Part of my love for entertaining includes making guests feel welcomed! My family is visiting from out of state and are staying with us. I put together two different baskets, one for my cousin, and the other for my aunt and uncle. I am telling ya, these are unique gift basket ideas you’d want to receive! This post will offer some inspiration on how to curate a basket to your own guest’s interests so they feel welcomed upon arrival!
How exciting is it when you are expecting family and friends who you haven’t seen in a long time? When I found out that my family was going to visit us, I immediately started to prepare for their arrival. I was in the middle of refinishing my basement which is where our second guest room would be. However, it was a concern of mine that the basement refinish would not be ready in time. Well, guess what? The contractor finished the remodel ONE HOUR before they arrived!
It was all worth it. Hello, Beautiful!
This is the area where the sleeper sofa, fireplace, and TV went. Alongside my cute little table and gift basket that I put together for my family.
Where do you begin when trying to come up with unique gift basket ideas that you’d want to receive? Think about items that you typically rather not fly with if you can just pick it up once you arrive to your destination. Getting these types of items for your guests tend to make it a little bit easier for them. Can’t forget about the convenience factor! I like putting some practical items in baskets and fun and personal touches. You don’t just want to throw in a razor, toothbrush, and toothpaste, and call it a day.
Where can you find of all the goods? I went to 5 Below, TJ Maxx, and Target to get all of the items that I am going to list below. You can definitely find all of this stuff in different stores. When curating the items to your guest’s interests, you will most likely have to go to other stores anyways.
Gift Basket Ideas
- Basket or container to put their gifts in
- Soap
- Lotion
- Body & Face Wash
- Face Mask
- Chapstick
- Toothbrush & Toothpaste
- Tylenol, Benadryl
- Stain Remover
- Razor
- Socks
- Hair Elastics
- Phone Charger
Unique & Personal Touches
- Chocolate Covered Pretzels
- Milano Cookies
- Chips, or Goldfish Crackers
- Snack Cakes that are unique to your region
- Any local foods that they can’t find near them
- Add napkins in the basket for when and if they decide to have a snack in their room
- Crystal key chain
- An activity to do together
- Memorable picture of you together
- If they have a baby, get a small outfit or pajamas and a small stuffed animal
- Baby blanket, or adult sized one
To reiterate, a welcome gift basket should include some practical items and fun, personal touches. If they like playing cards, add that in. If they like chocolate and coffee, put some chocolate covered espresso beans in there! My family has a dog named Storm and while shopping at TJ Maxx, I found a candle labeled STORM. It was a nice, personal touch.
It was great to know that my family loved the baskets I put together for them. I wanted to make them feel welcome, and I think these baskets did the trick.
Hosting and entertaining is such a passion of mine. If you do too, please check out the rest of my blog where I talk all about event planning and hosting!
