Everyone loves a good party and we love a good party favor! I never like to head to a party empty handed or have my guests go home empty handed so these gift ideas can be used for either occasion. Sure a great bottle of wine is always a “go to” hostess gift but how many bottles of wine can one host imbibe? You do not need to answer that. I also love to give something homemade if time allows so these gift ideas utilize that idea although you can certainly find a fabulous bakery or farmers market to provide you with the homemade!

Glassine bags are my all time favorite packaging material for lots of things but especially for treats. You can dress them up in a multitude of ways. Here I embellished these bags with an old book page that I folded over the top of the bag. I then printed quotes on full sheets of vellum and cut them out into square shapes and backed them with a square shape of cream card stock that had been cut a little bit larger. We tied them together with a thin natural colored piece of string threaded through the hole punched bag and papers. To finish it off, I stamped already pre cut card stock tags with a key image and wa la…you have a pretty party favor to hand to your guests as they leave. Of course do not forget to fill them. These I filled with a couple gourmet chocolates and the utterly addictive and delicious Sandies from the Malvern Buttery. Have you ever tasted them?? If not, and you are local you should run out and get yourself some!

http://www.malvernbuttery.com

We love good sweets here and the cookies we sell at our Barn Sales are also a favorite of ours. These sweet little packages make great shower favors. Who would not enjoy a little bag of their own Rosemary Shortbread cookies from Blake’s Mothers Cookies? They are only available at the barn and at select farmers markets in the Hamptons. Come and get some at the next sale or send us a message and we can order you some in either the full size bag or favor bags. They also come in Lavender Lemon and Macadamia Nut. We can even help you design your own personalized labels for a special event!

As you can see…there seems to be a theme here with our gifts. It has been said that to get to one’s heart…go though their stomach!
Homemade pumpkin bread wrapped in wax paper and Halloween inspired trappings, makes a thoughtful gift for the hosts to enjoy the next morning.

  To embellish these bags of chocolate chip scones, I pulled small cinnamon scented hearts from a stash of ones I made years ago and attached them to the bags with a pretty piece of ribbon and brads.  Recipe will be appearing in our Christmas blog series but all I can share with you now is that they are delightfully scented, can be made into any shape and they last forever. (They themselves are not edible)

Any treat can be wrapped up for a hostess gift or party favor including candy!

Books are another favorite of mine. Of course they are inscribed on the inside cover and wrapped with a pretty bow. I look for books all year long as you never know where you might run across a fabulous title that is especially meaningful for the intended recipient.

Have you read or listened to Kelly Corrigan read her Transcending essay? 

I have attached a link for you to watch if you have not already…amazing… and make sure you have a box of tissues close at hand. This makes a fabulous gift for your girlfriends!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LoB-ta28UbY

Christmas ornaments make fabulous party favors and hostess gifts. Attach a quote to each one and you have a personalized favor.

Okay, so I got away from the sweets for a couple of ideas but I am easily pulled back.
I ordered these cute Kraft paper food bags from U-Line for I loved the little windows in the bags. Packaged with my homemade hot chocolate mix

and homemade marshmallows, they make a delightful sweet gift giving treat! Recipe will be included again in our Christmas series.

This is my favorite time of year for making jams and jellies and putting them in pretty packaging to use all year round as gifts.

Even a stack of pumpkins can be given as a hostess gift with the initial of the recipient stamped on a circle tag and tied onto the stem with raffia. Add a gift certificate for a coffee shop, bakery, or winery and it is sure to be a memorable gift!

Any way you look at it, it does not take but a little extra effort to create some personalized and close to the heart favor and hostess gifts. Think “in bulk” when you get some time to bake and freeze the goodies to be popped out later and wrapped into a pretty package. Think outside the box and do not be afraid to purchase yummy treats and present them in your own packaging. But most of all…may you enjoy the art of gift giving .

~Meg

“It’s not how much we give but how much love we put into giving.”
― Mother Teresa