In keeping with the theme of Valentine’s Day, I wanted to dive into something I’ve received a handful of questions about from you guys over the past few years: Our annual Galentine’s Favorite Things night!
A couple of years ago a few of my girlfriends and I had the idea to plan a Favorite Things night. The idea first came about around the holidays when parties, gifts and special events are in full swing and it just felt like a lot. When someone suggested postponing our Favorite Things celebration until closer to Valentine’s Day, it paired perfectly with the idea of a Galentine’s Day dinner to celebrate our friendship. Our Galentine’s Favorite Things dinner quickly became one of my favorite annual traditions and is now something I look forward to every year.
We all got together on Monday night to celebrate this year and, as always, had a blast!
I told you I was going to milk wearing my heart sweater for all its worth this month and I meant it!
(Cargo pants: Target but sold out in black — these are similar / Heart sweater: Walmart / Purse: Marc Jacobs but old / Sneakers: Reebok)
I’ve had a few requests from you guys to provide a deep dive into how we plan our Favorite Things night, what everyone’s responsibilities are going into our Galentine’s dinner, our budget and some gift ideas. Today I’m hoping to cover all of it!
How We Plan Our Galentine’s Favorite Things Night
What is a Favorite Things night?
First, what is a Favorite Things night? Like the name suggests, it’s an evening where friends exchange some of their favorite things. Every person is responsible for buying multiples of their favorite thing for each person in attendance.
Favorite Things nights seem to be popular around the holidays but I highly recommend a February celebration because it gives you something to look forward to and doesn’t feel like another obligation weighing over you during the holiday season. Plus, it’s a fun way to show your friends some love around Valentine’s Day, hence why we tag-team our Favorite Things celebration with a Galentine’s Day dinner!
What is the budget?
For the past three years, we’ve kept our budget modest at $10 per gift per person. This means we are responsible for getting identical gifts that are $10 or less for each person in attendance (excluding yourself).
What if you have a large group? How do you keep costs down?
As our group has grown eight women, someone suggested buying half the number of the gifts to keep costs a little lower. This worked well and this year we were each responsible for buying four $10 gifts. On the night of our Favorite Things dinner, we simply passed the four gifts we brought to the four women on our left. Trading and swapping is totally fine once all the gifts are opened.
One tip: Buy bulk items and divide them up!
This year I did just that and divided up a packs of crew socks, TUL gel pens and claw clips! (I also threw in some Cocofloss this year which I didn’t count toward my budget because I bought a few packs over Black Friday and didn’t love it. I knew some of my girlfriends really do love it so it was a little “extra” I knew a few of them would be excited to receive.)
Where do you go to exchange gifts?
This is totally a personal preference thing! Our Favorite Things night group is the same group of friends who gets together every year for an annual holiday mug exchange. I hosted our holiday mug exchange at our house this year and it was great because we could all be as loud as we wanted and didn’t have to worry about a restaurant closing.
A few years ago, for our Galentine’s Day Favorite Things night, we opted for something a little special and booked an “igloo” at a local restaurant which was unique and also nice and private!
In 2023 and then again this year, we opted for dinner at a local restaurant. You can go as fancy or casual as you’d like but we make sure to select louder places where a gift exchange would not be disruptive to other guests. I also love the idea of exchanging gifts at a brewery, pottery painting or candle-making studio, wine bar, etc.
Do you open the gifts one at a time? All at once?
This is another personal preference thing, but we love taking our time! This means everyone opens the same gift from one particular gift-giver at the same time. The gift-giver then takes a minute or two to explain why their gift is one of their favorite things. It’s always so fun to hear the “why” behind the gifts so definitely don’t skip this part!
Once all of the gifts from a single person are opened, that person then selects the next round of gifts to open, and so on and so on until all gifts are opened.
What Favorite Things gifts have you given? What Favorite Things gifts have you received?
I cannot tell you how fun it’s been to discover new favorite things through my girlfriends. So many of their favorite things have become my favorite things. (You may even recognize some of them if you’re a regular blog reader and don’t miss any of my Things I’m Loving Friday favorites posts.)
An important note: If some of the below items are more than $10, they’re likely items that were purchased on sale (we like to shop ahead especially on Black Friday!) or items we buy in multipacks and split up among several gifts. Admittedly we sometimes go over the $10 budget, but we try to stay as close to it as possible.
Here’s what I gave to my girlfriends this year:
Favorite Things Gifts I’ve Given:
- Crew socks
- TUL gel pens
- Claw clips (I bought a multipack through Altar’d State)
- Cocofloss (see above for the story!)
- Electric lighter
- Microfiber wristbands (to keep your arms and sink dry while washing your face)
- Organic rosehip seed oil
- Organic peppermint lip balm
Favorite Things gifts I’ve Received:
- Pastel highlighter set
- Collapsible travel/laundry basket
- Chocolate/favorite sweet treats
- Tarte Maracuja Juicy Lip Gloss
- $10 gift card to a local coffee shop
- L’Oreal Voluminous Lash Primer
- Mini candle
- Travel-size body butter/lotion
- NCLA Sugar, Sugar Lip Scrub
- A small plant
- Magnetic bookmarks
- Honest Beauty Tinted Lip Balm
- Bible verse encouragement cards
- Bible Promises for Moms book
- Travel-size dry shampoo
- Erase Your Face reusable makeup remover cloths
- Favorite book
- Herb stripper tool
And I think that covers everything! If you have any additional questions about our Favorite Things night, just let me know in the comments section of this post and I’ll be sure to answer them.
Happy Valentine’s Day, my friends!!
Questions of the Day
Have you ever been to a Favorite Things night?
If you were going to go to a Favorite Things night and had to bring something under $10, what “favorite thing” would you bring?
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I love how you guys celebrate with your friends! I’ve done a few Favorite things, but it was done in a white elephant style. I liked that at least most friends get the same thing, so that each of them can enjoy it! My favorite things I’ve bought in the past were the 3 wick candles from Bath & Body Works, make up remover cloth and reusable straws that pack up small to throw into a purse.
Maybe acknowledge where Galantine’s originated, Favorite Things (hi Julie Andrews), etc.
Oh gosh I hope it didn’t come across like this was an original idea because it certainly isn’t! In the post I said a lot of people do similar things around the holidays but now you made me curious and I Googled it — looks like Galentine’s Day began via an episode of Parks & Rec! I had no idea!
You didn’t come across that way at all Julie. Thank you for sharing how you and and your friends celebrate and you favorite things. I love everything about your post.
Silicone straws are a fav of mine!
I LOVED my silicone straw for years but got out of the habit of using it with my morning coffee and swear I can notice a different (more stains on my teeth) — I need to bring it back!
I love this idea! I’ve never been a big Valentine’s Day person. It always seemed to come up so fast and stress me out trying to juggle everything plus make Valentine’s Day special. But, sharing favorite things with my girlfriends – that sounds amazing. Especially, the opportunity to catch up after the craziness of the holidays settles down.