This Kansas City Mom Has Gone Viral for Her Overboard Christmas Gifts — But It's Actually an 'Optical Illusion' (Exclusive)

• Amanda Worthley, a Kansas City mom of three, has gone viral on TikTok for sharing videos of her over-the-top Christmas present display of nearly 200 gifts each year.

• Despite the overwhelming amount of presents that appear in the clips, Worthley tells PEOPLE that it's, in part, an "optical illusion" to make the amount of gifts seem multiplied.

• Worthley shares where the tradition of laying out an exaggerated gift display began and explains what she does with the presents (and wrapping paper!) when the Christmas season is over.

Santa's going to need a bigger sleigh!

Amanda Worthley has gone viral on TikTok for creating an unimaginable display of Christmas presents each year, strategically setting up 150-200 presents in her living room to make the total number of gifts look multiplied.

In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, the Kansas City mom of three opened up about her spirited set-up of gifts and shared her secret to creating an overwhelming display of hundreds of presents for her children to wake up to on Christmas morning.

"Growing up with my parents, our Christmases were like this," Worthley tells PEOPLE exclusively of where the extreme tradition began in her own life, noting that she also had a younger brother and sister, so she helped keep the "magic alive."

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As she grew older, got married and started a family of her own, Worthley — who's the mom of son Derek, 20, son Elliott, 5, and daughter Delilah, 3 — says she "just kind of perfected" the present display tradition, to which she agrees is a bit "overboard" when asked.

However, it's the memories and wonder of Santa on Christmas morning from her childhood that she wants to replicate for her children rather than the gluttony of receiving gifts she often gets criticized for on her TikTok.

"I remember believing in Santa and walking out and looking at the living room... And to be able to provide that feeling for my kids for as long as I can is just really special to me," says Worthley. "I think people think that we spend way more than what we actually do."

Though she did admit to laying out nearly 200 gifts each year (which includes presents for friends and relatives, in addition to her immediate family), Worthley says her display "is not as much as what I make it look."

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Worthley, a retired art teacher of seven years, reveals it's the way she wraps the gifts and lays them out that creates the multiplying effect. "I'm very strategic. I make it look like a lot more than it actually is," she says, noting that she purchases and wraps gifts throughout the year.

Another trick up her sleeve? Worthley wraps "everything." That includes her kids' favorite electronics, clothing and toys. According to her 2023 "gifts-per-child" tracking spreadsheet, the "official number" of gifts came to 231 — "if you count the wrapped snacks," she adds.

Worthley also takes into consideration the disposal of the gift wrapping once opened. If the bags and tissue paper aren't "broken or ripped," she says she "reuses them every year." She notes, "The kids think it goes to the trash, but really it goes to the basement."

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A couple of hundred presents may seem like a lot, but Worthley came up with a hack to make it seem like more. "From the front, it looks like all these gifts. But then I walk to the side, you can see all of the gaps in the presents. It's a giant optical illusion!" she reveals.

Worthley prides herself in elevating the magic to her assortment of gifts. "I work very, very hard to make that visual come to life," she says. "Other people work really, really hard to do as little wrapping as they can — and if that's your goal, then you're not going to get the visual that I'm getting."

The content Worthley shares on TikTok is from Christmases past, noting that her display this year won't be revealed until the morning of Dec. 25. In the meantime, all of her gifts are stored in the basement until it's time to set up the display on Christmas Eve.

Worthley says her husband is also involved in the set-up process on Dec. 24 (and sometimes her eldest son, Derek) — though she stresses, "Somebody has to stay with the kids so they don't wake up and come out!"

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Furthermore, Worthley says that the toys that aren't broken, they "give away" or "donate" before starting the gift-purchasing process all over again. "None of it goes into a landfill unless it's not usable anymore."

She makes clear: "Our house is not cluttered... We do a donation purge before Christmas."

Above all, Worthley says her three children are "so appreciative" of the gifts and the presentation of them each year — though she emphasizes her kids "always be kind and love each other," too.

For those commenters who think she's bragging and showing off on social media? Worthley reiterates, "I was an art teacher for seven years, and it's fun for me. It's like an art for me!"

She concludes, "I just want to keep the magic alive for as long as possible."

Read the original article on People