These 30 Things Will Help You Become The Best Party And Dinner Host

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1
A sleek, beautifully crafted bamboo charcuterie board

This board comes with a removable magnetic holder that keeps four serving knives and utensils upright and easily accessible, two ceramic serving bowls for sauces and dips, and six sampler forks to complement this stunning charcuterie tray.

Smirly is the small business behind these charcuterie boards — check out their store page for more cute gift ideas for people who love to host and cook!

Promising review: “This was a last-minute purchase for a party we hosted and the charcuterie was a hit! I loved the ramekins, spots for nuts and more, and the knife set is higher quality than what you would expect for the price point. Sharp and heavy. I do wish the ramekins were a little bit deeper, they’re quite shallow and probably meant for jams and honey but I wanted to use them for pickles and olives. I made them work, but it’s worth mentioning. The board was easy to clean and the small forks were a great accessory. I ended up using the fruit tray to hold a dip and crackers, it’s super versatile. I highly recommend this board for your own kitchen or as a gift!” — Gina DeLand

2
Kayla Suazo / BuzzFeed

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Kayla Suazo / BuzzFeed
An automatic spice grinder

Promising review: “I’m so glad I ordered one of these after I read about them on Oprah’s list of favorite things for 2022. As billed, it’s so attractive and can sit on your counter, so easy, the charge lasts so long and the interchangeable pods rock! It’s easy to add freshly ground flavor, and fresh pepper is sooo much better than from the shaker. It’s so easy to adjust the grind and the color selection is fantastic. What a great hostess gift for the holidays. I love mine.” — Sasha

3
Amazon
A pack of slow-cooker liners

The regular liners are designed to fit 3–8-quart round and oval slow cookers. The small liners will fit 1–3-quart round slow cookers.

Promising review: “Why? Why would you want to scrub your giant crockpot? Well, now you don’t have to — these liners are the perfect solution for your slow cooker needs. Simply place it in your slow cooker like you would a trash bag, add all of your ingredients, cook, and then when you’re all done…just trash the liner! I’ve been using these for years and I will never go back to scrubbing the tough cooked-on food from the day’s cooking. I have never once had a liner with a leak and I really feel like Reynolds has helped make kitchen cleanup so much easier with this smart product.” — Katie B.

4
A compostable dinnerware set

This set is municipally and commercially compostable, so you can drop off the used items at your local facility once you’re done! You can serve up to 50 guests with one set, as it comes with 50 each of the following: dinner plates, dessert plates, forks, knives, and spoons.

Promising review: “I purchased this set for a birthday party. I know that so much goes to waste from those types of events that it adds up quickly. I couldn’t believe how durable these products are. Nothing was flimsy at all. It was hard to believe that they are biodegradable. This is now a go-to purchase for us when we have events.” — Kelly K

5
A handheld frother

Just don’t forget to pick up some AA batteries at the same time, or who knows when you’ll actually get around to using it.

Promising reviews: “I specifically bought this to mix cocktails in the glass instead of using a shaker. Works too good. Makes eggwhite froth in a sour better than shaking ever could.” — Amazon Customer

“Beautiful frother. Excellent quality and froths so well! I mix my collagen powder and oat milk and it makes my coffee taste even better! I love making lattes as they come out perfect. Love this frother and highly recommend it to everyone! The best one on the market!!” — WSBlue430

6
A set of three adorably charming flower trivet mats

Promising review: “I simply love these trivets. I used them as a decoration on my kitchen wall. When needed, I just place them on the table for my hot dishes. They clean in a breeze and the color is great. The price is so reasonable that if I didn’t need them, I still would have bought them. You will not be disappointed with this item.” — redhead

7
An elegant set of four square wineglasses

Promising review: “We’ve had four of these glasses for over six months now and finally just added four more to our collection. These glasses are SO CHIC and are very similar to ones sold at Crate & Barrel but are MUCH more durable. Unlike the C&B glasses, you can cheers without feeling like the glasses will break. In fact, they’ve tipped over in the sink a few times and are still intact. They dry beautifully, sparkle after the dishwasher and we get so many compliments on them. I love them!” — Katie B

