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6 min read

Housewarming gift ideas people actually use

A new home fills up fast. Within a few weeks the boxes are unpacked, and anything that does not have a job quietly moves to a cupboard. The housewarming gifts that last are the ones that solve a small, real problem in the first month: where the keys go, what sits on the empty table, how the place feels in the evening.

Here is how to choose one, by the part of the home it is for.

For the front door: a home for the keys

Every new home has the same first-week question: where do the keys live? A wall shelf with hooks answers it for good, with room on top for sunglasses, a wallet or the post. It is also a gift they will see every single day.

Arc Shelf Key Holder has six hooks below a shelf about 9 cm deep; Cove Key Shelf has four round pegs below an open shelf with a low lip. Wall fixings are not included.

If wall fixings feel like too much of an ask, a slim tray by the door does the same job on a console. Reed Catchall Tray is a long tray with the word “Home” written into its floor, which makes it a quietly fitting housewarming gift.

For the table: something that makes it look lived in

An empty dining table is the most obvious sign that someone has just moved in. A vase or a candle holder fixes that instantly, and both work whether the table is a proper dining table or a small one in a studio.

Vale Vase is a set of two vases in one finish; Sway Candle Holder takes two standard taper candles; Pebble Tealight Pair is a set of three tealight holders. Candles and flowers are not included.

For the shelf: one small green thing

A planter with a small plant already in it is one of the most welcome gifts for a new home, because it makes a bare shelf feel alive. Buy the planter, then add an easy plant in its nursery pot: a small pothos, a peperomia or a succulent. Leaving the plant in its nursery pot means it can be lifted out to water and drain.

For the evenings: a warm lamp

New homes often come with harsh overhead lights, and one good table lamp changes how the whole place feels at night. It is the most generous gift on this list and the one most likely to be used every evening. See our bedside lamp guide for sizes.

When you don't know their style

Choose by job, not by look: a key shelf or a tray is useful in any home. Then pick a quiet finish such as an oat, a sand or a soft grey, which sits well with most walls and wood. Every piece here is made to order in the finish you choose, so you can match a colour you have seen in their home.

For more ideas across the range, see Gifts.

FAQ

Questions people ask

Something with a job in the first month: a key shelf or tray for the front door, a vase or candle holder for the table, a planter for a shelf, or a warm table lamp for the evenings.

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