Hostess Gifts 101

A Southern Girl would never, ever go to a someone's home empty-handed! Hostess gifts are a small way to show appreciation to a family who has opened their home and their lives to you. An invitation into someone's home is a great gift, one that is shared too infrequently in this age of hustle, bustle busyness.

As mentioned in an earlier post, I keep a gift closet from which to draw hostess gifts on-demand. I save money this way because I stock my gift closet with bargains. Some of these come from stores like TJ MAXX and HOMEGOODS. Others are deep discounts that I find througout the year. The day after Christmas is one of my favorite days to stock up. I often skip Black Friday, but never miss the sales on December 26th. For example, I always visit Bath and Body Works on that day. Many items go for $2 to $5 and gift sets are usually 75% off. I often get coupons from this chain for "$10 off of a $30 purchase". For about $20 I can usually pick up 6 to 8 hostess or "just because" gifts.

An assortment of gift bags (many recycled from gifts we've received) and different colors of tissue are also on hand. I do not like to pay retail price for wrappings. The prices are INSANE!

I know it might seem like all I do is shop. Not really, I just keep my bargain radar up when I'm out and about. It is amazing what I can find if I just pay attention! For example, yesterday I went to the mall to exchange some jeans for one of the kiddos. Lo and behold, Yankee Candle had their Fall scented candles (my favorites) on sale, buy 2 jars and get 1 free. Because I had my handy-dandy coupon binder in the car (to be explained in a later post), I had the "$10 off of a $25 purchase" coupon that came in the mail earlier this week. I purchased 3 candles that retail for $14.99. I paid $21.18, a savings of $25. They are snug in my gift closet until I need them.

To be completely honest, stocking up on bargains allows me to give nicer gifts.

Hostess Gift Ideas:
-Candles and/or Candleholders
-Picture Frames
-Quality Liquid Hand Soaps for Bath or Kitchen
-Cookbooks
-Nice Kitchen Linens
-Food Gifts From Your Kitchen
-Plants (if you need last-minute gift)
-Gourmet Oil, Honey or Preserves
-Specialty Coffees or Teas
-Fun Board Games

Don't forget your hosts during the holidays or any other time of year!

A Few Of My Favorite Things-Gift Closets

About ten years ago a mentor recommended that I start a gift closet. Or more specifically, a designated space in my home where I would keep a stash of gifts. What a wonderful friend! I cannot tell you how many times this has saved me when I needed a last-minute hostess or birthday gift.

Basically, I just look for things on sale and stockpile when I find a great deal. (Also the way I buy most of my groceries.) Some of my favorite gift closet finds are bath products, scented candles, books, unique photo frames, cool mugs (tea, cocoa or coffee added at presentation time), gift cards, gender-neutral baby items, and toys in the age-range of my boys for birthday party invites.

As our family increases, I learn more and more how necessary it is to be prepared. Last-minute scrambles just make my blood pressure go up and my nerves shorten. I also tend to spend a lot more if I wait to the last minute. My gift closet gives me the time to hunt a bargain and allows me to be just a little more prepared.

I am very excited that our remodeling project is going to allow me to have an entire closet designated for this purpose...I am going to be SO organized >insert contented sigh here< once this little project is complete. I will be sure to post photos.

I also keep a gift binder that reminds me of the gifts that I have given in the past. I will blog about this on another day.