What's the best and worst things you got...

An eye patch, which I immediately gave to my friend as she has just had a cataract removed. She loved it!
Worse thing was a little jumping frog which soon leapt off the table and disappeared.

gillyknits

I copy the pattern so I don't ruin the original, and then use Post-it notes to keep my place, and sometimes those metal boards with magnetic strips that I used to use for cross stitch.
www.amazon.co.uk/Dritz-Magnet-8-inch-10-inch-6-inch/dp/B000XZUDNG?tag=gransnetforum-21

Chanel hand cream. Smells lovely.

I like the big paper clips for keeping my place on knitting patterns!

Shoe horns are useful and I've had several from Christmas crackers. I donate them to the nursery where I work as a lot of the children's shoes are difficult to put on them although they are encouraged to dress themselves . They are amazed when I show them how to use a shoehorn. Such a simple idea and so useful. I must google who thought of it in the place. Worse things from crackers are those tiny spinning tops which don't spin!

I make my own crackers though for home and fill them with a chocolate and a small gift which is appropriate to the recipient, like earrings. In my granddaughter's, this year, I put a magic invisible writing pen with an ultraviolet light on the end to reveal what she had written and she loved it. Only 3 quid from Waitrose.

The best cracker gift?
Ahhh - memory lane...

I just rediscovered some tiny flick-books from some childhood crackers, one was “tweety pie” . My daughter loved my little wade creatures which she played with as a young girl. Those came in crackers during my own childhood.

The worst this year was a set of little plastic golf tees. I dont play and neither does DH.
The best cracker gift I ever had was years ago when crackers contained really better quality surprises.
It was a diamond ring (glass of course!) but looked so good that I wore it as a dress ring for many years at "dress-up" parties.
I received many lovely comments on my "diamond".

A fold up shopping bag in a pouch which I keep in my handbag. My DSL gave it to me years ago when they were not as common as they are now. I use it all the time and have repaired the seams when they were coming apart.

For the last few years I have made my own crackers using old toilet rules or bought cracker kits. The lovely thing about it is you can personalize them by adding your own gifts and motto/joke. This year it was small Lego figures for the children and scratch cards for the adults. My husband made mine and put earings in it. They don't really cost much than buying a box of crackers full of stuff you don't want and everyone ends up with something nice. It can be hard funding things small enough to fit in though!

A friend gave me a bar of soap in a music box!

A decorative hair wand a good quality one but it was one of thoes really expensive crackers hand made at a work.party over 20 years ago still have it.Yes the business went bust which was a shame ...

Over the years I've got a small plastic shoehorn and nail clippers, both of which are very handy. The worst was a pair of twisty turny metal shapes which were meant to be a puzzle - not very interesting - that went in the bin. Oh, and a little oval metal shape which is a bookmark which is quite good.

Screwdrivers for me too! Years old but still used on glasses etc.

A very large paper clip, use to keep my statement etc together.
All my presents were lovely couldn’t be happier with them.

A tiny comb, which I have used several times. Worst thing was plastic 'charm don't know what I would have hung it from. It went in the bin. But the cracker it came from was a really cheap box. Didn't buy any this year.

A beautiful purple velvet scarf from my daughter.

An amethyst necklace from my husband which was exactly like two others he had given me at other Christmases - we took it back and he was very sorry and embarrassed.

I have one of those little screwdriver sets too. Kept very carefully, essential for fixing glasses.

I also have a teeny screwdriver set from a few years ago and use it for allsorts of things but mainly glasses and toys , battery compartments etc.
The worst has to be the piece of coloured plastic paper that tells you your mood from the heat of your hand and how much the "paper" curls .

Your little graders would work for nutmeg too.

I've only ever got rubbish from crackers!! We keep them in the sideboard drawer for the grandchildren.

Little nail clippers. Handy for my bag for emergency nail breakages.

I got a little grater too, and yes, it is much loved and used. Works brilliantly for zest, hadn't thought of using it for tiny bits of parmesan - I am sure it would be perfect for that!

I got two tiny plastic lobsters....two different crackers in different pubs.... no idea what that was about?

I got a tiny little pouch containing miniscule screwdrivers.
I still use them now, and that was years ago.