We all know that there are a literally hundreds of errands and chores to take care of during the holiday season, and getting to baking the cookies can be sometimes difficult. In such cases, a Christmas cookie swap party or cookie exchange party works like a blessing and maybe you have given it quite some thought. With this party, you can easily end up with various cookies without doing all the work. So, would you like to find out the different ideas you can plan this year? Here's the article to show you how. Host the Party One of the best things about this party is that you get to spend some time with your friends, and don't have to worry about any errands or chores at house. The party can be organized for "Ladies Only" so that you can get the task finished faster. So to make your party a success, we have put together the "Start to Finish" ideas so that you don't have to worry about the details. Who is Invited? How many guests are you inviting? 3? 4? Try to extend the invitation to 6 or more. This way, you will everyone will have various types of cookies for the holidays, invite more than 5 or 6 guests. The more guests, the recipes will be different as well. Invitation Anyone? Before you even begin baking the cookies and start swapping them, you need to send out the invitations to your friends. Depending on how many guests are attending, you can decide how many cookies each of the guests have to bring. The party invitations can be sent out via cards or over the phone. Whatever you do, make sure the guests have more than 2-3 weeks' time to plan accordingly. Also, add an RSVP request so you can plan the party. How Much to Bring? Each guest will bake 1 recipe and bring at least 7½ dozen cookies. Now you must be wondering why so much, right? Well, this is one the best ideas that you not only get to eat different cookies but also taste them beforehand. Seven dozen cookies will be distributed amongst everyone and the half dozen can be used as samples. So on the day of the party, you all can do a taste test with some beverages. And if there are more than 7 guests, the amount will also increase. The Exchange Tips Now for some ground rules. These tips, tricks, guidelines rules, whatever you want to call them, can be very useful. Instead of being lost and not knowing what to do next, these tips will keep you on track. Also, your guests will be aware of what is going on at the party. What to Serve at the Party? Once everyone arrives at the party, have them bring their samples out and arrange them in different platters. You, as a host, should have some beverages ready for the party. Some hot chocolate, spicy cider, or coffee would be ideal. Along with the samples from your batch, you can also prepare some more recipes for samples as well. The kind of cookie recipes that don't take a lot of time and can be easily made along with your own batch. What Cookies to Bring? Ask your guests to bake unique cookie recipes. The same chocolate, oatmeal, and nut cookies are old-fashioned. Bring something new, exquisite to the table for your guests and your family. You can easily search for delicious recipes online or cookbooks. Try your hand at baking a recipe that will surprise everyone in a good way. How to Swap Cookies? To swap cookies, you can either ask the guests to bring pre-packed boxes or just separate the cookies and fill them in the containers they brought their batch in. To make the process smooth, you can inform them beforehand while sending the invitations. At this time, you can exchange the cookie recipes with one another as well. So next year, you have more ideas to work with. Many a time, due to some unforeseen circumstances, someone may not be able to get the requested amount of cookies. In that case, ask them to purchase them from the bakery so that the party can go on as planned. The main thing to remember is that the party should run smoothly. I hope that these tips were helpful. Have a great time at the party and I'm sure you all have wonderful treats in store. Merry Christmas!