'I went Aldi Christmas shopping with £10 and found 4 perfect Secret Santa gifts'
Some people love it, and some loathe it, but the reality is many of us will be buying Secret Santa presents this Christmas.
Secret Santa, whether it be at work places, amongst friends, or between in a family, can generate a lot of laughs. People often opt for prank or novelty gifts and the present opener has no idea who it is from. It can take quite a bit of organisation but a general rule is a budget of £10 and those who want to be included are asked.
I am fairly organised this year (for once) but one gift left on my present list was something for £10 or less to open at the dinner table on Christmas Day. I have a large family so to cut costs and have some fun, we have a tradition where we anonymously get a 'table present'. Like standard Secret Santa, all our names get thrown into a hat and everyone picks one out, then we put the gifts on the table in secret for when we sit down for Christmas dinner.
Every year I shut my eyes and pray I get someone who is easy to buy for. There's nothing worse than being on the receiving end of a gift you dislike either. I am always thankful that all the Christmas dinner guests are over 18 and enjoy a Baileys or two - if in doubt a nice bottle of alcohol won't go a miss, I thought.
A festive gingerbread gravy boat priced at £4.99 (Daily Mirror)
There are plenty of special food items at Aldi for Christmas, including a DIY gingerbread house for £5.99 (Daily Mirror)This year - without naming names - I had the task of getting a gift for a female who is over the age 50 (this could be a few people). Luckily, I know the individual very well and find them easy to buy for - phew. Some like to do jokey gifts every year, but I pride myself on giving thoughtful gifts and treats that the presenter opener can enjoy beyond Christmas Day.
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My first port of call was to consult the internet, brimming with articles reading '18 Best Secret Santa gifts under £10' or '50 best Secret Santa gifts for him or her'. After I pulled together some ideas, I was hoping to get the individual a nice wash bag or bath set to enjoy - you can't go wrong.
Aldi never fails to let me down with its bargains all year around, and the Regent Street store is just a 10 minute walk from my Leeds city centre flat. This was the first time I had bought a Christmas present at the leading supermarket, despite being a regular.
Walking into the store it is filled with poinsettias, tubs of Christmas treats, heavenly party food, and some fabulous home decorations. Don't ask me how I ended up buying a make-it-yourself gingerbread house - I just needed it, OK?
After embarrassingly getting distracted from the task in hand, it was time to head to the 'special isle' to see what gifts were on offer.
Large Christmas themed jar candles priced at £3.99 (Daily Mirror)
A jar candles set at Aldi for £3.99 could make a perfect Secret Santa gift (Daily Mirror)I first noticed some amazing large candles for £3.99, and the dreamy scent coming from an orange and cinnamon scented festive house gift set for £5.99. What's more, I found set of three mini candles for £3.99 - that look like a dupe of Yankee Candles but for a significantly better price. These would be a perfect gift for someone who you don't know very well and are unsure what to buy, or even for your children's teachers at school. You also would have money to spare to get something extra too for less than a tenner.
Another perfect gift for a work colleague is Aldi's sweet Little Miss Chatterbox mug priced at £3.49. However, I'd stray away from getting your boss the Mr Tickle mug.
The majority of the gifts selection was for children so it was definitely a rummaging job. I also found some great games which would be perfect for dinner parties this festive season and make fun gifts - from Cluedo priced at £8.99, a memory game called Recollect for £3.99, as well as £1.99 Disney playing cards, four in a row games, and a 'matching mayhem' puzzle.
There are plenty of novelty items that could make perfect presents (Daily Mirror)For those who love films, Aldi has a 'Burn Book' from iconic '00s film Mean Girls, and Star Wars lovers can get their hands on a Grogu smartphone holder. I fell in love with a gingerbread gravy boat priced at £4.99. I thought this would be a perfect gift, but the person I have for Secret Santa would have to wait a whole year after Christmas Day to use it again so I decided to go for something else.
Some of the pricing seemed a little higher than usual on certain items. I found this fantastic rechargeable hot water bottle but priced at £14.99 - no thanks. The case was the same with a lovely pair of fluffy slippers that were priced at £12.99. I think I could get slippers elsewhere for much cheaper.
Aldi has also created some new sets for Christmas this year from their bath and body collection Lacure. I was in heaven. There is a brilliant hair bonding gift set including a pre-wash, moisturising mask, and oil for £9.99. They are a fantastic alternative to the award-winning haircare sets from Olaplex which will set you back £84.
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Unless you have been living under a rock, everyone has been talking about the heatless hair curls online lately. Aldi has a heatless hair curling set on offer for £4.99. I would love this as a present but my family member I have for Secret Santa is quite fussy about her hair so I was unsure if she would use the set. But, I know they loving having a bath.
An Olaplex dupe gift set for £9.99 at Aldi (Daily Mirror)
Christmas themed sleep hand lotion for £1.99 at Aldi (Daily Mirror)I found some amazing pomegranate bath bombs for £4.99. I like that they come in a lovely crisp, cream-coloured classy box, finished off with a delicate black bow. If someone told me the bath bombs cost £30 I would believe them.
Sticking to the self-care theme, I also picked up some Lacure sleep bath salts, with lavender, vetiver, jasmine and eucalyptus, for £1.99. While I was really impressed by the price, I later discovered that last year Aldi were selling them for 99p. The cost of living crisis just keeps throwing us punches, doesn't it? Regardless I now had two presents for my Secret Santa gift and still had £3.02 to spare.
I also found a matching Lacure sleep hand cream for £1.99. The packaging is beautifully detailed with sparkling stars. It looks sophisitcated and Christmassy. And finally, I found a funny brilliant Brussels sprout refreshing aloe vera sheet mask for 79p - what a bargain. Getting her to put this on at the Christmas dinner table will give us a barrel of laughs.
Lucy got three bath bombs, a hand cream, novelty face mask, and bath salts for £9.76 (Daily Mirror)I was so pleased that I went to Aldi for just one bargain gift and came out with four different products which make up a beautiful beauty package. Plus, I spent just £9.76. If I were to receive this gift at Christmas, I would be delighted.
It is a no brainer that Aldi has a great selection of gifts. While I was looking specifically for what I wanted, I would say there isn't as much selection for those buying for men. I was in the store around an hour and definitely had to hunt through heaps of unorganised items to find the good stuff. But, it was absolutely worth it.
I already have plenty of gift wrapping at home, but loved the Disney 99p wrapping paper on offer, as well as the Elf-themed paper - based on the iconic Will Ferrell Christmas film.
Struggling for a Secret Santa gift? I would definitely recommend Aldi this year.
Have you got a Secret Santa story? Email [email protected].
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