I'm a firm believer in hostess gifts. If you're going over to someone's home or attending a party, you should bring something to say thank you. In true zero waste fashion these hostess gifts should be useful or consumable.
This isn't going to be a super long blog post. Just a few of my favorite ideas because I really don't like showing up to parties empty handed. Having said that, I love leaving parties empty handed!
I do not like party favors. I am not in favor of the favors. I think party favors are kind of odd. I've never once thought, "Ooo, a party favor. I can't wait to bring that home."
My reaction is normally, "Ooo, a party favor... going to figure out how to 'accidentally' leave this somewhere in the house."
I'm sure there are exceptions to the rule, I just haven't found one. Let me know in the comment section below if there's a party favor you have absolutely adored.
Of course, if I were invited to some super swanky party and they were handing out gold watches, my tune might change. However, I doubt I will ever be invited to a party like that.
wine:
I love bringing wine over to parties. It's simple, easy, and typically a welcome edition. Justin and I are members of several local wineries. Living near Napa does have it's benefits. We head to Napa every couple of months to pick up our shipments. We go with Nala, we taste new wines, and it's always a blast!
I ordered one of these boxes from Winc*, and the wines inside came naked! No foil around the top. Keeping wine on hand, makes this my go-to hostess gift. It's easy, it's local, and it's tasty!
flowers:
If the party is on a Saturday, you can bet I'm going to bring some plastic free flowers. The farmers market has several flower vendors. Many of the flowers are sold without plastic wrap.
Since the flowers are pretty wet, I typically have them wrap them in one sheet of newsprint. I think it's adorable and slightly rustic. Plus, it's totally zero waste.
fresh bread:
Is there anything better than a loaf of freshly baked bread? You can head down to the bakery and pick one up in your own cloth bag to keep it zero waste or you can always bake some yourself.
Check out one of my favorite bread recipes.
olive oil:
Olive oil is a great edition to a loaf of bread or a great stand alone gift. I love bringing a local infused olive oil. Amphora Nueva is one of my favorite shops in the bay they have some of the tastiest infused oils.
Plus, you can bring your clean bottles back for a refill. See what I did there? I infused a little bit of zero waste in their life.
plants:
I love bringing plants to house warming parties. Nothing says welcome home like a plant baby!
If you buy plants from a local nursery, you can turn the plastic pots back in!
What are some of you favorite hostess gifts?
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