At The Christmas Party Hop

Posted by Canadian Gift Guide on November 16, 2015 · 435 Comments

Aw yeah. I don’t know about you, but my holiday calendar is filling up mighty fast. With so many festivities to attend to, I’ve been keeping an eagle eye out for fun and fresh hostess gift ideas that are way more special than ye ol’ bottle of wine. Here are 10 awesome hostess gift ideas to bring along to your next fete!

Soaps of Provence – $28 @ L’Occitane
Every good hostess always has her sweetest-smelling soaps on display when company comes over. This extraordinary collection consists of four fragrant and moisturizing shea butter soaps, including two neutral milk bars, one zesty verbena, and one gentle lavender. The total collection makes for a great stockpile for the hostess with the mostest, and it comes in a ready-to-gift box so you can easily pick it up en route to your event.

Salad Zinger – $19.95 @ Zing Anything
The best hosts always have those recipes you’re dying to try for yourself – and the Salad Zinger is the ideal gadget to add to their repertoire. Add vinegar and olive oil to the top and then simply use your choices of fresh herbs, spices, or garlic in the bottom to easily and naturally infuse flavour into your base ingredients. The fun doesn’t stop there – you can also use this to create infused olive oils for dipping or glazing your foods in. To really amp up the nice factor, consider adding in a box of upscale oil and vinegar for your gracious host.

Vancouver Island Salt Co. – Bundles from $20 Online or $5 a Box
Salt is certainly a chef’s staple, but as any foodie will tell you, not all salts are created equal. These artisanal sea salts are made from evaporated sea water, which gives the salt a robust yet clean flavour. While Vancouver Island Salt Co. has the staples – including the coveted Canadian Fleur de Sel – they also offer up a range of infused and smoked salts. The latter is a must-have if you’re a vegetarian (I speak from experience) as it can lend dishes a smoky, meaty flavour. Their infused salts however, are amongst the most creative I’ve seen, with unique flavours like Blue Cheese Sea Salt (great on everything from steak to popcorn) and flavourful Orange and Lime Sea Salt (perfect for rimming margaritas). Their sea salts retail at just under $5 a box when bought alone, making this one of the most frugal finds you’ll see this season! Check out their buying guide to track down an in-person location near you.

Wine Stand – $16.95 @ Son of a Woodcutter
In lieu of bringing another bottle of wine – why not bring the host a really cool way to display their collection? This simple, rustic wine bottle holder packs some serious visual impact when in use, as the mechanics of gravity and physics and some other scientific stuff allows the bottle and the stand to virtually float. Best of all, this is an eco chic gift – the wine stands are made from the offcuts from Son of a Woodcutter’s other amazing products. The company works primarily with reclaimed wood to begin with, creating striking, one-of-a-kind tables, desks and more at great prices that would make equally lovely gifts if say, you’re treating some newlyweds or your kid is just simply clamouring for a particular piece. But as a conversation starter – and introduction to the brand – this wine holder will do just fine.

Ontario Black Walnuts & Honey – $19.95 @ Stasis Preserves
If your giftee loves local gift ideas, then this sweet treat is a perfect pick. Combining tasty local honey with wild harvested Niagara walnuts, this scrumptious gift idea is a 100% natural product to boot. It apparently has delicious notes of truffles and apples, and it’s something your host can actually use almost immediately. A dollop of honey makes a great accent on a cheese board, for example, or as a natural sweetener if tea is on the menu. It’s also great just to have around when your host is whipping up a meat glaze or a salad dressing.

Neal’s Yard Remedies Festive Fragrance Room Spray – $22
Want an instant uplifting shot of holiday aroma in your home? Check out this awesome room spray, infused with notes of frankincense, clove, and mandarin essential oils. For those of you that are unfamiliar with Neal’s Yard Remedies, this cult UK favourite is winning over fans in Canada bit by bit, with a new second retail location opening in Calgary’s Southcentre Mall just a few weeks ago! The brand is committed to sourcing fair trade, organic and sustainable ingredients – but only those of the highest quality, ensuring your gifting something you can feel really awesome about!

Maple: 100 Sweet and Savory Recipes Featuring Pure Maple Syrup by Katie Webster – $24.95
Has a more Canadian cookbook ever been written? I’m tempted to say no. This divine cookbook features a whopping 100 recipes with maple syrup as the centrepiece, from delicious morning meals like Maple Oat Zucchini Bread or Maple Chia Pudding Cups through to more savoury fare like Maple Glazed Carrots and Maple Ginger Roasted Salmon. There’s also surprising sections on tantalizing drinks and appies like Maple Cashew Chicken Satay or a Mapletini. And of course, the dessert list is perhaps the best part of all, with awesome ideas like Maple Bacon Peanut Brittle and Maple Apple Crumb Pie. Hungry yet? Now admittedly, this gift comes with a price tag in that maple syrup isn’t the cheapest to come by – so be sure to gift your host with a good quality bottle next to this book!

