Thanksgiving is almost upon us and you know what that means: the holiday music, decorations, and cheer are coming out in full force. Which of course means it’s about time to start going through those decorations and decide what you need to make your holiday complete.
If you’re in the market for some new holiday decorations, why not swap instead of shop this year and host your own holiday decoration swap party?
Here’s how it works:
1. Invite friends and family over for food and a decoration swap: This is a pretty important step. I mean, you can’t very well host a swap party without invitees now can you? As for the food part, a little bribery never hurt to get more people involved…
2. Decide if the swap will be permanent or temporary: Will the swaps be for keeps or will this just be a temporary arrangement for the season? It’s important to know what other swappers are comfortable parting with and what they’d prefer to simply lend out.
3. Everyone brings working decorations (lights, candles, wreaths, etc) to swap: Another necessary step. But really, it is important to clarify to your guests that the decorations must be in good working order. Also, we recommend you make sure you have a lots of table space for everyone to lay their decoorations out and plenty of electrical outlets for testing. Just make sure your guests don’t all plug everything at the same time, and, you know, blow a fuse.
4. Separate all the items into categories: Create different categories for decorations (i.e. outdoor decorations, lights, ornaments, etc.). Organizing all your items will make it infinitely easier for your guests to sort through what they have and what they want.
5. Start swapping!
Five easy steps and it’s a pretty good deal. You save yourself some money and get to mix it up with some new decorations!
Planning on hosting a holiday decoration swap large or small? List your gathering on our Swap.com Events directory to tell your friends and family the details and to invite others to join in on the festive fun.
(Photo by ccharmon)
Swap.com Mobile is a free iPhone is app that lets you scan items into your HAVE and WANT lists, manage your account, see what you can get for your stuff, and participate in swaps.
