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<p>Home decor accessories can make great hostess gifts or holiday gifts, but how do you choose something you know the recipient will want?</p><p>Unless you&#8217;re sure of someone&#8217;s personal style, it can be hard to choose larger things like vases or candlesticks, says New York-based interior designer Jenny Dina Kirschner. Instead, she says, consider items that are smaller but truly beautiful and chosen with care.</p><p>Interior designer Jessica Schuster, also based in New York, agrees: &#8220;I think you don&#8217;t have to spend a ton of money to leave a really good impression with your host,&#8221; she says. The key is find items that will look great and also perhaps have a practical use.</p><p>We&#8217;ve asked Kirschner, Schuster and North Carolina-based artist and home accessory designer Windy O&#8217;Connor for gift ideas that will be welcomed &#8212; and hopefully also well used.</p><p><strong>Glassware and barware</strong></p><p>Kirschner often gives sets of coasters from the design company Anna. They look great on a coffee table, but they&#8217;re also practical, she says. Many people don&#8217;t think to buy coasters for themselves and then need them for a party.</p><p>O&#8217;Connor and Schuster take a similar approach by buying friends small sets of interesting glassware.</p><p>&#8220;You can set the table so differently with interesting glasses,&#8221; says Schuster, who often buys sets of four glasses from Laguna B as gifts. &#8220;It&#8217;s a really nice gesture,&#8221; and if the recipient likes what you&#8217;ve chosen they can buy a few more pieces to add to their collection.</p><p>O&#8217;Connor looks for small sets of glassware in striking colors and shapes &#8212; about the size of juice glasses, she says &#8212; which can be used for serving wine or as votive candle holders.</p><p>And as an extra bar accessory, Schuster suggests decorative glass straws. Friends have given her colorful glass straws by artist Misha Kahn.</p><p>They&#8217;re beautifuly blown,&#8221; she says, &#8220;and they have amazing colors and funky shapes.&#8221; As more people are avoiding plastics and using glass or metal straws, she says, &#8220;they&#8217;re useful and they look amazing on a bar.&#8221;</p><p><strong>Candles and scents</strong></p><p>Buying candles may seem like an easy choice, but these designers suggest choosing very carefully: &#8220;Unless you have the best nose in the world, candles can be a hard gift,&#8221; says Schuster.</p><p>The key is finding a brand with truly appealing fragrances and striking containers for the candles.</p><p>O&#8217;Connor is a fan of Baobab Collection. The scents are &#8220;phenomenal,&#8221; she says, &#8220;and their containers are like artwork.&#8221;</p><p>Schuster says the same about Mad et Len. &#8220;The nose behind this brand is incredible,&#8221; she says. The pricetag is high, but the fragrances are &#8220;so rich and earthy and incredible.&#8221;</p><p>The brand also offers scented crystals that make great gifts, Schuster says, because they scent a room nicely and also look great on display.</p><p><strong>Museum stores and artsy treasures</strong></p><p>&#8220;I always have good luck in museum shops when I&#8217;m looking for home-related gifts,&#8221; says Kirschner. &#8220;They always have really good home items, and they&#8217;re not crazy expensive.&#8221; She suggests stocking up when you see beautiful small items, so they&#8217;re ready when you need a hostess gift.</p><p>Schuster agrees: On her travels, she likes to &#8220;pick up interesting vintage pieces along the way.&#8221;</p><p>People appreciate receiving a tiny piece of art or decorative item found while traveling &#8220;because it&#8217;s sentimental, it&#8217;s foreign, it has a story,&#8221; Schuster says, &#8220;and no one else has it.&#8221;</p><p>Art-focused gifts can be a great choice, says O&#8217;Connor. She often does small paintings as gifts for friends or she&#8217;ll give one of the acrylic trays she&#8217;s designed that include images from her past paintings. Along with her own art, this year she&#8217;s planning on giving friends copies of the new book by pop artist Ashley Longshore.</p><p>Along with buying art-related items, this year consider making your own creations, O&#8217;Connor says. Even if you&#8217;re not a working artist, she says, it can be lovely to give something you&#8217;ve made yourself. &#8220;I would rather have something that someone made,&#8221; she says, than store-bought gifts.</p><p><strong>Edible gifts you love</strong></p><p>O&#8217;Connor and Schuster suggest combining practical home items with edible treats to create a beautiful package. One example: A basket that includes a bottle of wine, nice cheese and good crackers can also include a beautiful wine stopper or cheese spreading knife.</p><p>During past holidays, O&#8217;Connor has given loaves of French brioche bread with a small bottle of local bourbon maple syrup and organic eggs from a local farmer&#8217;s market for friends to make French toast during the holidays. To add something permanent, you can include items like pretty dish towels.</p><p>Another edible items that&#8217;s also beautifully designed: Kirschner often gives chocolates from MarieBelle that have works of art on them. &#8220;People who have an appreciation of design love them,&#8221; she says. A six-piece gift box costs $23, and &#8220;it&#8217;s high-impact.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;They&#8217;re beautiful and special,&#8221; Kirschner says, and leave the recipient feeling like you&#8217;ve treated them to something, &#8220;and yet not crazy amount of money.&#8221;</p><style>
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<div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_124102356-f1c1df12a81345eabef8d200f86b480e.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">This photo provided by Windy O&#8217;Connor shows one of her &#8216;Good Vibes&#8217; bags which is made from her custom fabric also available in pillows. Although pillows aren&#8217;t her top choice for hostess gifts, fine artist O&#8217;Connor often gives these small bags because they&#8217;re fun and versatile. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_124102356-f1c1df12a81345eabef8d200f86b480e.jpg</photo0><caption0>This photo provided by Windy O&#8217;Connor shows one of her &#8216;Good Vibes&#8217; bags which is made from her custom fabric also available in pillows. Although pillows aren&#8217;t her top choice for hostess gifts, fine artist O&#8217;Connor often gives these small bags because they&#8217;re fun and versatile. </caption0><photoCredit0></photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_124102356-1bad68f1fc3d41459ac7ec18d95bec5a.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">This photo provided by fine artist Windy O&#8217;Connor shows one of her &#8216;Tropicana Chica&#8217; acrylic trays. O&#8217;Connor likes giving small home accessories like this tray as holiday gifts because the recipient can use them in so many different ways, from decorating a coffee table to serving cookies or desserts at a party. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_124102356-1bad68f1fc3d41459ac7ec18d95bec5a.jpg</photo1><caption1>This photo provided by fine artist Windy O&#8217;Connor shows one of her &#8216;Tropicana Chica&#8217; acrylic trays. O&#8217;Connor likes giving small home accessories like this tray as holiday gifts because the recipient can use them in so many different ways, from decorating a coffee table to serving cookies or desserts at a party. </caption1><photoCredit1></photoCredit1></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_124102356-d23e73016a0a42a3b0733254f95cd84c.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">This photo provided by Windy O&#8217;Connor shows one of her &#8216;Chica&#8217; paintings hanging in her home in Charlotte, N.C. The fine artist often gives tiny versions of her paintings to friends as hostess gifts for the holidays. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo2>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/web1_124102356-d23e73016a0a42a3b0733254f95cd84c.jpg</photo2><caption2>This photo provided by Windy O&#8217;Connor shows one of her &#8216;Chica&#8217; paintings hanging in her home in Charlotte, N.C. The fine artist often gives tiny versions of her paintings to friends as hostess gifts for the holidays. </caption2><photoCredit2></photoCredit2></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Melissa Rayworth</p><p>Associated Press</p></bylineMeta></div>

Ask a designer: Design-friendly holiday gifts sure to loved