8
A set of 16 wineglass charms

Promising review: “I bought these for a small New Year’s Eve party so folks wouldn’t get their glasses mixed up throughout the night. They arrived well packaged and I love that they come with both gold and silver rings so you can match your color scheme. The felt storage bags are a nice touch as well. Guests liked getting to pick ‘their color’ charm and it just made the drinks more festive (with a practical use too). The charms are beautiful in person with vibrant colors and shine. Loved them and will be using them again!” — SMP

9

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Amazon
A reviewer-beloved veggie chopper

Promising review: “Makes life so much easier. I can’t imagine chopping onions or bell peppers by hand anymore, and it does so much more. We used to have a Prepworks chopper, which was a similar idea, but you had to press so hard to chop, and it broke after not too long. This one requires very little effort to cut through the food, and it has a generous container.” — Amazon customer

10
A felt letterboard set

And when you don’t have guests on the way, you can always use it to display your favorite quote or an inspiring message. The set comes with 300 pieces, including letters, numbers, and other special characters.

Felt Like Sharing is a family-owned small business that offers gorgeous felt letterboards and accessories.

Promising review: “Oh my gosh. It truly doesn’t get any cuter when it comes to decor. From the moment I opened the package I was enchanted with this product. It takes time and some small scrapbook scissors to cut all the letters apart, but worth the time so they don’t have the little nubs on them. Adorable! I debated giving this as a Christmas gift, but it’s so cute I’ve decided to keep it and get another one. I can’t wait to decorate with it! So many possibilities. Thank you!” — SRiteNow

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Amazon
A marble board wire cheese cutter

Promising review: “My mother-in-law had purchased one last year and I tried hers at Christmas and fell in love with how easy it was to use. We have a lot of get togethers with friends and cheese is a staple appetizer in our house. So I purchased my own and have been using it weekly since. It cuts easily and it’s mostly easy to clean. Sometimes cheese gets stuck in the crack but some scrubbing with a small brush usually does the trick.” — Jessica

12
A Lodge cast-iron casserole dish

Promising review: “I use this most often to create delicious stews, soups, crusty bread…you name it! Beautiful color, reliably sturdy, heavy duty, heat retaining, and inspirational! Cleans up so easily- only a few times I used some baking soda to rub off the stubborn brown spots so always looks new! Got one for my grown son who loves it as I do. I serve right out of the pot it looks so good!” — DAC

13
Jenae Sitzes / BuzzFeed
A bestselling ChomChom pet hair roller

BuzzFeed Shopping editor Jenae Sitzes says: “The tens of thousands of 5-star Amazon reviews are reason enough to add the ChomChom to your cart immediately — but let me add my own personal review to the stack. I’ve been using the ChomChom for quite a while now and took the photos above to show just how quick, easy, and effective this roller is. It took 10 seconds to rid my velvet couch ottoman (yes, velvet…a terrible cat owner choice, I know) of the hair my two gray kitties are constantly leaving everywhere. It takes a bit of practice to get the hang of using this roller — at first, I thought you only brushed down in one direction, and was confused why it wasn’t picking up hair. It’s important to do a push-and-pull brushing in both directions so it actually pulls the hair inside, which does require you to apply a bit of pressure. Afterward, you’ll just dump out the hair that’s been trapped inside.”

Promising review: “I NEVER leave reviews… but this product is worth a review. I used to use lint rollers. We have four very rotund and furry cats that shed a lot! It was getting expensive. I found this, read reviews, researched similar products, and decided on this. It is truly life-changing for cleaning up fur so your guests don’t leave with hair all over them. Helped save on washing the furniture covers so often as well. Only minor critique would be that the button to open it comes open easily when in use, so just watch your hand placement, no big deal.” — rwoods05

14
A sleek wine decanter

After being kept in an airtight bottle, your wine needs to breathe, and this helps it do just that!

Promising review: “My family loves this decanter. It improves the taste of all kinds of wines and looks very nice when displayed. It is much cheaper than many $100 or $200 decanters while looking and working just as nicely. While these can be a bit tricky to clean, I’ve been using a quick trick to make it look like new! 1) Rinse with warm water (if you have time, let it soak for an hour). 2) Fill about 1 centimeter with salt and add 2 centimeters of white wine vinegar. 3) Swirl the solution and CAREFULLY shake if stains are higher up. 4) Rinse with warm water. That should get your decanter ready for the next bottle!” — Jackson L.

