Secret Santa 2020 (Real Gift Exchange)

[Sharifu]

Ok, how many of you are interested in doing Secret Santa this year? I know this year is very strange and unusual, not to mention stressful sometimes. But I think I would still like to take part, I always love doing this Secret Santa. For those of you who want to join this year, post here to let me know! We'll see how many people want to join.

For those of your who haven't done this with us before, this is a real Secret Santa with members on this forum. You will be sending a real gift through the mail. (So make sure you are comfortable giving out your address if you want to join) Please be aware you could be shipping internationally, so don't send super heavy gifts.

We don't really have a certain price limit, but I think anywhere from $5 to $15 is ok. But it's up to you, you can spend a little bit more, but don't go crazy. Really it's not the price that matters.

So here is how this goes, if you want to join, go ahead and PM me your email address. I will give people a month to join. So on October 2nd, I will use a Secret Santa website we have been using for years, where I enter in all the email addresses, and then emails are sent to everyone, and in that email, you will get a link where you enter your wishlist and your address of where you want your gift to be sent to. Once everyone has done that, people will get an email with someone's wishlist and address so you can send them a gift! Make sure to send it in time so they receive their gift by Christmas. I know this seems early but we have been starting it this early for years so hopefully everyone has a few months or so to shop and ship their gift in time for their person to receive their gift by Christmas.

1. Deadline for joining: September 22nd.
2. How to join: PM me with your e-mail address before the above date.
3. Suggested price range for gifts: $5-$15
4. Do not reveal your identity to the person you are buying for. This goes against the aspect of it being a secret. People who reveal themselves will be banned from joining the following year.
5. It sounds cheesy, but have fun!!


Participating Members
Sharifu - Gift Received
KanuTGL - Gift Received
Kossu - Gift Received
Revo - Gift Received
Sadiki - Gift Received
Taneli - Gift Received
ThiagoPE
Vidan

[Kossu]

I would love to join again, though I do worry about the whole situation. Post fees are slightly more expensive here this year, it might be significantly so in other countries so that's something for all to bear in mind. Also, there might be delays with posting, so starting earlier might be good.

[Taneli]

I'm down for this, not done a Secret Santa for ages! Let alone on here =D

[ThiagoPE]

As my country was severely affected by this pandemic, currentily official mail are not sending or receiving things from abroad, so TODAY it´s impossible for me to join. As sugestion, as this year events were al postponed, i do sugest the deadline for join be more near the christyimas and even the sending of the gifts could be made after christmas as 2020 definetivelly wasnt a normal year... (we are having about 1000 deaths by Covid19 every day, so we are still far from getting rid of this disease)

[KanuTGL]

I miiight jump back in this year. Still thinking it over :thinks:

[Sharifu]

Ok, so today was the day I was planning to be the deadline to join Secret Santa. But it seems like only one person confirmed for sure they want to join? I will extend the deadline but I'm not sure yet what the new date will be. Sometime in October I think. I will make a post in the Facebook group to see if I can find more people who would be interested in joining.

[Revo]

I always skipped out on these before unless my memory betrays me, so I think it might be fun to join in this time! Although after just starting a new job, I might very well forget to check back here... So reminders such as the one Sharifu posted on FB are most appreciated :) .
So yeah, count me in.

[Kossu]

Count me in as well!:)

[Sharifu]

Kanu, are you still thinking of joining?

[Kossu]

Are we still doing this? Just wondering, since the deadline was almost a week ago.

[KanuTGL]

Oops, sorry. I figured I missed out since, yeah, the deadline passed, but, aw heck, if it's still possible I'll join :)

[Sharifu]

Are we still doing this? Just wondering, since the deadline was almost a week ago.

Yes, we are still doing this. I didn't really have a date in mind to end it yet, just sometime this month. But I have been thinking the last few days to get it started. So everyone please, send me your email address! And Kanu, you can join, of course. :)

[ThiagoPE]

Even tough 2020 was a very difficult year, i will join the SS.

[Sharifu]

Even tough 2020 was a very difficult year, i will join the SS.

Is Brazil now accepting and sending out international mail?

Again please everyone, send me your email address! I've only had one person do that so far.

[ThiagoPE]

Yes, it resumed receiving and sending recently even though I think it's taking longer both to send and receive.

