What to buy your flatmate for Secret Santa

Under a tenner? Yes please


It’s that time of year, final deadlines are looming, the Fenwick’s Christmas window is in full swing and its time to pick a name out of the hat to see who is lucky enough to wind up with you as their Secret Santa.

Whether it’s flatmates or course mates there’s always going to be someone  who is awkward to buy for and you pray you’re not stuck with. It is possible to do secret Santa on a budget though.

First of all agree your price. There couldn’t be anything worse getting a gift that was probably abit costly meanwhile you’ve got your mate a selection box on offer at Tescos. Make a set spending budget to avoid the awkwardness and keep everyone in the same boat. Around £10/20 being the recommended amount.

Avoid swaps. You might think they’re impossible to buy for but trust me they’re not. Once you start swapping you can kind of guess who might have who, kinda defeats the aim of a SECRET Santa.

He’s got it nailed

The girly girl

If she watches Gossip girl, Instagrams her Starbucks and loves everything Mac then you pretty much can’t go wrong with anything from the Boots three for two.

Bath sets, lotions, bath bombs, creams they have tonnes of stuff for under a tenner making Christmas shopping easy since we can remember. If your girl’s not one for smellies then try Urban Outfitters for quirky gifts that are Instagram worthy.

She wants mugs and chocolates

Fashion Student Ellie Woollard bought her course mate a present on a £20  Secret Santa budget. She said: “I had no idea what to get her at first but once I started buying it was hard not to get carried away” Thats why the maximum budgets come in handy (and obviously the student bank balance).”

The gym buff

Is he the type of guy who’s in the gym every other day, can get you on guestlist and has the occasional cheeky Nandos?

Buy him something simple like a protein shaker  or a gym bottle, often quite cheap and myprotein.com offer student discount.

The ultimate foodie

We all know (and envy) those people that eat like pigs yet remain stick thin all year. How is it even possible? Anyway the obvious gift would be Chocolate.

Always on offer this time of year its easy to find something cheap. Thorntons chocolate snowmen, M&S Christmas biscuit selections, Milk Trays, chocolate baubles… the list could go on.

Unless your flatmate has weird allergies or is actually insane you can’t go wrong with a Chocolate hamper.

Nom nom nom

The alcoholic

Tis’ the season to get pissed. Speaks for itself really and you may have more than one of these types in your Secret Santa group, maybe it’s even you?

There’s always festive offers on so maybe up the game from the usual bottle of Sainsbury’s own vodka for something a tad less budget.

The Jesmond Joker

The daydreamer, starting essays the night before, wearing odd socks and just generally being up in the clouds and not giving a toss.

This is the person for a novelty gift. The list is endless and a perk is that it really doesn’t have to be relevant to them or expensive.

One fashion second year said: “Last year I got a chocolate sex toy and some nipple shaped chocolates… just what I wanted.”

What

If you really are struggling then The Alcoholic and The Ultimate Foodie gifts are going to be your safest bets. If you don’t love chocolate and free alchohol then are you really a student?