ALT-2 How to Make a Creative Housewarming Gift
Housewarmings are great fun. New homes give people that positive feeling, and choosing something for people with new homes is the customary way of wishing them well, although there are so many pitfalls to avoid.
Large statements
At that time when someone has a new home, they are enthused. They want to put their own mark on the place and have very set ideas about their decoration, and how they want to turn a house into a home. The problem with large statement gifts is that they may not fit into those plans. Pictures that don't fit, patchworks that don't blend with their color. These are huge investments in time and really creative gifts, though if you get the blend wrong can be am embarrassment to the couple.
Creativity comes in many forms and the idea of a creative gift is that you took time, cared enough to find or make something different from the norm. Of course, it's easy to ask them what they want, but that takes the element of surprise away and isn't that creative.
The old renovation house
Houses that need renovation take an awful lot of work on the part of the new owners. Here, much of their income will be spent on materials, but you can make a creative gift by adding together lots of the tools they need, wrapping them up in a basket and topping it off with cellophane and a huge bow. I have done this several times and it is always greeted with warmth and mirth.
The new house
A new house is a challenge in it's own way. You can be creative and traditional at the same time without being too imposing. Stitching a sampler and adding the names of the couple, framing it and giving them this as a present works well. Samplers are relatively small and discreet and not like other artwork. They add history to the place, and a little bit of tradition, and the fact that you took the time to personalize it really will make it a successful gift.
The safety basket
This is creative, in that you really have to do your homework. Look at the kind of lights, fuses, filters and vacuum cleaner bags that the couple need for their home. Put this together with first aid kit, candle for emergencies, etc., and make up a basket that helps them get through any emergency they may find in their new home.
Crafts
If you know the couple well and are more gifted than them with the needle, asking them about the kind of curtains and cushions, bed covers etc., that they want, you can work within their parameters at producing those items and turning up for the housewarming party with something specially chosen and home made that you know they want and will love.
Moving home is traumatic, though at the stage of a housewarming, all the stresses of buying are gone, and the optimism that remains is what makes the gift giving pleasurable. The more creative and unusual the gift, the more it will be a talking point for years amongst friends, though the classical mistakes of artwork that the couple don't like really isn't the most successful way to go. Play safe, and make something special that will help the couple settle in their new home.