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Emma Lord / BuzzFeed

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Emma Lord / BuzzFeed
And a bottle of tannin removers

Drop It recommends 1–2 drops for each glass of white wine, 2–3 for a glass of red, and 7–9 if you’re treating the whole bottle at once. Once it’s in the glass, swirl lightly for 20 seconds, and you should be g2g!

BuzzFeed Shopping editor Elizabeth Lilly says, “I’ve tried these before on some weekend friend getaways where we drank a LOT of wine and I think they really work! Just don’t get overeager squeezing the bottle because then you can put way too much in your glass and make your wine taste weird. Yep, I did that and learned my lesson.”

Promising review: “I can finally drink wine again after years of abstinence! I used to get the most awful headache on just one glass of wine, it was so bad I just stopped drinking wine altogether, then I discovered these magic drops! I’ve only had them a couple of weeks but I have drank red and white wine totally headache-free! I even drank half a bottle of heavy red. These drops really are magic! I love that you get two bottles as well, one can stay in your purse and one at home. Brilliant!” — shelleymab

16
A red wine stain remover

Promising review: “Have you ever gone to someone’s house and spilled red wine? UGHHHHH! Me! We stayed at a friend’s, I did this tragic deed and they didn’t notice until four days later. I was DEVASTATED because I was unaware it even happened. She tried unsuccessfully to get it out. I did some research and had this sent to them. It had been six days when this was delivered. With one swoop of this stuff, she said it was almost undetectable and after two uses…completely GONE!! I ordered some for myself! Please buy this if you need to get out delicious red wine from any place it shouldn’t be!!” — Debstrat

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Amazon

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A pretty linen tablecloth

Available in six sizes and 17 colors and patterns.

Promising review: “A perfect added detail for my Thanksgiving dinner. The quality goes way beyond expectations. Washed up beautifully and no ironing needed! Would definitely recommend!” — Cynthia

18
A bottle of food-grade edible luster dust

Promising review: “This is a super cool product that would be great to make holidays and celebrations more festive. I bought this for a Galantine’s Day brunch, and it added a super cool sparkle to our drinks. The sparkles are very fine…will float in the air. Make sure you don’t overuse — a little goes a long way!” — Stacey S.

19
A fun set of iridescent flatware

Promising review: “Waited a while to write this review. I wanted to put them to the test. All I can say is that I adore them. Very sturdy and a wonderful rainbow color. The soup spoons are nice and large; I am a chef of 40 years and I can use the soup spoons also for basting when I am sautéing. No color fading, they come out great from the dishwasher, very durable and once again a lovely color. They stand out nicely when I host a dinner party. I always get a compliment on my dinnerware and get asked where I got them. I recommend these highly if you want to add a bit of color to your table.” — Donnie B.

20
Wayfair
A chic metal bar cart

Promising review: “We are obsessed with this. It is so pretty and so different. Every time we have guests over, they compliment this piece. It was easy to put together, fits tons of things on it and just overall convenient.” — Elana

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Emma Lord / BuzzFeed

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Amazon
A tin of cocktail rimming sugar or salt

Available in six flavors.

BuzzFeed Shopping writer Emma Lord says, “I recently started putting this on my end-of-the-week whiskey drink and it is SO darn satisfying. I tried the citrus petals version, and it’s got a light lemon, faint floral, and vaguely minty taste with its sweetness that just makes the whole experience a delight and a half. The container it comes in is actually quite wide, so what we did was pour lemon juice on the top half to prep the rim, and a bit of sugar in the bottom half to coat it. In other news, I am officially too fancy to exist.”

Promising review: “I’m a bloody mary snob. I make my own mix. I use infused vodka. I set up bloody mary bars for parties and weddings. This rimmer is delicious, and it raises the drink to another level! Not too spicy, but has lots of flavor. And it’s delicious on celery!” — john mccurrach

22
A set of nine flameless LED candles perfect

The nine candles are different sizes, made of real wax, and are remote controlled. They have four timers and brightness levels to choose from — including a flickering option! Each candle uses two AA batteries, so grab a pack if you need it. Available in five styles.

Promising reviews: “My boyfriend and I bought these candles to add some mood lighting to our living room and couldn’t be more impressed! They come with a remote so you can turn them on and off as group rather than individually which is helpful, and they have the option to flicker which makes them super realistic. We use them under our TV and on our bar cart and it really warms up the room, especially for a date night in. Highly recommend these candles to upgrade your space!” — Lauren Spears

“We’ve used these for both our fall and Christmas decor. I LOVE THEM. I especially love the flicker setting…they look and feel like real candles! The remote and timer work perfectly! Great purchase!” — Christina Bynes

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Amazon

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A three-speed Bluetooth record player

Plus, this’ll look really cool in your living room next to your records, and you can have guests flip through your collection and put on whatever they like!

