'rude' things) or because enough thought didn't go into it!

[differentnameforthis]

I hate silly things like the chocolate willies. I'd rather they didn't bother.

I feel the same about the willy straws...just yuk!

[IDismyname]

I did a secret Santa with a group of old friends. The theme was 'culinary' and we had a £10 max to spend, but no names to get for. They were all put in a bag, and you had to pick a present out - not your own obviously.

I went to TK Maxx, bought a really nice cookery book and a set of tea towels and wrapped them up. I was quite chuffed at what I'd managed to get for the money. Cue the evening, and as the present picking progressed, people were pulling out presents that were beautifully wrapped. I was in charge of the 'sack' at the time. The recipient of mine was delighted, and had bought a lovely present to add to the mix. People had bought some really nice stuff.

Then I get to mine. I know who bought it. She must have spent all of... £2.50 on it. It was awful. Truly awful. I can't tell you as it may out me, but she took the message that we could spend 'up to £10' literally.

I think she was a bit taken aback about the fact it was so obviously cheap against all the other presents. I do hope so, as we're repeating the whole process again this year

[wishmynamewasdave]

We do a questionnaire with our secret Santa so that you can get an idea of what the person wants/likes. Best question on it is "if you had £5 what would you buy for yourself". Some people take the piss when filling out the questionnaire - and those are the ones who invariably end up with joke presents.

[cococandyfloss]

I am not a bah humbugger but I am a bit moany about the office secret santa.
I used to work in a small office where there were 7 of us all-were good friends socially , knew each other well and had a laugh. Secret Santa worked well for us and was fun and we exchanged presents after a few drinks at the xmas lunch.

Now I work in a bigger office of around 22-real mix of ages and personalities and it just doesn't work-you either end up spending £5 on crap or insulting someone by either gifting something they think is rude/tat or by getting them smellies as you don't know them that well and then basically saying I don't think you have the sense of humour to get a fun xmas gift!

Also £5 doesn't get what it used to in the old days (gimmer) so you always end up spending extra or picking out something you know that person will really love .....to then receive something really impersonal that someone from accounts has got their wife to pick up for you!

Also there is always the person in the office that forgets and then some poor bugger is left without something and I have also witnessed the someone moaning about a rubbish pressie to the person than bought it (accidently).
It is a minefield - Keep your £5 and spend it on choccies as a treat for yourself office people of the world :)

[uggmum]

The person who has drawn my name in the secret Santa (not very secret) has told me he's buying me Nipple Tassels!

I'm so looking forward to that!

[Firedemon]

Fail safe: lush gift set

[MILLYmo0se]

It's become my tradition to give one of these as part of my secret santa . Seem to go down very well once the person tries it out, they can be a bit baffled by it initially . Looks very pretty as it spins
www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_from=R40&_trksid=p2050601.m570.l1313.TR0.TRC0.H0.Xcandle+spin&_nkw=candle+spin&_sacat=0

[mygrandchildrenrock]

We spend £10.00 at my work, and everyone gets nice presents, not rude or trashy. We're not allowed to keep our own names though, although how the organiser would know I'm not quite sure!

[NorbertDentressangle]

Go onto ebay and just do a search on keywords like "Secret Santa" or "Kitsch" and I'm sure you'll find something original.

[Starlightbright1]

I am doing mine , I got from homebargains a huge wine glass with measure of bad day terrible day along those lines

[whatsonyourplate]

My best received secret Santa was a 'party in a bag' which was a shiny gift bag I recycled with a £shop sparkly cowboy hat, bag of party poppers, mini bottle of rum, mini can of coke and a pot of glitter gel. The recipient was a fairly young person though.

[pregnantpause]

I always get either a £5 bag of penny sweets or I wrap a £5er in a large box with Christmas confetti in it, a stone ( to prevent the give away) , and a large bow. Always goes down well that one

[EarthDays]

Well evidently there's a backstory there but if I got a candy G-string at work I wouldn't go to HR but there wouldn't be any mean undertone it would just be a not particularly funny joke.

[RigglinJigglin]

I don't see the over reaction in bullying or harassment - which was the sentiment behind the present.

It's very clever to all laugh at an individual unwrapping a present in front of a whole office that's laughing at them isn't it?

Not in my books, makes them grade A cunts, and worthy of a trip to HR.

It's not always a laugh or a joke for the person receiving the novelty racy item. But then you do get cuntish people at work, and you don't have to join secret Santa.

[EarthDays]

You went to HR about your secret Santa present....really. Over reaction.

[Essexgirlupnorth]

I got a kettle one year from a colleague who I am friends with after I complained our kettle had broken. Even worse it didn't work!
Secret Santa nearly got banned at my work when one of colleagues got a porn film and a packed of tissues

[RigglinJigglin]

This is why I don't do secret Santa, I got given a g string made of sweets one year - and then went straight to HR about it. It ended in disciplinary for the people involved. Soon takes the fun out of secret Santa.

Very bah humbug.

[SoniaShoe]

Errr...i instigated this at my work and said almost exactly what asleeponasunbeam's woman said...i'm trying to work out who you are in my team... although i wasn't quite as specifc and i'm not miserable i don't think. I like the charity shop idea. At least that is reusing old stuff rather than new tat