Eye drops as a Secret Santa gift

Eye drops can work as a Secret Santa gift if the person you drew has mentioned dry or tired eyes, and if you add something more festive alongside. Without that hint, a health product can come across as a comment on how they look. Check the price against your group’s limit, and since you can’t ask about allergies without giving yourself away, include a note pointing to the label.

Secret Santa is a different kind of gift

Giving eye drops to a parent or a close friend is one thing: you know their habits, and they know you mean well. A Secret Santa draw often hands you someone you know only from meetings or the break room. The gift is anonymous, opened in front of coworkers, and usually comes with a spending limit. Each of those changes whether a bottle of eye drops is a good idea.

The general question of eye drops as a present is covered in are eye drops a good gift?. This guide is about the office exchange.

When it lands well

• They’ve said out loud, more than once, that their eyes are dry, especially near a vent or after long video calls.
• You’ve seen them use eye drops at their desk.
• The group has a “practical gifts” culture where people swap hand cream, good pens and desk snacks.
• It’s one item in a small themed bundle, not the whole gift.

When it lands badly

• You don’t know them, and picked it because they “look tired.” That’s how they’ll read it.
• The exchange is a White Elephant or Yankee Swap, where gifts get stolen and could end up with someone who has no use for drops.
• They wear contact lenses. Quell’s label doesn’t cover lenses, so it may sit unused.
• They’re under a doctor’s care for their eyes and already have prescribed drops. Adding another product is a question for their doctor.

The allergy problem with anonymous gifts

Quell’s label carries this caution: Caution should be used in those with egg or bird allergies — For use in the eyes only. The formula contains emu oil. With a family gift you’d just ask. With a Secret Santa, asking “do you have an egg or bird allergy?” gives the game away. Two ways around it:

• Ask the organizer to check quietly, the way they might for food allergies before a cookie swap.
• Include a card that says the drops contain emu oil and points them to the Drug Facts before first use.

Egg or bird allergy? Read this before Quell explains the label wording, if you want to read it yourself before deciding.

Staying under the spending limit

Most office exchanges set a cap. Check the current price of a .33 fl oz (10 mL) bottle on the product page against yours. Shipping is $10.00 per order and free at 3 or more bottles, and that charge counts toward what you spend. If you’re ordering for more than one exchange, or picking up a bottle for yourself too, combining them into one order can make the shipping free. There are no promo codes or gift cards.

What to pair it with

A bottle on its own is small and a bit clinical. A little bundle makes it feel like a present:

• A soft microfiber cloth for glasses or screens.
• A holiday mug and a few tea bags for the afternoon break.
• A small desk plant or a pocket calendar.
• A sleep mask for someone who mentions bad sleep and long screen hours.
• A handwritten tag: “For the end of a long day of screens. Check the label before you use it.”

Getting it to the office in time

Quell ships from Brentwood, Tennessee, and no delivery date is promised, so order well before the exchange date rather than the week of. Shipping to your home and bringing it in keeps the surprise intact; a box addressed to the recipient at work does not. If you do ship to the office, put your own name on it. Can I ship eye drops to my work address? covers mailrooms.

Wrapping and the color note

Leave the carton sealed and wrap it as it came, so the recipient sees the full label. Quell’s solution is milky brown, which surprises people who expect clear drops. The eye drops have a naturally milky-brown appearance. This is normal and does not indicate a problem with the product. A line on the card saying so saves an awkward moment if they open it at their desk.

Keep the wrapped gift at room temperature until the party. The label says Store between 15° to 30°C (59° to 86°F), and a car trunk in December, or a box left in a cold lobby over the weekend, can fall below that.

If it isn’t wanted

Unopened bottles can be refunded within 30 days of delivery without being sent back, but the refund goes to the person who paid, which is you. Since the recipient can’t do that anonymously, a short note like “happy to swap it for something else” gives them a way out. What if they don’t want the gift? has more.