Fifty-something gifts?!!! Wow, that's a lot! Biggest FE group I've ever had was 27.
My experience is limited to the group of ladies that I sail with, so I've never had to worry about gifts for men or kids, but here are some ideas that a friend of mine shared with me before my first cruise, when I had no idea what a FE exchange was, together with some of the things I've given/gotten over the past few years. I've rarely given or gotten anything that's specifically DCL-themed (it has happened, just not frequently). Many of the ideas below would work for either gender or age group, I think.
- Snacks. One year, I'd just come back from Ireland so my FE gifts were Irish candy. Another person, who is from Chicago, gave an assortment of candies that are made there (tootsie rolls, tootsie pop, lemonheads, etc.). You could order customized Hershey bars. One of my friends who is from Pittsburgh always gives us a bar of Sarris chocolate. IMO, edibles or consumables are great, because you don't have to pack them up to take home!
- Mini bottles of liquor. You could attach/include a cocktail recipe using whatever liquor you give.
- Tide pods (for onboard laundry).
- Homemade postcards to send to family while gone using stock pics of the ship.
- Picture frame with a Mickey & anchor glued on.
- Poncho for parks afterwards
- Nail clippers always handy as a McGyver tool when traveling. Other grooming aids, too. One year I gave everyone one of those big emery boards with a Mary Englebreit design/saying on them. Last year, got a bag with a travel mirror, a nail polish an emery board and a bath bomb. I gave a Bath & Body Works anti-bac with holder last year. Lip balm!
- Mickey bandaids. Star Wars bandaids.
- I don't know if it qualifies as "too crafty", but one of my favorites was a mini-cookbook. One of my friends printed out a bunch of her favorite recipes in booklet form. That could be as simple as a couple of staples.
- Those "magic" washcloths (they're the size of a ring box until you put them in water)
- Bookmarks.
- Travel mug or tervis tumbler. These are handy for the drink stations, instead of the small paper cups that are stocked there.
- A sleep mask that had the word "Dream" embroidered on it (we were sailing on the Disney Dream, so this was particularly clever)
- Funky patterned socks. There's a website called foottraffic that has some neat novelty socks and I'm pretty sure they offer a volume discount.
Hopefully you found some useful ideas there. I've gotta get back to work!!
Edit: Do you have a Michael's Arts & Crafts nearby? Stop by their dollar bins, I've found lots of good FE gifts there, they have monogrammed items, pens, notepads, magnetic pads (one year, I gave everyone a bag of monograms--their initial on a matching pad, pen, and ornament).
Edit #2: Are you aware that you can ship (UPS or post office) your FE gifts to yourself and they'll be delivered directly to your stateroom? This is incredibly helpful if your gifts are bulky and/or heavy. The cost of shipping is probably going to be a lot less than paying airline fees for extra baggage.
