Find the perfect way to show appreciation for your host and hostess with these thoughtful homemade gift ideas. Get recipes and packaging ideas for candy, cookies, jam, spiced nuts, and drink mixers, as well as craft how-tos, inspiration for gift baskets, and more.

Wrap a jar of homemade jam in a festive towel and tie it to a small cutting board with a length of ribbon. Include a loaf of fresh bread too, and your lucky recipients will have a delectable breakfast waiting for them.

Elevate the classic bottle of champagne by dressing up the wrapping. With its airy pom-pom, this sprightly package hints at the effervescence hidden inside.

Quick breads take almost no time to make and look beautiful when wrapped with cellophane bags, linen with frayed edges, and a festive gift tag.

Use scraps of festive fabric to wrap the pots of herb plants you've grown over the year or purchased, turning them into decorations or holiday gifts that keep giving (as cooking herbs) long after the holidays end.

For a unique hostess gift, make your own cocktail mixers, then dress them in handmade bottle wraps.

For a hostess gift, wrap tapers in vellum, then dress them up with pinecone blossoms or a matchbox covered with paper, florets, and real leaves.

You only need tiny bits of fabric and some colorful thread to make these machine-embroidered coasters, which make lovely hostess gifts.

Homemade marshmallows shaped like snowflakes are a joyful sign of the season. Package them in a clear gift box and attach a recipe for hot chocolate.

For a warm gift, fill a mug with cocoa mix, then print a "Warm Wishes for the Season" sticker on adhesive paper.

For a hostess with an eye for detail: a tapered candle embellished with a lace pattern you've transferred yourself.

Scented sugar adds a subtle perfume and flavor to coffee, tea, fruit desserts, or baked goods. Mix a small batch in a pretty jar for a creative and aromatic hostess gift.

Put a pretty, personalized spin on a gift of assorted teas. Make sachets to fill with a mix of favorite loose teas (or create custom blends from dried herbs and edible flowers, such as mint and hibiscus). Add tags and place in a gift box.

Give a botanical hostess gift a creative twist by placing flowers or herbs in a wooden sake box topped with plastic wrap.

Wish someone an auspicious new year with a jade plant, an easy-care succulent that's said to bring prosperity.

Package homemade bread pudding in cellophane topped with our Kris Kringle clip-art tags.

Penuche and caramallows, nestled in a brightly colored liner, are sure to make any holiday happier.

Present your hostess with a set of luxurious toiletries to help soothe the anxiety and excitement that comes with planning a gathering. Here, a simple box lined with a cloth contains small indulgences such as scented bar soaps, bath salts, bath gel, lotion, candles, and tea bags.

Use these crepe-paper wraps -- inspired by amaryllis petals -- to dress up amaryllis plants you give as presents.

Present homemade pasta to your host or hostess in a cellophane bag topped with our clip art packaging and a pretty bow.

If your hostess has a green thumb, she's sure to love this thoughtful, useful present. Simply pack gardening essentials in a lined wicker basket and decorate however you wish!

Present your hostess with homemade lebkuchen, traditional German cookies, packaged in adorable clip-art town-house boxes.

A set of votive candles makes the perfect compact gift for any hostess, and making them yourself out of beeswax adds a personal touch.

This special wine-label keepsake kit will allow your hostess and her family to preserve labels from their favorite bottles.

Trade in your store-bought cashews for these homemade pecans that carry a kick. Place the finished product in a jar and attach the recipe for a hostess gift with some zip.

The sweet-smelling herbs in these easy-to-make pouches are the key to this gift's beauty and practicality, turning each sachet into an alternative to mothballs.

Like well-written thank-you notes, homemade treats are thoughtful gestures. Caramel-bourbon-vanilla sauce tastes good over fruit -- or even straight from the jar; cover the top and secure it with string tied to a small spoon.

Create a handy flower-arranging kit that packs all of the essentials inside a jar that's pretty enough to double as a vase.

Each chocolate-pecan toffee is a small present on its own, but line several in a container for a delicious hostess gift.

This small, thoughtful gift is a good way to thank a hostess. Wrap two loaves of your favorite crusty bread (we like French baguettes) in a linen dish towel, and top with a jar of homemade jam. Tie them together with a colorful ribbon to match the towel, securing a wooden spreader in the knot of the bow.

A healthy breakfast is often the last thing on your hostess's mind when she's planning a night of entertainment. Line a basket with vintage tea towels and fill it with everything she needs to start the day off right -- coffee, tea, milk, sugar, orange juice, scones, butter, and marmalade. All she has to do is find the kettle and French press to recover from the festivities.

A freshly baked pie is always a welcome gift -- even more so when it comes wrapped inside this unusual but sensible container. A bamboo steamer is the ideal size to transport a pie to your hostess's door and can hold two pies at once. After placing a lid on the steamer, secure with a piece of twill tape tied in a bow.