Several of my friends have moved house recently prompting me to pull together this post on ideas for house-warming gifts.
When my sister recently became a homeowner her home refurb was well and truly underway the day she and her husband moved. So much so they had no kitchen as such, just one plastered square room with a few pipes. I bought her some Festoon Lights which may have looked cool but didn’t really deal with the issue of having nowhere to eat, wash the dishes or store food. I wish I’d gone a bit Martha Stewart and pulled together a little basket of goodies or knocked up a cake. Though I’m sure she probably preferred the two bottles of prosecco I brought instead.

Bring A Bottle

Speaking of alcohol, I couldn’t find any suitably sized images to help illustrate this so you’ll have to use your imagination. You could attach a hammer to a bottle of wine with a tag prompting the first-time buyers to ‘take a break and get hammered.’ Like they need any encouragement. Just make sure it’s screw top so there isn’t a mammoth hunt for corkscrew.

Warm With A Candle

As far as I’m concerned you can’t beat a candle as a house-warming present. I adore Diptyque candles as they smell utterly gorgeous and their packaging is super stylish as well. I have bought the smaller ones as gifts in the past if the price tag is a bit too much to take. I recently gave my sister an Anthropologie candle to thank her for hosting Christmas as once again great decorative packaging. There are always wax bargains to be had in TK Maxx and there’s something to be said for the pretty jar candles from Homebase. Just add a little bit of ribbon to the apothecary style glass for a pretty extra touch. For the ultimate crafty house warming gift then don’t forget my candle tutorial from last year.

Stamp Happy

How about ordering a custom address stamp so they can get busy stamping all their post with their new return address. Etsy have a loads of UK sellers who can help you out with a stamp and ink pad or order from abroad for lots of options and styles.

Key To The Door

Just before James and I moved in together he bought me a ‘Love Heart’ keyring. It was fairly cheesy but it was hugely symbolic as we were finally getting our very own front door together. H&M do some cute ones as do Accessorize, though there are absolutely none to be found on their website so nip in store. Alternatively make like SATC’s Jennifer Hudson and send along a ‘love’ keyring from mynamenecklace.

Personalised

For a massive selection of personalised gifts with the new address where else but Not On The High Street? I love this custom tinder sack which sure beats the Zara paper bag I have shoved down the side of my sofa. These residence mugs are also great for anyone who moves around a lot as they can be taken from along from house to house to add a really homely touch.

If all else fails a nice bunch of flowers always does the trick, and you get bonus points if you bring a vase too.

What’s been the most useful present you’ve received when you moved to a new home? What gifts do you usually buy when friend or family get a new address?

Image sources | Mixed calligraphy address stamp | Coffee beans basket | Lemon loaf