Friday, October 27, 2023

Gift Guide 2023: For the Host + Hostess

holiday gift ideas for host and hostess

Happy Friday and happy first day of gift guides! Weekend Wish List is on pause for several weeks as I release gift guides every Friday through the first week of December! 

I'm doing the host and hostess guide to start the series, as these gifts are the perfect things to bring along with you to a Thanksgiving dinner, upcoming holiday party, or as a weekend guest! I also like to keep things like this on hand because they make nice neighbor gifts and also to give to people as a small token of thanks, for example, for watching Henry.

I have a gift bin where I store things like this, so I always have something on hand for last-minute situations! Being prepared like this takes the stress out of the holiday season and helps me year-round! 

If you'd like more ideas, you can check out 2022's host and hostess gift guide, as almost all of the great gifting items are still available!

 Nantucket Swizzle Stick Set// I think host/hostess gifts fall into two categories: practical or frivolous, and this would be the latter. You can find so many fun, different swizzle sticks to match someone's interests and personality, and it's a small but thoughtful gesture! 

Coffee Table Book// Another 'frivolous' item, but again,  like the swizzle sticks, there is a coffee table book for everyone out there. We have a family friend who loves motorcycles, and they make a really lovely motorcycle coffee table book! It's one of those things that you can never have too many. I have quite the collection, but I always enjoy getting a new one! I just got this blue and white one, and it's fabulous. I pre-ordered it months ago, and it just arrived this week! 

Hydrangea Ornament// I love receiving ornaments. I love remembering the person who gave me the ornament each year as I decorate my tree. Again, it's frivolous, but you can never have too many, and there is an ornament for anyone and everyone out there! I like to buy extra every year to tie onto gifts! 

Jam Advent Calendar// I think food and wine are always a safe and easy choice. This jam advent calendar is adorable, and how fun would it be to gift this with a baguette. I'd love to wake up the morning after my holiday party and select a jam from the calendar to have with toast! Bonne Maman is my favorite jam brand. The four fruits preserve is my favorite thing EVER. 

Chili Oil Crisp// My sister introduced me to this, and it is fantastic. This is perfect to give to someone who loves to cook. It's the perfect blend of savory and spicy and adds so much flavor to any dish! 

Tea Advent Calendar// Overall, a food or drink-themed advent calendar is always a safe but fun choice! I love trying different teas! If you have a lot of tea lovers on your list, you could also make your own 'tea sampler' to gift. You'd just need to buy an assortment of your favorite brands of teas and then separate them out into cute little gift boxes or mugs for each recipient! I really might consider doing that this holiday season because most tea assortments are from one singular brand- it'd be fun to try many different brands! 

Initial Mug// Onto the next thing- these mugs are just $5! It's fun to gift a family with children and give one of each initial and then hot chocolate supplies! 

Wine Aerator// This is one of those things that you think you don't 'need', but it's genuinely such a game changer. We use ours often, and it's an excellent accessory for any wine lover. For those who might not know, when you drink wine, it's preferable to let the wine 'breathe' for a while before you drink it. You can put it in a decanter, but more often than not, we are not drinking the entire bottle so we don't want to to decant an entire bottle. Once you decant the entire bottle and expose it to oxygen, it will not last as long. With the wine aerator top, you can aerate by the glass and leave the rest of the bottle less affected by exposure to less oxygen. The wine goes through the funnel and is quickly oxidized! This helps improve the flavor of the wine! I know this sounds slightly high-maintenance, but I wouldn't suggest it if I didn't think it makes a big difference! 

Balsamic Vinegar// I post about this balsamic all of the time, and I feel like many of you pass over it because it's kind of just a random ingredient, and it's also relatively expensive, but I am telling you. GET THIS! For yourself, for your neighbor, for your mom...everyone will thank you. It's the most delicious balsamic I have ever tasted. It's the perfect mix of flavors and is fantastic paired with high-quality olive oil as a dip or dressing. The flavor is so fresh. 

Wine Preserver// This is another wine gadget that I use often! You put the cork into the bottle, and then the pump hooks onto the cork, and you pump out the air from the bottle, which helps to preserve an open bottle of wine longer. It is easy and quick and truly works!

Lettuceware Candle// I have this and love it. It's pricey for a candle, and a candle seems like such an overdone host/hostess gift, but first and foremost, I personally always love receiving a candle, and secondly, this candle is a beautiful piece of lettuceware that you can then use as a vase! I use mine as a vase ALL of the time! It's so beautiful. 

Sponge Gift Set // These are the best sponges ever, and it's so cute how they are packaged like this as a set of 4! These were a Shark Tank invention. I buy these repeatedly, and it seems silly to be so fanatical over a sponge, but I only use these! They don't scratch but scrub so well! They become soft and flexible when hot water is used and become hard when cold water is used. The smile in the sponge is so good for cleaning flatware. I think one of these paired with a hand soap is a nice pairing! The source that I found gives you 3 sets of 4 sponges for $30. So you get 12 total sponges, and each sponge is $2.50. I typically buy mine via Amazon, where I get 3 sponges for $10, which is about $3.33 per sponge and they sell individually for $4ish so even if you don't buy these as gifts, if you like these sponges, this is the best price I've seen for these sponges! 

Floral Napkins// Napkins and cocktail napkins are one of my go-to gifts. Again, you can never have too many, and there are so many beautiful patterns out there! 

Hand Soap// I have quite a few favorite hand soaps, but this is my current fave. You can use code SUMMERWIND for a discount at checkout. I held off on buying this for so long because it's expensive. I have seen it everywhere and never smelled it, so I finally caved and now fully understand the hype. It's one of the best smells EVER. It's fancy, and it smells fancy...those who know will know. Honorable mentions for l'occitaine, Molton Brown, and Williams Sonoma brand soaps! 

Paloma Cocktail Set// My girlfriend gifted me one of these last year. I had never heard of it before, but it's such a fun concept. The jar is filled with everything you need to create a cocktail, and then you just fill it with your liquor of choice. I have had the spicy pineapple one that was delicious, and I'm really interested in this Paloma! This is fun for hosting if you want to make a batch cocktail but also great for things like tailgating when you need quick and easy but prefer craft cocktails. 

Coasters// I recently got these, and as soon as I saw them in person, I knew they'd be the perfect host/hostess gift. The quality is superb, and they are just stunning. I feel the price is low for how beautiful and substantial they feel. 

Graza Olive Oil// This is the best olive oil, and I have to say their social media team deserves a raise because they are all over the internet and so fun/funny on social media. A bottle of the Graza drizzle and the balsamic I shared above, and you will be invited back forever!

1 comment:

Angles Of Light said...

This is a fantastic list. Thank you!

 

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