Favorite Things Party

Last Christmas,

I hosted my first-ever “My Favorite Things Party” and I’m planning the 2nd annual party now. These parties are super easy and everyone has fun.

What's a "Favorite Things Party"?

If you haven’t heard of this party, it’s typically a girl’s night around the holidays, a gal-intine night (that is my plan for the coming year, but I am planning it as a date night with couples), this could even be a fun event to do with your girlfriends around Mother’s Day.

Short Answer: Each guest buys 2, 3, 4 (whatever the host decides) of your favorite thing valued at the budget the host sets. At the end of the party, you leave the party with 2, 3, or 4 of your friends’ favorite things.

Need More Details: The host selects a budget for how much each guest will spend. Since this was my first year, I decided to go with a budget of $10 per gift. Each person would buy 5 gifts so each person would spend around $50 (5 gifts x $10 = $50) and each person would leave the party with 5 new favorites valued around $50!

Save the Date Invite

I started with a “save the date” invite I created using Canva. I then text the invite to everyone I was inviting.

I figured by sending the save the date 6 weeks in advance, it gave guests time to find their favorite things on sale! If you host this party in December, a lot of gifts might be found on Black Friday or Cyber Monday. It was also a great way for those to mark their calendar early for this party as December can fill up fsat for many.

PRO TIP: Make it clear they buy 2, 3, 4 of the SAME GIFT. There was confusion on how it worked with my friends and I needed to keep reminding them they are not buying 5 different items, it’s one item at a quantity of 5.

Official Invitation

A few weeks after I sent the save the date, I sent an evite with the final details as well as an FAQ in the invitation.

Three Weeks Out

I sent a message in the evite saying…”Tomorrow night will be 3 weeks until the party! If you haven’t picked up your favorite things, text me for inspiration.”

Make it a Potluck

If you’re hosting around the holidays it can be an especially busy time of the year. Since it is a favorite things party, and to make it easier on you, ask each guest to bring their favorite appetizer to share along with the recipe. Not only will guests leave with gifts, but also some new recipes to try at home.

Party Time!

To save time, I wrote down the names of everyone attending and placed them in a bag before the guests arrived. *Note, I did have some guests who were not feeling well so I picked up their gifts so they could still be included & receive some new favorite things. A few days after the party I dropped off their gifts to them

Once everyone arrives and has enjoyed some food and drinks, pick a random name from the bag (or whatever you decide to use) and that person will go first (don’t forget to place their name back in the bag). That person will show their gift and tell why it’s their fav. Then, they select how many names there are for the gifts they brought (in my case each person brought 5 gifts, so the first person picked 5 names). The first name drawn would then be the next person to present and repeat until all of the gifts have been handed out.

PRO TIP: People shouldn’t receive two of any gifts and they shouldn’t receive their own gift unless you are me (see below). If someone draws a double name, put them pack in and draw again.

Gift Ideas

GIFTS UNDER $10
Click the heart to view gift ideas under $10 each
ETSY
I love supporting local businesses & this is a great place to do so.
LOCAL FINDS
Being a Midwest girl, I opted for a local find I had picked up on vacation over the summer and ordered those to share, Girl Boss Hot Sauce (if you try it, you will thank me later)
THE CONTAINER STORE
The Container Store had a lot of great gifts under $10.
KITCHEN ITEMS
One of my friends did a baking sheet with a Vegetable Seasonal Mix - she said the mix is great for kids who won't eat vegetables. I was so wanting that b/c my son doesn't eat veggies. I didn't get it, but I did order it off Amazon after the party and I can say my son eats veggies now (again, you can thank me later)
RECIPES
Another friend put together the ingredients in her amazing dip she brings to all the parties, a Harry & David Dip with the recipe of how to make her famous dip.
JEWELRY
Ankle bracelet from Pura Vida

What Went Wrong

(Something always goes wrong for me)

I didn’t think this would happen until we were getting close to the end and I realized, my name had only been picked once from the bag. I was quietly thinking, what happens if my name is the only name left at the end and I end up with 4 of the same gifts? Guess what? I put it out to the universe and it happened. Well, not exactly like that. I ended up with 3 of the same gifts.

Of course, I didn’t want 3 of the same items so I asked if anyone would like to trade. I actually had people really wanting the “gift of time” I had received 3 so it wasn’t an issue.

What I will do differently… In the event the last name(s) drawn are the same and someone ends up with more than one of the same gift… I am going to incorporate a little white elephant into the night. That lucky person gets to steal something they really wanted from someone else and give them their duplicate gift. It’s always fun to make house rules.