A good Secret Santa gift under €20 is small and gets used: wool felt slippers handmade in Estonia from €16.95, a cotton waffle hair turban sewn in Latvia for €15.32, or linen waffle towels from Lithuania from €13.95. Under €30 there is a linen sauna seat cover or sheep's wool lined slippers for children; under €50, alpaca socks, a reflective tote, Moomin pieces and a felt laptop sleeve. Every gift below is named with its maker, material and price.
Secret Santa gifts at a glance
| Budget | Gift | Made by | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under €20 | Linen waffle towels | Linen Tales, Lithuania | from €13.95 |
| Under €20 | Waffle hair turban | Nuss, Latvia | €15.32 |
| Under €20 | Halla felt slippers | Omaking, Estonia | from €16.95 |
| Under €20 | Pelsi felt slippers | Omaking, Estonia | from €17.95 |
| Under €20 | Navi slippers | Omaking | €18.95 |
| Under €30 | KAKU kids' slippers | Omaking, Estonia | €20.14 |
| Under €30 | Linen sauna seat cover | KOOSdisain, Estonia | €25.47 |
| Under €30 | Tohkri felt slippers | Omaking | €26.95 |
| Under €50 | Alpaca socks | Alpaka, made in Peru | €35 |
| Under €50 | Waffle sauna wrap | Nuss, Latvia | €35.55 |
| Under €50 | Reflective tote DOT | MARCH, Lithuania | €36.59 |
| Under €50 | Moomin Sniff t-shirt | Nordicbuddies | €36.95 |
| Under €50 | Little My beanie and socks | Nordicbuddies | €40 |
| Under €50 | Bodem laptop sleeve | Nordhale, Estonia | €42 |
How much should you spend on Secret Santa?
Whatever the group agrees, and no more. Office exchanges commonly set a cap somewhere between €10 and €30; friends often go higher. Staying under the cap matters more than hitting it exactly: a gift that is clearly worth more than everyone else's makes the exchange awkward. If no cap has been set, €20 is a safe middle.
Secret Santa gifts under €20
Felt slippers. Omaking, a family shoemaker working since 1927, makes the Halla and Pelsi in Estonia from natural wool felt with a thin rubber outsole for indoor floors. Both are machine washable at 30 °C; Pelsi adds leather details. The Navi uses felt made from recycled plastic bottles, in paired sizes from 35/36 to 47/48.
Towels for the bathroom or sauna. Nuss sews its waffle hair turban by hand in Latvia in OEKO-TEX certified cotton, 67 cm long with a button and elastic fastening, in seven colours. Linen Tales makes its linen waffle towels in Lithuania at 200 g/m², stonewashed, in OEKO-TEX and European Flax certified fabric.
Secret Santa gifts under €30
KOOSdisain makes the linen sauna seat cover in Estonia: 38 × 38 cm, double sided, prewashed, with a cotton hanging loop, in blue, beige or green stripes. For a colleague with small children, Omaking's KAKU slippers are natural felt lined with 100% sheep's wool, with a Velcro fastening, in sizes 20/21 to 30/31. The Tohkri is a closed felt slipper with a heel that folds down, €26.95.
Secret Santa gifts under €50
Alpaka's alpaca socks are 44% alpaca with a reinforced heel and toe, designed in Estonia and made in Peru, in four sizes from 34 to 45. MARCH's reflective tote carries a dot print that lights up in car headlights, 35 × 42 cm with an inside pocket, designed in Lithuania: useful through a dark Baltic November. Nuss's sauna wrap fits S to XL with a Velcro front. For a Moomin reader, Nordicbuddies makes the Sniff t-shirt in 240 g/m² organic cotton and the boxed Little My beanie and socks, both under the official Moomin licence. Nordhale's Bodem sleeve is a plain recycled felt laptop sleeve, handmade in Estonia, 97 g.
What makes a good gift for a colleague you barely know?
Something useful, neutral in colour and forgiving on size. Slippers in paired sizes, socks in four sizes, towels and sauna textiles all fit most people. Leave out fragrance, food and anything with a slogan that needs explaining. A gift that will still be in use in February is a better gift than a joke that lasts an evening.
What is pikkujoulu, and what is pakkeleg?
Pikkujoulu, the Finnish "little Christmas", is the season of pre-Christmas parties from mid November through December, held by workplaces, clubs and groups of friends, often with a gift exchange at a set price. Pakkeleg is the Danish gift game played at a julefrokost or on Christmas Eve: players roll a die and take a parcel on a six, then in a timed second round steal parcels from each other. In Sweden the julbord season brings the same office exchanges. How gifts are given across the region is in our gift giving etiquette guide.
Ordering several small gifts at once
Shipping is free on every order to Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Elsewhere in the EU it is free on orders from €150, so a team buying for several exchanges together will usually pass the threshold.
Common questions
What is a good Secret Santa gift under €20? Wool felt slippers such as Omaking's Halla from €16.95, a cotton waffle hair turban by Nuss for €15.32, or Linen Tales linen waffle towels from €13.95.
What is a good unisex Secret Santa gift? Felt slippers in paired sizes, such as the Navi in 35/36 to 47/48, alpaca socks in sizes 34 to 45, or a plain felt laptop sleeve.
What do you give at a pikkujoulu gift exchange? Something small and useful within the agreed price: slippers, a sauna seat cover, a hair turban or socks. Finnish exchanges usually set the price in advance.
How does pakkeleg work? Players take turns rolling a die and take a wrapped parcel when they roll a six. When the parcels run out, a timed second round begins in which a six lets you take a parcel from someone else.
What if I don't know their slipper size? Choose a style sold in paired sizes, such as 39/40, and when in doubt order the larger size. Open back styles like Halla are the most forgiving.
More from the atelier: Wool Slippers, Sauna & Bath, Moomin and the Nordic Christmas gift guide.
