Introducing Secret Santa!
We’re pleased to announce our Secret Santa exchange! This exchange has run on Reddit for the past few years and we’re pleased to be extending it to the Mastodon and Fediverse community this year!
Signups will open on 28 October at 00:00 UTC and close on 18 November at 23:59 UTC.
What is Secret Santa?
It’s a gift exchange! What better way to celebrate the holidays than to exchange gifts with your fellow fountain pen enthusiasts? This is your opportunity to penable a newbie, share ink samples that you will likely never use up, or re-home neglected pens, ink, and/or accessories to a new owner that will appreciate them. Or, simply take pleasure in getting to know someone new and finding them a perfect gift!
Tiers
We will have two tiers: Fun and Elite. The Fun Tier has a minimum gift value of 10 USD and a suggested maximum of 40 USD. The Elite Tier has a minimum gift value of 50 USD and a suggested maximum of 200 USD. Keep in mind a few things: you do not have to buy new items—re-gifting/re-homing is encouraged, as are crafted items—and the maximums are a suggested ceiling. You are welcome to participate in both tiers if you would like to and you have the means!
Getting ready
- Make posts tagged #FountainPens—we will have a (very easy to fulfill) participation requirement. Newbies are welcome to join the fun tier!
- Let your pen friends know that you intend to participate! Not everyone reads pinned posts, so feel free to share this post or tag friends below. Use the hashtags #FPSanta #FountainPens (:
- Browse through last year’s galleries for gift ideas! Fun tier gallery - Elite tier gallery and tagged posts on reddit.
FAQs
- Can I match with only people in my country or geographically close to me? Yes, when you sign up for the exchange, you may choose to match with domestic (same country), international (nearby countries), or worldwide (anywhere). More information on shipping groups is here.
- Do I have to buy new stuff for my gift recipient? No! In this hobby we accumulate a lot of things and we encourage you to gift pens and inks (bottles and sample vials) you are no longer using or that simply didn’t suit your preferences. New is of course fine as well—if you happen to know the perfect gift for your giftee but don’t own it, go with your instinct!
- Can I make stuff for my gift recipient? Yes, if you are crafty, whether that’s with leatherwork, knitting, bookbinding, pen turning, or 3D printing, you can definitely craft things that you think would be a good gift for your match (:
- I want to avoid getting something I already have. You can post State of the Collection posts to Mastodon (unlisted if you prefer) and link them in your exchange preferences.
- Will my personal information be secure? Our matching platform Givin Gifts ensures that personal information—name, address, and phone number—is only shown to the people that need to see it. This would be your gifter (Santa) and the Givin Gifts staff member responsible for verifying shipping proof. Your personal information is not available to exchange organizers (elves). We only see which country you’re in and no other information. For more information, see the Givin Gifts privacy policy.
More info to come this Saturday
A post with full information will go online when we open signups on October 28th (UTC). Any questions in the meantime? Post questions on Mastodon with #FPSanta #FountainPens, or reach out to a member of the 2023 Secret Santa elf team:
- Americas West and Central: @
alexa488@penfount.social - Americas East: @
superplannergirl@penfount.socialand @write_knife_sew@penfount.social - Europe/Middle East/Africa: @
Halfcelestialelf@penfount.social - Asia/Oceania: @
paradoxmo@penfount.social - Head Elf (escalations): @
paradoxmo@penfount.social