I will send my email for you now

[Sharifu]

Ok, I started our group! Names are drawn already! You should get an email letting you know who you drew. You can add your wishlist and address too. I will add my wishlist and address within the next couple of days. :)

[Kossu]

Huzzah!

My email ended up on the junk, but I found it eventually.:p Pretty excited for this!=D

[Kossu]

Has anyone received their Secret Santa gift yet? :D Patiently waiting here.:)

[Revo]

I received mine a few weeks ago and informed my Santa through the DrawNames-site. It's been expectantly sitting on my shelf. :)

[Taneli]

I haven't received mine as yet. My SS package was mailed out at the end of November so hopefully my recipient will receive theirs soon if not already :)

[KanuTGL]

Haven't got mine either yet, but waiting patiently :D My package was mailed out very recently, so it'll probably be a bit delayed in arriving :eww: Things have been crazy here the last couple of weeks, bah!

[Revo]

I guess I'll start with sharing what I got, since I already opened mine and can't wait to share it. :cheese:

My Secret Santa was Kossu (I spoilered the name in case people who haven't yet received/opened their gifts want to stay in the dark as to who wasn't their SS), and all I can say is thank you for the very well chosen gifts! The package included

- a card game called Hero Realms,
- a shining glittery Christmas card with pretty TLK-stickers, and
- a bag of deliciously addicting chocolate-covered cookie drops. Despite what the card might say, the bag was *not* small :lol:, instead it is in fact quite huge.. Even so, somehow it's taking some effort for me not to gulp of it down all at once, because they are quite tasty.

To answer the worries you expressed on the card, I am happy to say that I don't already own this game myself nor have a played it before. After looking up some information on it I am excited to try it! I will definitely take it with me next time I meet up with our gaming group. :cool:

Again, thank you for being my Secret Santa, the lovely gifts and also for the super early delivery :o . It was fun to look at the package on my shelf every day, wondering what might be inside.

(The first image also contains spoilers about who was my SS.)

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And of course thanks to Audra as well, for organizing the SS again this year, it was fun to join in for the first time.

EDIT: I can't believe i didn't notice that this was also in the envelope! It's a disarmingly cute and well-done drawing on the joys of shared Christmas music (spoilered for the same reason as the name above, as the picture features a drawing of my SS.)

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[Kossu]

I received my gift a few days ago!:D Thanks so much to my Secret Santa! I will update this later with some photos and more info.:)



EDIT: My gift arrived a day before New Years eve, right before we were going to travel to another province, so that was quite lucky!



Anyway, without any further ado...My Secret Santa was...Sadiki!:lalala:

He sent me this masterfully wrapped packages and I admit, that getting rid of the wrapping paper felt like a crime. Because, TLK wrapping paper!:D

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Inside I found this beautiful Simba porcelain ornament and some delicious chocolate:

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The ornament was a wonderful surprise, because I didn't own any TLK Christmas ornaments. And I like to collect anything Lion King related that is porcelain or ceramic, so it was perfect!:wow:

The chocolate was really good too! Especially Tupla, that was really tasty!:munch: Is it Finnish candy btw?:o

Thank you so much for all the wonderful gifts Sadiki!:hugs:

And Sharifu, thank you so much as well for organizing this! It made my Christmas holiday so much brighter in these grim times.:hugs:

[Taneli]

Kossu / Revo - that drawing is too cute! :lol:


So my Secret Santa experience this year has been...odd :p

I'm still not entirely sure who my SS is/was but can probably take a guess. However, turns out my SS' gift actually arrived a long time before Christmas and I just didn't know it! So when I said it hadn't arrived on the 21st December that wasn't true :lol:

Basically one day I got an Amazon delivery addressed to "Mr Taneli" which contained two items, a SAD therapy lamp that a friend bought for me and a really cool thermal-changing TLK mug. They were both in the same box so I naturally assumed they were both from the same friend and didn't question it even though I was like "huh?" when I opened it (he knows I'm a TLK nut so I just went with it). I then got a message on the Draw Names site from my SS asking if it still hadn't arrived and if I wanted them to complain at Amazon where they bought it, this was New Year's Eve. They explained that they didn't know my real name so just ordered it to "Taneli". At this point I started to wonder, so I messaged my friend to ask if he'd also got me the TLK mug, and he said that he hadn't. I then realised that the TLK mug I'd had for almost a month at that point was indeed my SS gift! :lol: But it still baffles me how two completely separate orders from two different people can end up being delivered in the same box :/ I'm still trying to work that one out!

