It's that time of year again.
Nothing significant has changed this year. You can send me your info now or at any time. For the n00bs and those that need a refresher here is how it works:
Sign up by sending me a PM with your name and mailing address. If you do not want to use your real name that's fine and a PO box is acceptable for a mailing address. I will not post the names or addresses on the forum. I have the addresses of those that have participated before, if you haven't moved but you should probably send it again.
When I receive your information I will devide them in groups of three. Each one in a group will be designated A,B or C. A will send to B, B will send to C and C will send to A. That way no one knows who is sending to them and groups are matched with people who joined at roughly the same time.
There is no cut off date but from experience I would say you should get your name in by no later than Dec 15. Dec 10 would be better..
This is not a secret Santa exchange. Before you mail your gift include a card saying who it is from. The identity of the giver will be secret until the gift arrives. When the recipient opens the gift I encourage them to post pictures and let everyone know who sent it, however you may remain anonymous, if you wish.
There is no hard rule about the value of your gift. Just try not to go overboard. I usually spend about $20-$30 plus shipping. A handmade gift would be great.
You can open your gift whenever you want. I usually open mine as soon as I get it. If you choose to open it later let me know that you have received it.
I always participate myself. I have chosen a random time to insert my name and join a group of 3. I haven't figured out a way to participate without knowing who is giving to me but I do not choose who it is. I just depends on who has joined at my randomly selected time.
Let me know if you are willing to ship internationally. I try to match people on the same continent but that is not always possible, especially those in Australia and New Zealand. I generally get just a handful from there and they have all pretty much given and received from each other.
I think eBay, Amazon and many online stores offer to ship to a different address. You could have your gift sent directly to the recipient. That could make things easier and save on shipping charges, especially overseas. Just make sure the recipient knows who it is from.
If you can remember who you sent to before let me know. I will match you with someone else, if possible.
If you know a gift that would be perfect for a specific member I will match you with that person, provided they have joined the exchange. If there is someone you do not want to be matched with for any or no reason I will, of course honor that.
If you need some personal information or want to ask your recipient something like their shirt size, do they like spicy food or if they have any allergies send me a message and I will ask and tell you without giving out your identity.
If you want to tell your recipient who you are beforehand that's fine too. I try to have as few hard rules as possible.
That's all I can think of right now. I may have forgotten to mention something. If so I will update this.
If you have any questions please feel free to ask.
Remember to have fun.
Last edited by vintage red matthew on Tue Jan 05, 2021 9:41 am; edited 8 times in total