On the first day where we received our matches, I received a really thoughtful set of questions from my Santa that were really good at getting to the type of things I like. I indicated that I like things that are somehow authentic and representative of the place or the person. My Santa took special time to think about what I would like and link it to her life.

The result: a beautiful hand painted plate from the Netherlands (she is a dual US/dutch citizen) that fits really well into my home aesthetic. I have several plates on the walls of the house and love the blue/white color scheme (it's on a lot of things I have hanging). I was stunned. Sometimes things just speak to me and this one did right away. It's something I would like intrinsically and is that much more special that there is a backstory associated with it.

I knew I had to hang it up right away! This typically involves wandering around the house trying to find a perfect spot for something I'm going to put on the wall and it can be an exhausting process; this plate just seemed to fit anywhere! I ended up putting it where it's shown in the photo... what's not shown there is that I sit in that sun room all the time (where I am now) and the top of my monitor would be visible in the third picture if the picture were an inch lower. So I put it in a really prominent place - an indication of how much I like it :) It adds a really nice touch of color to what had been a pretty brown wall. I love it there. It just pops!

Thank you so much Santa - you really knocked it out of the park!! It was such a treat to meet you and you really helped make my first reddit gift exchange such a fun and positive experience.