Promising review: “My girlfriend always wanted to buy vinyl records but we weren’t able to because we don’t have a vinyl player. I’ve decided to get this for her. She was so happy as soon as she opened it. It also has additional features other than playing vinyl records. It adds a modern feature by having Bluetooth connectivity so you can use it as a wireless Bluetooth speaker. The wood finish is perfect for our living room even though I don’t think it is a real wood. I’m really happy with the sound this thing produces. It has stereo speakers which is very great since it can easily fill a medium-size room. Overall, I’m very glad I was able to find a good vinyl player for my money with some added features.” — Viky

24
A fume-free oven cleaner

This doesn’t contain lye or harsh fumes, and reviewers say it works like a dream on caked-on messes if left on overnight.

Promising review: “Worked wonderfully! I did not have faith as my oven was DIRTY. Burnt apple pie juice, burnt cheese, you name it and there was a layer of it burned inside my oven. I tried vinegar, baking soda and all the “natural” tools to try and clean my oven. This stuff is the only thing that worked. I wish I had taken some before and after pictures to show off my clean oven! Well worth it and so easy to use. I did not have to scrub AT ALL. Everything just wiped right off.” — Katie

25
A three-tiered collapsible cooling rack

Promising review: “I bought this set for my niece at Thanksgiving time. I have had a set for years and have found them to be a very useful tool when one bakes a lot of cookies or small loaf breads. It saves countertop space which for some people is at a premium. Definitely worth the investment for oneself or to give as a gift to that favorite baker of yours.” — OutdoorGal

26
A Yonanas fruit soft-serve maker

Promising review: “I saw one of these in action at a friend’s house like five years ago and thought it was just a made up memory because making ice cream out of solely frozen fruit seems wild. But when I saw a TikTok about it, I immediately went to Amazon and bought it. Literally, this was the BEST decision of my life. I cannot believe still how amazing this thing is! It makes the creamiest, best-tasting fruit ice cream ever. It’s easy to take apart and clean, and super easy to use.” — DMCKAY

27
An electric food warming mat

Note that this isn’t designed to heat food to boiling, but rather to keep food warm.

Promising review: “This warming tray is awesome! First, it is not big and bulking like a traditional warming tray. It rolls up for easy storage and travel and comes with a strap and bag to store it. We took it tailgating this past weekend and it worked great! (It does require electricity). We plugged it into our mini generator and kept several of our items warm. There are three heating settings too, which is great to have the different options. I was able to put three medium size aluminum trays on it. My friends loved it so much they plan to get one too!” — JennA

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Amazon
A cushy nonslip kitchen mat

Believe it or not, comfortable kitchen mats can cost way more than you’d think, but this affordable version has thousands of 5-star reviews. It’s waterproof, has a nonslip bottom, and is super easy to clean. Available in six sizes and nine colors.

Promising review: “For over a year, we’ve been cooking more meals in our kitchen, and the tile floor is very hard on our legs when you are just standing by the sink washing and prepping foods, not to mention washing dishes, etc. This kitchen mat relieves leg fatigue. So much so, no one is complaining about it anymore. Really such a good value compared to all the other more expensive alternatives. My only advice is when you receive the mat, to put it on a flat surface and weigh the edges down for a day or two, since it has a tendency to curl up after you unpack it. Other than that, it’s great.” — C. Cruz

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Amazon
A set of two fabulous beverage dispensers

These dispensers also include detachable bottoms that can act as an ice bucket. You could also use these to distinguish between alcoholic and non-alcoholic cocktails for your guests!

Promising review: “If you often host parties, this is a great investment! Great quality plastic. Thick enough so it looks like glass. Very good design with the ice in the middle to keep the drink cold without diluting the drinks and the top tray for condiments. Very easy to install and NO LEAKING.” — Online Shopper

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Amazon
A friendly welcome mat

Promising review: “Adorable. The font prints perfectly clear, and the message really does make you so happy when you come home! People will comment on it, guaranteed.” — E Bingham

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