Host gift which ISN'T chocolate or alcohol or toiletries!

[hedgehoggle]

OR flowers.

I'm staying in the house of a family friend for a night to break up a long journey. I really want to give them a gift to thank them and was thinking some Hotel Chocolate and a bottle of gin. But I've since been informed they are off sugar/alcohol. They also work away a lot in a kind of "high flying" job so have lots of Molton Brown toiletry freebies around the house, so that sort of thing doesn't work. Plus, they are not in the house for stretches of time so I thought flowers would just end dead/another thing to sort out.

Any ideas?!

Some fancy preserves, cheese and crackers?

Lovely tea towels?

A little hamper of lovely savoury goodies.

Little Fortnum and Mason hamper!

Candle? (I hate them but seem to be I. A minority)

Really good coffee

Good Cheese for after dinner

How about a bag of good coffee and a set of pretty espresso cups?

@WetBandits might be a bit beyond our budget...

@QueenOfTheNihilist hmm, quite like the teatowel idea!

For those saying coffee... she isn't that into it, she just has a pot of coffee bags she picks up whilst staying in places! Or maybe I could look into extra nice coffee bags?

Lovely garden plant

Posh olive oil? Or an easy plant.

Don’t know how much you want to spend …. Voucher for a take away/ restaurant I have seen gift cards in the supermarket that cover lots of different eateries - you could say put £20 on it to go towards a nice meal out after you are gone ?

Flowers. Flowers are always good.

All the cheese and snacks aren't a great idea if they're trying to be healthy.

Low-need plant like a succulent? Funny, old school game or toy like fortune telling fish or gliders. Cute and nostalgic. And the weirdest one, I always do for housewarming parties, a fire extinguisher! Practical and many people don't have one for the kitchen.

A nice potted plant or bunch of flowers?
Some nice cheese, crackers and chutney?
If you're any good at baking then maybe a cake, cookies or muffins that you make?

I’d go with a candle, very safe.
Or a voucher for a local restaurant.

What about non alcoholic gin? E.g. sipsmith. There are lots of premium brands now.

@fruitpastille OOH! That's a good idea!

A cactus...very low maintenance!

Or one of those diffuser things with the sticks...if you know what I mean!

Coffee table book about a subject they're interested in

Does she like snacks? A pal of mine who stayed here recently brought a fancy hamper of heirloom popcorn kernels and we had a lot of fun making interesting popcorn. I actually loved it.

I'm always grateful for a nice oil diffuser or candle, unpopular as they seem to be on here. Fancy olive oil and balsamic sets are nice. I always go mad for some nice stationary, does she like that sort of thing?

I received a gorgeous Tea towel and candle last week for hosting a friend: perfect present.

@MonsteraMama she's not really into her foodie stuff, which is annoying as a nice bottle or jar of something is easy and fun to pick. I didn't see any candles, but currently I think I'm going to choose between a candle or a bottle of seedlip. They did have a drinks cabinet, but if she's having a break from drinking something non-alcoholic but "grown up" could be handy?

Oh in that case I'd second a nice non-alcoholic gin. I went booze free for a while when I was losing weight and a pal (same pal as got me the popcorn actually) got me these, they're yummy and perfect for a summer evening!

Posh lavender bags or scented drawer liners. Inoffensive, doesn’t require you to second guess their tastes ( good for regifting as well tbh). Morris at Home are classic and smell good for ages.

PLease don’t buy a plant. I’m a keen gardener and people buy me plants sometimes. They are always either unsuitable for my garden conditions or things which just don’t fit into the garden ( ditto houseplants, like giving a cat hater a kitten)

@MonsteraMama which flavour was the nicest do you think?

Mountain was my favourite, but they were honestly all lovely!

@MonsteraMama thanks! Did you happen to try Seedlip, which was what I was otherwise going to buy? If you did, any opinion on if Seedlip was better than Everleaf? (Love these names )

I would go for a little selection of local (to you) treats. Chutneys, pickles, cheese, chocolate, etc

A flowering houseplant in a tasteful pot.

A massive bunch of flowers - the kind you never buy for yourself.

I'd be happier with those than chocolate or booze.