Also: Dirty Santa Gifts & Rules
When someone asks you if you want to play Dirty Santa do you feel inclined to slap them in the face because you think you’ve just been asked to play some dirty and perverted game? Or does Dirty Santa make you think of Old Saint Nick in a scantily clad outfit showing a bit too much skin? You can rest assured that when someone asks you to partake in Dirty Santa in 2024 that it is neither an inappropriate sex game or his jolliness showing too much skin. Dirty Santa is a fun way to exchange gifts, in particular, gag gifts. If you’re already familiar with Secret Santa and enjoy playing it, then you will definitely enjoy Dirty Santa.
Similarities
How is Dirty Santa similar to Secret Santa, one may ask. Firstly, they would be organized in the same fashion. You need to set out guidelines in regards to what the limit is for gifts, what day gifts will be exchanged, and who will participate. Unlike with Secret Santa you do not need to pick a name for a specific person to buy a gift for because this is really how the two games differ. When the day of the exchange arrives people will draw numbers to see who goes first. The first person chooses a gift, opens it and then the second person either decides to open an unopened gift or takes the gift already previously opened by the first person. This continues until all gifts have been opened. The idea is that you can steal gifts from others in an attempt to end up with the best gift.
Now, when I say best gift this may be a bit of a stretch and that’s because with Dirty Santa you purchase gag gifts, instead of the traditional types of gifts that you would find in say a Secret Santa. This is great because you won’t only end up with a gift at the end of Dirty Santa, you will also get some chuckles when you see all the other hilarious gag gifts.
Dirty Santa is an especially good way to exchange gifts at your work because you may not know people all that well to get them something specific that they would like. When purchasing a gag gift it’s not necessary to know the person specifically, the gifts are more generic and can be given to anyone.
How To Play Dirty Santa
When you decide to organize a Dirty Santa you want to first decide on an appropriate amount for people to spend. You don’t want to make it too high of an amount because you want everyone to be able to participate. Then you want to pick a date to do the exchange. After that is decided you want to spread the word and see who will participate. People are to bring their gifts in wrapped, but with no tag because the gift isn’t designated to a specific person. Then the fun begins. You draw number to see what order people will pick a gift. The first person chooses a gift and then the second person can either take the first persons gift or chose another gift. This is repeated until all the gifts have been unveiled and everyone has one.
