Ask Bostonist: Creative Host Gifts

Dear Bostonist,

Sick of Chardonnay

Bostonist has definitely been in that situation as recently as this past weekend when we showed up to a friend’s soiree with a 12 pack of Harpoon Winter Warmer. Now, we love the Winter Warmer, but it would have been nice to bring a more creative, personalized gift for our festive friend. So, we turned to the Bostonist staff for their suggestions on gift giving that doesn’t involve a cork (or screw off top depending on your taste). Bostonist Christi shared that a nice plant is always appreciated, especially when you make the host name it (on the spot of course). If you’d rather give them a plant that they need to nurture, she suggests Bulbs in a Bag or the ever-adorable Egglings, which has you grow herbs or flowers out of an actual eggshell.

But what if your host is no green thumb? Well, you could always take the foodie route. Bostonist always makes Christmas cookies each year for co-workers and friends. Who doesn’t love a frosting covered Santa cookie? If baking isn’t your thing, you can always buy some Pillsbury cookie dough at the store, bake ‘em and then adorn them with sprinkles, silver balls, etc. until they are as festive as you like. Wrap them in some colored cellophane and your friends will think you’ve been watching Martha Stewart daily.

Another foodie option is grabbing some jams and jellies from Stonewall Kitchen and pairing it with some inexpensive muffin or scone mixes. This way, you don’t have to do any baking yourself, but it will appear that you love to bake. (There’s a Stonewall Kitchen in the Chestnut Hill Mall; they also sell the line in local Whole Foods.)

A friend of Bostonist passed along a yummy nut recipe, which sounds almost too good to give to someone as a gift, so you might want to double the recipe.

We’ll refer to them as “Party Pecans”:

1. Sauté 2 cups of pecans in butter until browned
2. In a separate bowl, mix 2 tbsp. maple syrup with 1 tsp. chili powder
3. Once the pecans are brown, add the maple syrup/chili powder mix
4. Mix it all up in the frying pan
5. Spread nuts out on a cookie sheet to dry
6. Put in cute bag and deliver!

Do these ideas sound like too much work? If they do, head over to Aunt Sadie’s in the South End and take the time to select the perfect scented candle. They can range from the holiday-themed to the beach scents, so you’ll be sure to find something for the most finicky host. The Paper Source also has some original ornaments that could make any tree-decorating friend smile.

Bostonist hopes you find something of your liking here. If not, just go with the old standby of vino, but please don’t regift that red wine from that party you had last February. Not that we’ve ever done that or anything...