So apologies to my Secret Santa, your gift did indeed arrive and it's awesome! Thanks very much :cheese:

As mentioned earlier, it's a TLK mug that changes colour when you add hot water. I've attached photos which hopefully you all can see :)

[KanuTGL]

It's so fun to see what everyone got! :D Awesome gifts, all <3

It seems you have a very secret Secret Santa, Taneli! :lol:

I received a notice to pick up a mysterious package that couldn't fit in my mailbox yesterday - since there was no sender on the notice I wondered if it might be from my Secret Santa and when I picked it up today it turned out... it was! :cheese:

So... thank you so much to my Secret Santa: Audra! =D I thought it was a little funny since last time I was part of this Petteri was my SS, hehe.

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You guys really do always find the best wrapping paper and labels! I agree it felt like a crime to open them and tear the paper, haha! Sooo cute!

Inside was a beautiful TLK necklace (and I love necklaces), an awesome Kion ornament and a stunning drawing of Kanu! <3 So, three things I absolutely adore - TLK, TLG and art! It really made my day and I'm so happy with these lovely gifts :hugs: I love that you wrote in Swedish too :ooo:

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Sorry for the poor lighting in the photos, I had all the kitchen lights turned on but my camera still thought it was dark for some reason xP

Thanks again, Audra! Both for the gifts and for organising the Secret Santa ^^

[Sharifu]

So glad you like your gifts Kanu! =D The artwork I made for you, I colored it with Prismacolor markers, it was fun to color with real media other than colored pencils. I do like colored pencils, but the markers make very even and solid colors. Last year, the artwork I made for Leor, I wrote "Feliz Navidad" on it, because both he and his girlfriend are Mexican, so I guess I was just kind of continuing the tradition with writing yours in Swedish, hehe. :p

So my Secret Santa was Revo! I did get my gift long ago, before Christmas, we have just been so busy with our newborn daughter, it just took me this long to post about it. My gift was this awesome, tall, decorative TLK mug: 1072 1070 1071

He also sent a song that he wrote and sung for our daughter! That's pretty special and unique! First time I have ever had someone write and sing a song as part of a gift for Secret Santa! He did ask me in advance through the Draw Names website what we were going to name our daughter, and at the time I told him we weren't sure yet. We were thinking "Makayla" but I wasn't sure yet if we were going with that spelling, and we didn't, we ended up spelling her name as "Mikaela". I was thinking he was wanting to know her name for a piece of art, or something a long those lines, but I guess for a song, it would of been alright. (But I guess not for the title of a song) But he came up with a solution and called the song "December Child".

I think that was pretty special, he sung parts of the song in English and some in Finnish, and Mikaela is half Finnish since her daddy is Finnish. (As most of you know) :) I played the song for her from my laptop, but the volume on my laptop seems fairly low, even on the highest setting. I think I will try playing it for her on something other than my laptop, and I can record a video of her listening to it if you'd like. :)

Thank you Revo! Very special gifts for both me and Mikaela! :hugs:

And you're welcome everyone for organizing Secret Santa. I always enjoy doing it!

[Kossu]

WOW, a song?!:o That's SO unique and beautiful, Sharifu. Really one of a kind sort of gift.:cs_love:



Taneli; That’s a really beautiful mug! Also indeed, your secret santa has been so extra secret.:lol:


KanuTGL; That’s such a wonderful drawing of Kanu! Very nice solid colours indeed, that’s one thing that’s great about alcohol based markers (at least I assume they are alcohol based).




Such amazing gifts, everyone! I've loved looking through this thread so far.:cheese:

[Revo]

But wait, there's more! :lol:

This arrived to me in the mail about a week ago, but I've been away so I just retrieved it today. Kossu sent me second (!) whole gift package. She truly has went out of her way to get this sent even after Christmas.

And I am so thankful that she did, because inside was a very special and georgous piece of personal art, meticulously painted on a flat piece of stone. It looks stunning, and has really quite a remarkable amount of detail for a stone that's smaller than my palm. Great work, it's going straight on display to the shelf next to my desktop.
The attached letter revealed that the stone originates all the way from Andros, Greece! :wow: Don't know how you ended up using what must've been a nice travel memory, on a Christmas present to a some guy across the continent, but thank you! I guess visiting Andros is now officially on my bucket list, haha.

