Secret Santa Puzzle Exchange

This is going to be fun! 

Secret Santa Puzzle Exchange is game-on in the Facebook Groups listed below.

See the following details as to how it works.

This is the 3rd year the activity is being held by Tim, Ryan and Kelly. 
Secret-Santa-Puzzle-Exchange

2022 Winter Puzzle Exchange

2022 WINTER PUZZLE EXCHANGE 

If you are interested is participating again or this is your first time, welcome! Here’s what you need to do. PLEASE READ ALL OF THE INSTRUCTIONS, as most of your questions will be answered below. You can also print these guidelines out, so you won’t miss the information!

As of now we have 55 participants, including six Canadians.
2022-Winter-Puzzle-Exchange

1. Puzzles sent in the exchange should retail for no more than $25.00 USD, which means you can send one, two, or ten (just kidding!) puzzles out, just don’t spend more than $25.00 USD. Puzzles sent in the Exchange MUST BE in brand new, unused condition. Puzzle brand, image, theme and piece count are totally up to you. Obviously, you would also be responsible for postage costs to send your puzzle(s) to their destination. Many people purchase and send their puzzles using their Amazon Prime accounts. That’s totally fine! Or you can send them the snail mail way and pay for the postage yourself. It is totally up to you how you want to do it!

2. SIGN-UPS BEGAN AT 12:00 AM ON WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 23, 2022 AND RUN THROUGH THURSDAY, DECEMBER 8th @ 11:59p CST. IF YOU WANT TO PARTICIPATE DON’T PROCRASTINATE!! No exceptions, please. YOU ONLY HAVE SIX DAYS LEFT TO JOIN IN THE FUN! SIGN UP NOW!! Let Kelly, Ryan or myself know that you want to participate so we can add you in!! You must send an email with the subject line “2022 WInter Puzzle Exchange” to Tim (bamfordtim@yahoo.com), Ryan (bronner0510@gmail.com), or Kelly (kellydwright@yahoo.com). These are our personal email addresses and this subject line will help to ensure we see your inquiries. Facebook messages will not be accepted for entry requests. Random comments on this and other Facebook group posts are also not acceptable as entries into the Exchange. You can also contact us with any concerns or questions that you may have. You can mail your puzzle(s) starting December 12 and they should be received by your match on or before Saturday, December 24th so that everyone has their puzzles in time for the holiday! 

3. You’ll know who you are matched with sometime between Friday, December 9th thru Sunday, December 11th. This is the most time-consuming part of the process, and we ask for your patience. You will receive your match information in an email from either myself (Tim) or Kelly during this time. The subject line for the match emails will read “2022 Winter Puzzle Exchange <<MATCH ALERT>>” If you don’t see this email in your inbox, please check your junk or spam folders.

4. If you tell us you want to participate, you must follow through. We don’t want any unhappy puzzlers here. We need your name, mailing address, zip/postal code, email address, and the group you were in when you saw this advertisement. The Puzzle Exchange will be advertised in all of the following groups: Puzzle Obsession, Puzzle Monsters, The Puzzle Family, Spokespuzzler Group, Jigsaw Puzzle Castle, Jigsaw Junkies, Ravensburger Chat, Jigsaw Puzzle Addicts, Jigsaw Puzzle Enthusiasts, Jigsaw Puzzle Connections and Puzzler’s Paradise. Unlike past Exchanges, since many people use Amazon Prime to send out their puzzles, we will not necessarily match you geographically! So if you live in California, you may be matched with someone in Florida or Massachusetts. Canadians will still be matched with other Canadians but not necessarily matched geographically. If you want to puzzle stalk your match and you are not in a group that they are in then you should join other puzzle groups. Also, so you can see when they post about what they received.

5. Due to issues from past exchanges, the 2022 Winter Puzzle Exchange will only be open to puzzlers living in the United States, Canada and Mexico. I apologize to those puzzlers outside of North America who have participated in previous Exchanges.

6. Ultimately only Kelly and I will know who gets matched up with who and we won't reveal who you have as your match, nor will we share your personal information with anyone else. If you have questions about who your match is, need to get a tracking number, etc., please direct your questions to myself, Ryan or Kelly via email as instructed above and we will correspond as appropriate and get back to you as quickly as we can. If you have an issue or complaint, please do not leave a random comment on a Facebook post, because there is a good chance we won’t see it. If you have a problem, email us. We want to know about any issues you have. We can’t resolve issues that we don’t know about.

7. In a Puzzle Exchange such as this, all you are supposed to know is how much you can spend and who your match is. The only difference here is you know you’ll be sending out and getting a puzzle back. Some people like to puzzle stalk you to see what you like, which is why we are asking for the names of the puzzle group you saw the advertisement in.

