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One of the things I look forward to about entertaining overnight guests is surprising them with a welcome gift upon arrival. I often struggle with what to put in the gift bag that would be meaningful and valuable to my guests, however. I spent the last 10 days entertaining out of town guests in Los Angeles and here is what I learned about how to craft the perfect Summer welcome gift for overnight guests.
FIRST- STOCK UP ON THE ESSENTIALS
Four girls in the house can run through bathroom staples pretty quickly, as I realized when we ran out of toilet paper in the guest bath mid-week. Then someone dropped their toothbrush in the toilet so having an extra toothbrush on hand was a time saver. Make sure you have your bathroom stocked with the essentials prior to your guests’ arrival. Stocking up on things like toilet paper, toothbrushes, fresh towels, room spray and hand soap will go a long way to making your guests feel at home.
Here’s a simple shopping list to get you started:
Hand soap- Aesop Resurrection
Toothbrushes- Colgate
Toothpaste- Arm & Hammer
Room Spray- Poo Pourri
Shower Gel- Harrys Fig
Shampoo & Conditioner- Aveda
SECOND- START WITH A REUSABLE GIFT BAG
When crafting a Summer Welcome Gift, starting with a reusable bag for the goodies will not only make your guests feel special but will also serve as a practical solution for shopping excursions or trips to the beach. This Palm Tree Tote is the perfect casual LA carry all.
THIRD- CHOOSE ITEMS BY CATEGORY
To guide your items for the perfect welcome gift, it’s helpful to choose from different categories. I learned from my guests that these four categories would be most appreciated, something practical, something necessary, something yummy and something thoughtful. Include at least one item from each category.
Practical
Spending so much time in the Summer sun, we ran out of sunscreen twice. Choosing something from this practical list would be much appreciated.
Bare Republic Coco Mango Sunscreen
Necessary
Inevitably when we travel, we forget to pack for the necessities, which is why so many hotels have onsite gifts shops with convenience items. This is a most welcomed list:
Yummy
When it comes to edible gifts, you can never go wrong with Salty, Sweet & Chocolate. Here is a list of LA favorites to include in your Summer Welcome gift:
Mixed Roots Veggie Chips Salt n Vinegar
Meaningful
Including something thoughtful like an LA inspired notebook to journal their thoughts or some California postcards with stamps will tie your gift together with some meaning. Including a copy of Los Angeles Magazine for things to do will aid your guests in making their trip more memorable.
LAST- DON'T BE AFRAID TO WAIT
I originally planned to tailor each welcome gift personally for each girl but I actually never ended up having time to create the gifts because I spent so much time thinking about them. Once our guests arrived, I paid attention to their needs, likes and dislikes and instead of having an individual gift waiting for them when they arrived, I was able to purchase little things for them during their stay.
For instance, one of my God daughters kept losing her water bottles around the house because they kept getting thrown away, so I surprised her with a refillable artisan steel water bottle from one of our morning Starbucks runs.
My other God daughter and her friend mentioned they liked sour patch kids and peanut M&Ms, so I was sure to pick those up for them on movie night.
Had I planned all of these little gifts in advance, I would never have guessed what they would have appreciated most.
Summary
Crafting the perfect Summer welcome gift for overnight guests doesn't have to be nerve-wracking. You can follow these simple steps for making a memorable gift for your out of town guests:
- Stock up on the essentials
- Start with a reusable gift bag
- Choose gift items by category
- Practical
- Necessary
- Yummy
- Meaningful
Last: Don't be afraid to purchase welcome gifts for your guests post arrival. This just might make the most meaningful welcome gifts yet.
Happy Guest Hosting!
XO,
Welcome to Honey & Figs! I'm Lisa. I love helping people with practical ways to live more abundant lives based on my own experience. You can click here to find out more about me.
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