The best housewarming gift is something that helps a house become theirs: a poster of their new city for the first wall, a beautiful casserole dish for the first dinner, a throw for the first winter. Here are 15 decor gifts they will remember, from €15 to a family heirloom in the making. 🏡
Where does the French expression “pendre la crémaillère” come from?
In French, throwing a housewarming party is called “pendre la crémaillère”, hanging the trammel. In the Middle Ages, the cooking pot hung over the fire from a crémaillère, a notched iron rod fixed in the fireplace. Hanging it meant the move was over and you could finally cook for your friends. Today the expression means the party you throw to christen a new home.
How do you choose a housewarming gift?
People who have just moved are short of time, not things. The right gift does not clutter their home: it finds its place straight away.
- Think about the first month: the walls are bare, the kitchen is half equipped, the evenings are getting cooler.
- Stay close to their style: look at their old home or their photos before choosing a decor piece.
- Tell their story: a place, a city, a region that matters to them means more than a trendy object.
- Choose quality over quantity: one beautiful piece that will last twenty years beats three gadgets.
Which housewarming gift fits your budget?
| Budget | The idea that works | For whom |
|---|---|---|
| Under €20 | A poster of their new city in A5 or A4 | Friends, colleagues |
| €20 to €50 | An A3 poster and its frame, or an aperitif kit | Close friends |
| €50 to €100 | Table knives, a piece of handmade faience | Family, a group gift |
| Over €100 | A cast iron casserole dish, a wool throw | A joint gift from friends |
15 housewarming gift ideas
To dress their walls
A poster of their new city
They have just moved to Marseille, Annecy or Paris? Give them a poster of their new city. It is often the first thing people hang in a new home, and a way of wishing them happiness there. In the hallway, it welcomes guests as soon as they walk in.
For a new life in the city
A poster of the region they left behind
On the other hand, moving far from home always leaves a little nostalgia. A poster of the region they left, the Basque Country of their childhood or the Provence of their summers, reminds them where they come from in their new living room.
A poster that is already framed
In the first few days, nobody has time to hunt for a frame in the right size. Give the poster already framed, with two hooks and a small spirit level slipped into the parcel. So they hang it right, send them our guide on how to hang a picture frame at the right height.
A vintage mirror from a flea market
A mirror with a gilded or weathered wood frame, found at a flea market, makes a hallway look bigger and instantly gives it character. It is a one-of-a-kind gift that they will not find in any other home.
For their first table
A cast iron casserole dish
A housewarming is about cooking for friends, so what could be more fitting than an enamelled cast iron casserole dish, such as Staub’s round cocotte? It goes from oven to table, is handed down from one generation to the next and serves every slow-cooked Sunday dish of winter. A lovely joint gift from friends.
Table knives
Knives are always what is missing in a new kitchen. A set of table knives, such as Opinel’s Bon Appétit range, will be used at every meal. An old superstition says you should never give a knife without receiving a coin in return: slip a coin into the parcel and they will give it back to you.
A piece of handmade faience
A serving plate, a jug or a hand-painted salad bowl: regional faience brings a story to the table. Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, in Provence, is the capital of faience, with shops and workshops throughout the village, as we tell in our visit to Moustiers-Sainte-Marie on Rolling Trippers. The Valensole Plateau and its lavender fields are less than thirty minutes away.
An olive wood chopping board
A large olive or oak wood board is used to slice bread, serve cheese and rest a hot dish. Its grain makes it lovely enough to leave out on the worktop. A gift under €50 that lasts for years with a little oil.
A kit for their first aperitif
For the housewarming party itself: a bottle of aperitif from their favourite region, a jar of olives, small glasses and an aperitif poster for their drinks corner. They will open it that very evening with their guests. 🥂
For the home
A wool throw
A real wool throw on the sofa makes a living room feel lived-in from day one. Brun de Vian-Tiran’s comes from the mill founded in 1808 in L’Isle-sur-la-Sorgue, in Provence, and run by the same family for eight generations. It is the kind of gift people keep for life.
An easy-going houseplant
A houseplant in a nice terracotta pot brings life to a home that is still empty. Choose an easy species that forgives a missed watering during the busy weeks of settling in: pothos, snake plant, ZZ plant or rubber plant.
Bread and salt
In several Eastern European countries, guests are welcomed with bread and salt. Giving both to friends who are moving in wishes them a home that never goes without. A good loaf from the baker, a jar of sea salt flakes and a short note: a housewarming gift that costs almost nothing.
A handmade candle
A candle in a glass or ceramic jar scents the home and masks the smell of fresh paint in the first few days. Choose a subtle, woody or herbal fragrance, and a container they can reuse.
A guest book for the house
A beautiful bound notebook, placed on a hallway console, where every guest leaves a note, a date, a drawing. The first to write in it is you, on the night of the housewarming. In ten years, it will be the diary of their home.
A basic toolbox
A hammer, a screwdriver with bits, a tape measure, a spirit level and a box of wall plugs: less romantic, but incredibly useful for assembling furniture and hanging the first frames. Perfect for a first home.
Giving a poster as a housewarming gift: our tips
- Choose a place that speaks to them: their new city, their home region, the place of their yearly holidays.
- Match the size to the room: A5 (€15) for a shelf or a kitchen, A4 (€19) for a hallway, A3 (€24) for a living room.
- Give it framed: a light wood or oak frame suits most interiors.
- Add a note: “welcome home”, “here’s to new habits”. That is what makes the difference.
More posters for a new home
Frequently asked questions
What should you bring to a housewarming?
Bring something that helps them settle in or entertain: a poster of their new city, a cast iron casserole dish, table knives, a wool throw, an easy houseplant or an aperitif kit to open that evening.
How much should you spend on a housewarming gift?
Among friends, a budget of €15 to €30 per person is plenty. An A4 poster costs €19, an A3 €24. For a bigger gift, such as a cast iron casserole dish or a wool throw, club together with others.
What is an original housewarming gift?
Give a poster of their new city already framed, a guest book for the house for guests to sign, or bread and salt, the Eastern European tradition that wishes the home never goes without.
What is a good small housewarming gift?
For under €20, an A5 (€15) or A4 (€19) poster of their city or region, a potted plant, a handmade candle or a loaf of bread with a jar of sea salt make simple, thoughtful gifts.
A gift that makes them feel at home
The best housewarming gift is not the biggest: it is the one that makes them say, as they put it down, “now this feels like home”. For a friend who still travels a lot, see our gifts for travellers too. And browse our city posters and our aperitif posters to find theirs.
