I can't find a pic of my thread cutter tool, but here's one from amazon.

If new to the group, probably better to go with the flow.

Like bka, I'd like to see your gadget for string piecing too! Never heard about that tool and I hate cutting those strings especially when I cut into the fabric.

I know my guild has a gift exchange every year for Christmas. I keep a watch all year for great bargain buys. This way I can get items that cost twice as much as the limit and only spend the limit. This year I have two quilt gift exchanges, $20 limit for bought items no limit on handmade items. I bought the gifts last spring on flash sales. One is set of Aurifil neutral thread kit of 3 big spools of 50 wt cotton. One is the large Omnigrid ruler holder in aqua color. I got both gifts with free shipping too. One was $14.99 and one was $16.99. Lowest i've seen those items since.

I don't have a picture of mine, but it's very simple - a cheap seam ripper, a small block of wood with a hole in it the diameter of the stem of the seam ripper.
I stand the seam ripper in the hole, take the cap off and use it to snip/cut the thread just like the more expensive type that uses an old rotary cutting blade. It's not as "safe" so I am very careful not to leave it with the cap off. I do not have little ones or pets that I need to worry about.
It's very portable and my hubby has made little blocks for my friends so they can make their own version. My block is about inch thick, and about 2 inches square.

I bought one of these organizers for myself. My husband took it, so I bought another one. He absconded with that one, too. So I bought another one and told him he could not have it!


https://www.joann.com/7in-x-5in-gray.../18105676.html

Since Covid, the meal portion of our holiday gathering is no longer done. The program committee prepares a treat of some sort that can be individually packaged for serving. While that doesn't guarantee no contamination, I guess it at least cuts down the chances. I miss the meal.

The gift exchange is optional for those who wish to play along. I do not. Many of the items here would be welcome - a small bottle of Best Press, a seam ripper, etc. But ours is to be a homemade item! Who has time for that this time of year? And although it is always stressed that it could be a jar of jam or a loaf of banana bread, each year the gifts are elaborate table toppers or tote bags. No. Just... No. (Although I did once give a bottle of homemade vanilla extract, which I make for myself anyhow - but next to the other gifts, it seemed tiny.)

We also bring gifts for a local charity - in the past, it's been a women's shelter, senior citizen complex, Toys for Tots, etc. Those are collected in October and November.

Our Guild has a potluck plus gift exchange. The gift exchange is optional, many of our members are on a tight budget and do not participate. The cost of food plus a gift is expensive, I like the idea of everyone making a gift.

We are having potluck for our guild Christmas party along with a few activities. I would prefer to not even have a meeting in Dec. No one seems to understand the amount of time that goes into planning the Christmas expected event for a large group except the ones doing the work.

My new sewing group is going to have only 2 meetings in December. They will have an additional (or maybe 1 of the 2) as a coffee shop meeting. Helps that at max there are only like 10-12, usual group is more like 6.

I really enjoy having a group to go to, and for me the "holiday" season isn't a very big time/stress commitment. Especially now with no driving or family events. Even before the move with family events we are in a big gap period with no weddings or babies or such things, we mostly go potluck style and my house was too small for comfortable entertaining. Is one of the reasons the Bonnie Hunter mystery works for me, is a good time to stay in with a project. Maybe next year I will know more people and have more furniture and can invite people over.

But, trying to say this nicely, the sewing group people aren't friends (yet) and probably won't be. They are just people with a single shared interest kind enough to let me in (and I appreciate that!). With a large guild I might have more chances at having friends with more commonality. While I enjoy the group, I'm thinking of skipping the coffee social and not intrude where I have little in common especially since they all know and talk about other people but have little interest in me talking about people they don't know...

Anyway, for gift exchanges I'm a fan of fancy socks. I did a search on "sewing themed socks" on Amazon -- some of which were not very quilting related or appropriate for giving to random people but made me laugh.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=sewing+th...ocks+for+women