Ugly Christmas Sweater Party - Before

I'm having an Ugly Christmas Sweater Party tonight, and still haven't found my perfect, hideous sweater. I think we're going to turn in into a contest, so mine's gotta be good! The problem is that these parties have become so popular, that the only way to find one of these sweaters is to go to a high-end boutique and pay $30 for one. The whole point is to mock the amazing trends of the '80's and '90's, all while staying within a budget of 50 cents.

The party is also a white elephant gift exchange, and thank goodness my grandma gave me lots of her kitschy stuff. Most of it is pretty perfect for a white elephant party. (Don't think I'm carelessly giving away precious things my beloved Nana gave me. I only consider the things that I know she just went out and bought on a whim. If it meant something to her, I'd never give it away)

This party has a lot of themes. It is ALSO a salty-sweet potluck. Everyone brings something salty, something sweet, or something salty and sweet. I'm going to do some meatballs in the crockpot, and make some chocolate-dipped shortbread with sea salt sprinkled on top. You can just buy plain cookies, and dress them up however you want. It looks like you did a lot of work, but buying the cookies cuts out the longest step. Easy! I bought the triangle-shaped ones, so they're kind of tree-shaped.