Gift Giving

Need to bring a gift?

Are you searching for a memorable housewarming gift? Wondering what to bring as a hostess gift? Here are a few ideas...

BOOKS

Give a new home owner is decorating books or magazines. Most people love to drool over beautifully staged photos of other peoples homes. They can provide inspiration and ideas. Tie a few magazines together with a bow and slip a paint brush into the tie. Every home owner needs paint brushes!

DISHES

Give a collection of beautiful dishes or serving pieces. Tie together a group of vintage  dishes with a pretty bow. One can never have too many serving pieces or dessert dishes. Mix and match patterns. Odd dishes and unique patterns can be found at thrift shops, flea markets and even in the box of keepsakes from grandma.  No matter what you host's decorating style or theme,  there is always an opportunity to use an eclectic mix of dishes. 

WINE

Always a delicious and fun idea. Pick out a bottle with a label that speaks to you. Maybe a says something about the hostess or home owner. Tie a fine pointed sharpie marker to the bottle. The recipient can start a new tradition of signing the wine corks to remember special events their life.

PLANT

A plant is always a nice gift, but take it one step further. Put a plant inside a new decorative pot. You can always pick up inexpensive ones at thrift stores. Or, rethink the standard pot. Put the plant in an old metal box, watering can or a decorative vintage tin. The options are endless!

GIFT BASKET

A gift basket with some of these items would be a thoughtful way to say, "Welcome Home!" or "Thank you!". For a new home owner, think of things they may need such as a flashlight, batteries, nails, a hammer, a candle, notepad, pen, measuring tape, etc.

Give something useful and sentimental. 

Did you know the tradition of giving housewarming/hostess gifts can be traced back to our ancestors in Europe. Gifts were selected due to the messages they represented. Here are a few popular gifts were broken down and the meaning revealed. Give one of the items and tie a note with its meaning.

• Bread: "May your house never know hunger."
• Salt: “May your life always have flavor."
• Sugar: “May your life always have sweetness.”
• Wine: “May you always be of good cheer.”
• Honey: "May you always enjoy the sweetness of life."
• Candles: “May your house always have light and happiness.” 

Leather, Hard and Bound

Matt Bomber aka Christian Grey



Leather, Hard, and Bound sounds like something Christian Grey would do, but its really referring to book. For any reader, a favorite decorating prop is books. Books add dimension, provide elevation and/or substance to any display you are doing within your home.

(Leather, Hard and Bound.)
 

The use of leather bound or hard cover books adds substance and a sense of history to shelf. Remove the dust jacket. Most books have a beautiful colored cover and binding. Follow a room's color scheme by displaying books with covers of a similar hue. Add a few books to support your accent color. On a shelf of all blue books, the eye tends to gravitate to the yellow or green book that pops out. 

 

(Never ask her age.)
 

It doesn't matter how old a book is, its still viable. No one should ever discard a book. Ever. The worn appearance of old books can a sense of history and comfort to your home. Fill your book shelves with old books. Utilize a theme for a more organized collection.  Display old cookbooks in the kitchen, books of poems in the bathroom, or reference books in a family room. Pick an author and collect their books. Its fun to have something to search for at garage sales, thrift stores and auctions. Old books add ambiance to any office. As a realtor, collect old real estate books. As a doctor, collect old home remedy books. Its interesting to learn how professions have evolved over time.

 

(Take it off!)
 

Many retail stores, such as Anthropologie, have started the trend of tearing the cover off of paperback books. Its a creative way to display books, which can be duplicated in a home. Tear off the cover and spine cover of old paperbacks and remove the first few blank pages too. The black text and the white pages make a sort of muted and collective statement. This is a beautiful addition to a shabby chic or French cottage interior. Mix up the sizes of the books to add height and dimension. This is also a charming idea to serve as a riser on a table for a garden party or wedding.

(All wrapped up.)
 

Covering a book is a nice way to blend books with  decorating, and it doesn't without harming the book. This style has been popular in high end interiors for awhile. Wrapping the all the books on a book shelf with  one solid color paper color, most often a white or black card stock, allows the book to be displayed without competing with the décor. Its easy to do and instructions are easily located through Google. Other wraps include sheet music, newspaper, wrapping paper, and even old dictionary pages. This is a great way to show creativity.

However utilized, books are a great decorating tool. Simply having books around can serve as inspiration to start reading.