8. Ultimately the goal with the Puzzle Exchange is to have fun! When you receive your puzzle(s) in the mail, please share pics of what you got in your Facebook Puzzle groups so we all can see and be jealous!

9. Every few days we’ll post these instructions again with all the how-to's, etc. for new folks so they don't get buried too far down in the feed for any group. We will also let you know how many participants have expressed interest. We want as many puzzlers as possible to participate!

Happy puzzling!

Tim, Ryan, and Kelly

2021 Winter Puzzle Exchange update 11/28/21

I am pleased that sign-ups, turnout, and excitement for the 2021 Winter Puzzle Exchange is still moving right along. We now have 126 participants from 33 states, 4 Canadian provinces, 4 European countries, and Australia represented so far. We need more folks from Australia!!! (In the summer, I had four people. I need at least one more person from down under.) There is a nice mix of people who have done this before with me and some first-timers, which is always good to see. Some of the people I thought would want in haven’t done so yet, and time is running out! Sign-ups end on Wednesday, December 8, 2021, with just about 10 days left! If you’ve been on the fence, now’s the time to get in on the fun! You know you want to...

If you are interested in participating again or this is your first time, here’s what you need to do. ((I have added some information.)) ***** Please read all the instructions, as most of your questions will be answered below: *****

1. Puzzles sent in the exchange should retail for no more than $25.00 USD and be in new, unused condition. You can send one or more puzzles if you like to reach the cap but are not required to do so. Puzzle brand, theme, and piece count are totally up to you. Obviously, you would also be responsible for postage costs to send your puzzle(s) to their destination. If you want to be festive, you can gift wrap your puzzle(s). Some people (with great willpower - not me...) decided to put their package under the Christmas tree and wait until Dec. 25 to open it when we did this in December 2020.

2. Sign-ups began on Monday, November 15, 2021, and will close on Wednesday, December 8, 2021, at 11:59pm MST. (Just about ten days away!) No exceptions, please. If you want to play, don’t wait until the last minute to sign up! You can let either me or Rachel Jeffers know that you want to participate. You’ll know who you are matched with sometime between Thursday, December 9th, and Sunday, December 12th. Your puzzle(s) should be received by your match on or before Friday, December 24, 2021, because Christmas is on a Saturday this year. If there are exceptions, they will be noted individually when you receive your match.

3. If you tell us you want to participate, you need to follow through. We don’t want any unhappy puzzlers anywhere. You can let us know by private Fb message or by email that you want to participate. I’m at bamfordtim@yahoo.com and Rachel’s email is therachel518@gmail.com. We need your name, mailing address, zip/postal code, email address, and what puzzle groups you are a member of. All correspondence regarding the exchange must have the subject line “2021 Winter Puzzle Exchange” so they don’t get lost or misplaced. When we match you up with someone, we will try to match you geographically as best as we can, so that postage cost and travel time for your package are minimized as much as possible.

4. People living outside the United States are welcome to participate again, as long as we have at least two people from your country or geographic area participating for matching purposes. ((For example, folks who live in Canada will be matched with other Canadians. If you live in Hawaii, you will not be matched with someone who lives in Massachusetts or Florida.)) We need more folks from outside the US, especially from Australia..

5. Only Rachel and I will know who gets matched up with who and we won't reveal who you have as your match. Nor will we share your personal information with anyone else. If you have questions about who your match is, need to get a tracking number, etc., please direct your questions to either Rachel or me and we will correspond as appropriate and get back to you as quickly as we can.

6. In a Secret Santa Exchange, all you are supposed to know is how much you can spend and who your match is. The only difference here is you know you’ll be sending out and getting a puzzle back. Some people like to puzzle stalk you to see what you like, which is why we have asked for the names of the puzzle groups you are in. If you happen to have an Amazon Prime membership and want to purchase/send your package that way then please do! Anything to save on postage costs is a good way to go and many folks take advantage of this service!

7. This announcement will be posted in the following Facebook groups:Puzzle Obsession, Puzzle Monsters, The Puzzle Family, Spokespuzzler Group, Puzzler's Paradise, Jigsaw Puzzle Castle, Jigsaw Junkies, Ravensburger Chat, Jigsaw Puzzle Addicts, and Jigsaw Puzzle Connections.

8. Let's have some fun with this again. When you receive your puzzle(s) in the mail, please share pics of what you got in your Facebook Puzzle groups so we all can see and be jealous!

9. Every few days I'll repost these instructions again with all the how-to's, etc. for new folks and so it doesn't get buried too far down in the feed for any group. I'll also let you know how many participants have expressed interest. We'll take as many people who want to participate on or before December 8th.

Happy puzzling,

Tim and Rachel