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So glad you enjoyed the gift, Sharifu. :cheese:

[Kossu]

Oh, I’m so glad to hear it got there after all! And glad to hear you like it!:cheese:


Don't know how you ended up using what must've been a nice travel memory, on a Christmas present to a some guy across the continent, but thank you! I guess visiting Andros is now officially on my bucket list, haha.

Well, I’ve been to that island twice the last 4 years(it’s a great place for hiking!) and twice I returned home with 1/4 of my backpack filled with such rocks.:lol: That type of rock is called schist and you find them all over Andros. I quite like their shine and they seemed perfect for painting. I took some with me when I moved to the Netherlands with the idea of painting them and sending them to family and friends.:)

[ThiagoPE]

So my Secret Santa experience this year has been...odd :p
[...]
So apologies to my Secret Santa, your gift did indeed arrive and it's awesome! Thanks very much :cheese:


Wow, that so odd. i never had two amazon orers condensed in one package. actually here in brazil, when i buy more than two itens is more likely for them to be separate and make two or more deliveries, i know that is because brazil is huge they have several warehouses in the country, so they pick the item from the nearest warehouse where its avalaible and then send.

I hope you enjoyed your mug Taneli (yes, i was your secret santa) that "extra" secret was amazon to blame XD.

I havent received my gift yet, i hope it will come soon.

[Sadiki]

The chocolate was really good too! Especially Tupla, that was really tasty!:munch: Is it Finnish candy btw?:oYes those were Finnish Chocolate which I ordered from Finland with some other things we ordered from there, I'm glad you liked them.

My secret santa gift arrived yesterday, but I was very sleep deprived so I didn't get to it then. My secret Santa was KanuTGL and she got quite a few things for the whole family.Here is picture of the Wrapping and the Card that came with the package:
https://i.imgur.com/I27Renzl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/0b8V15rl.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/rVBsqZql.jpg
Here is picture of some Overwatch pins, which btw are first things related to Overwatch have, though I would like to have a lot more. Really cool!
https://i.imgur.com/oRtuIgpl.jpg
Kanu also got something for our little princess though she is still a bit too small for them... I'm not sure if she will absolutely hate or love The Lion king when she grows up, but for sure she will have quite big dose of it through out her life :lol:
https://i.imgur.com/2US1PxIl.jpg
And last but not least... actually saved the best for last. An absolutely AMAZING piece of art work. I love seeing art of our characters and Kanu's art is certainly quite spectacular!!!
https://i.imgur.com/9OScaP8.jpg
Thank you for everything! :hugs:

[Kossu]

Wow, that drawing is SO very pretty! The concept and characters look lovely.:cs_love:

[KanuTGL]

Yaay! I'm glad the package arrived safely, and I'm so glad you like the gifts! :hugs: Glad I got to return the favour, as, like I mentioned, you were my Secret Santa last time I participated :p

I know the shirts were a bit too big for Mikaela right now, but then I thought "Hey, I've got a good margin if they take forever to arrive!" :lol: And I'm happy to hear you liked the pins, and the art. I always try to do my very best whenever I get to draw your characters ^^ The stock it's printed on is from work; as I'm 50% of the management in the shop I decided we had to test our new fancy materials on something... ;)


I'm not sure if she will absolutely hate or love The Lion king when she grows up, but for sure she will have quite big dose of it through out her life :lol:
Haha, well, technically she exists thanks to TLK, so she'll not really have a choice I should think :haha: I do hope she'll come to enjoy it though ^^

And thank you Kossu, you are too kind :hugs:

[Sharifu]

Kanu, I've been meaning to show you some photos of Mikaela wearing the shirts you gave her. These photos are from June (the first three photos with the shirt that has Simba and Zazu on it) and July (Ready to Rule shirt). :cheese:

[Kossu]

Aww, she looks adorable Sharifu!:aww:

[KanuTGL]

(The site made me reset my password and I couldn't be bothered and September has been kinda hellish for me so I haven't been around until now, buuut...!)

Eeee, she looks so cute in them! :rafikilove: Glad the shirts could be put to use! :aww: