Secret Santa

There are plenty of reasons to hold a Secret Santa, from it simply being a ton of fun to the mystery and laughter it adds to the New Year’s celebrations – and if you haven’t already tried it, it’s high time to do so. For those not in the know, Secret Santa is a fun twist on traditional gift-giving where a group of people draw names of their gift recipients at random and swap gifts anonymously, then often trying to guess who their Secret Santa was. This is often to be seen among co-workers, peers, and friends. It can be a warm get-to-know and bonding experience, an ease on your budget, and even a challenge of your creativity, if your group, say, decides to opt out of detailed wishlists and stick to listing what you love, for example: mention the color green, mornings, and loud noises – and you might get a dinosaur-shaped alarm clock as a gift. – Marina

Crafts-mas

Recently, I’ve been invited to a cozy, home-based pre-New Year party, where for our main activity we will be making a wreath to take home with us. A dear friend of mine actually came up with the idea, and I am already anticipating the unique, heart-warming atmosphere of creating something together, perhaps jointly murmuring Christmas songs or sharing stories of our favorite moments of the year. If you are craving a quiet, thoughtful celebration, I would say that hosting a holiday-themed arts & crafts session is the move: everyone invited can come with their little projects or, like in my case, you can all be making the same thing; as for food, it could be a potluck, and in terms of other activities, you can share your intentions for the year ahead, savor memories of the current one, or make wishes in the spirit of holiday magic. – Catherine

Quiz time

If watching TV or chatting at the festive table seems low-key, suggest your group to take a quiz break. The rules are simple: each one of you has to prepare a quiz for the others, the more participants – the shorter the question list. The choice of topic is yours. You can base your quiz on trivia about the party members, which you collect in advance. Alternatively, consider this an opportunity to embrace your hyperfixation, be it TV shows, science, or a particular historical period. Just be merciful to your fellows and make sure they are slightly familiar with the topic. To add a bit of competition, you can introduce a small prize for the winner. As for tools, you can make a PowerPoint presentation or use online services like Quizlet. All in all, we guarantee you’ll learn something new that night, whether it's useful info or not quite. – Elizaveta

Delayed gratification

A week ago, I baked a stollen – fruit bread with dried fruits and nuts, traditionally made for Christmas. The fun part is that it has to sit in a warm, dry place for at least a couple of weeks to settle and become even more delicious. So, I only get to serve my stollen on New Year’s night, and am super excited to see the result! You still have the time to bake one, too, to add a bit of delayed gratification to your holidays. – Kseniia