Renova ‘Made By You’ Custom Napkins – $35 for 3 Packs
Add some festive and funny flair to the dinner table with a collection of customized napkins from Renova. This unique European paper products brand has already innovated with vibrant-coloured bathroom tissue and paper towels, but nothing quite compares to seeing your own mug on a napkin you’re about to use…to wipe off that stray cranberry sauce on said mug. Renova’s ‘Made By You’ system is super easy to use and they offer free worldwide shipping. And since you’re ordering multiple packs, you can break out a pack for multiple parties you attend this season. Genius!

Gilles DeWavrin Candles – $31.50 USD Each @ French Studio Imports
Add a little je ne sais quoi to your next gathering with one of these luxury candles from Gilles DeWavrin. The 20-year-old company works with experienced French craftsmen and parfumeries to come up with truly intoxicating scents like their bestselling Lounge candle (a manly blend of vetiver, amber wood and sandalwood) or their intriguing Turkish Delight (honey, almonds and rose). The metal canister the candles come in makes it a gift-ready idea – just pop a bow on top and you’re good to go, with a gorgeous gift idea your host will treasure. You can also pick them up in person at 2788 Granville Street in Vancouver.

Epicure Sweet Dip Mixes – $10 each
You may associate Epicure with their popular savoury dip mixes – but did you know they offer sweet choices too? With seasonal flavours like Cranapple Cinnamon and Carrot Cake, these tempting mixes can be blended with cream cheese and rolled in nuts for a unique take on a cheese ball, whipped together with some greek yogurt and served up with fruit, or even mixed into batters for pancakes or muffins. Just one is a sweet little token of appreciation – but a bundle will surely be received with extra joy.

I’m giving away the ultimate hostess gift prize package, valued at over $250 and including the following:

L’Occitane’s Soaps of Provence Set
A Salad Zinger
A Vancouver Island Salt Co. Boxed Gift Set
Son of a Woodcutter’s Wine Stand
Stasis Preserves Ontario Black Walnuts & Honey
Neal’s Yard Remedies’ Festive Fragrance Room Spray
A copy of Maple by Katie Webster
A Gilles DeWavrin ‘Lounge’ Candle
All 4 Epicure Sweet Dip Mixes

Here’s how to enter!

1) First & foremost: you must be a subscriber to the Canadian Gift Guide to enter this giveaway. It’s as simple as finding ‘The Gift of Gab’ box in the righthand column and dropping in your email or clicking follow. Then leave me a comment below by November 26, 2015 telling me what your favourite gift idea for the host or hostess is in this roundup!

2) Entries are limited to one per person / per email address / per household (or more if you score bonus entries). A random draw will be conducted on or around November 27, 2015 to select the winner, who will have 48 hours to respond before another winner is chosen in their place.

3) Entries are limited to Canadians that have reached the age of majority in their province. Quebec is not eligible for this promotion.

4) Bonus Entry: Do as many or as few of the following as you’d like. For every bonus entry you rack up, be sure to leave a separate comment with proof (i.e. a link) or your bonus entries won’t count!

L’Occitane – Follow the brand on Twitter and send out a Tweet about the giveaway that tags them + me (@cdngiftguide) and links back to this post.

Zing Anything – Follow the brand on Twitter and Tweet about the giveaway, tagging them and me (@cdngiftguide) with a link back to this post.

Vancouver Island Salt Co. – Follow the brand’s founder on Twitter and Tweet about the giveaway, tagging them and me (@cdngiftguide) with a link back to this post.

Vancouver Island Salt Co. 2 – You can also follow the brand’s section Twitter account and Tweet about the giveaway, tagging them and me (@cdngiftguide) with a link back to this post.

Son of a Woodcutter – Follow the brand on Instagram and either regram one of their photos or share a photo from their site to your own feed (screenshots are a handy way to do this).

Stasis Preserves – Follow the brand on Instagram and either Regram one of their photos, or share a photo from their site onto your Instagram.

Neal’s Yard Remedies – Follow the brand on Instagram and share a photo from their site onto your Instagram with the hashtag #NYRFestiveFragrance.

Random House -Follow the brand on Twitter and send out a Tweet about the giveaway that tags them + me (@cdngiftguide) and links back to this post.

French Studio Imports – Follow the brand on Instagram and either Regram one of their photos, or share a photo from their site onto your Instagram.

Epicure – Follow the brand on Twitter and send out a Tweet about the giveaway that tags them + me (@cdngiftguide) and links back to this post.