The Perfect Hostess Gift

The crew at Modern hears one frantic request many times during this busy season-

"I need a gift for the host of a holiday party tonight!"

Luckily, we are in the business of solving just such a cocktail party conundrum, and always manage to help find a suitable gift. However, we do have a few tricks up our sleeve, and for those of you who want to arm yourselves against last minute hostess-gift stress, we'd like to introduce our two favorite items, the pinzimonio olive oil dipping dish, and striking bird salt and pepper shakers.

Our favorite pinzimonio (a dish used to present seasoned oils for dipping rustic breads and crudite) comes from artist Mary Judge, and is inspired by the terraced hillsides of Umbria, Italy. A beautiful marriage of form and function, the dish creates a gradation of color in the oil simply by changing depth towards the center of the dish. Packaged in a beautiful gift box with an accompanying descriptive card, this 5" dish is the ultimate hostess gift for only $20. You'll look like a champ every time (our store manager has been known to keep 6 of these wrapped in a drawer at all times for any "oops, I need a gift right now" emergency!)

Is your host not a fan of Mediterranean cooking? Well, everyone could use another set of salt and pepper shakers. And when the shakers in question come from Jonathan Adler, you're sure to get a repeat invitation. These little 3" beauties are high fired stoneware, and are equally at home on the dinner table as they are displayed with your favorite treasures. Available in both white and chartreuse for $45 a pair, they are a great introduction to the joyful world of Adler.

Save yourself some stress this holiday season, and drop by the store to pick up a few thoughtful hostess gifts. You may just find yourself invited to a few more fetes if you do.