6 Festive Games for Your Holiday Bash

White Elephant Gift Exchange

Tell your guests in advance to each bring one white elephant giftan inexpensive, novelty, humorous, or used item. (You can set a cap on spending, or even forbid guests from buying anythingtell them to bring in something from home.) Have your visitors drop their gifts in a pile as they come in. Later on in the night, have them draw numbers from a hat to establish the order in which they will pick their gifts. After the first person has picked and unwrapped his or her gift, the second guest in line has a choice: she can either choose a wrapped gift, or opt for the first guests unwrapped present. Continue until all the gifts are gone.

Blind Artist

Provide your guests with paper and markers, and tell them to draw a snowmanwith the paper on top of their heads so they cant see it. When everyone is done, tack the works of art up on a wall and have your guests vote on the best drawing. Award the winner a prize.

Holiday Charades

Play charades with a holiday twist. Prior to the party, write a series of Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa-related words on index cards. Later, have people act out the words and phrases on the cards so that group members can guess the answers. You can also do the same thing with the classic game Pictionaryjust use holiday phrases and words in that case as well.

Pin the Red Nose on the Rudolph A variation on the timeless Pin the Tail on the Donkey, this game is sure to get your guests in the spirit. First, print out or draw a picture of a reindeer and hang it up on a wall. Then cut red circles out of red construction paper, and give one to each guests along with a pen so they can write their names on them. You know where to take it from here: blindfold a guest, spin him around, and tell him to have at it. Repeat with all your guests, determine which red nose is the most anatomically correct, and award that lucky player with a prize!