Posted by Gemma
on November 06, 2026
Walk into a show home and it feels lived in before you've taken your coat off, even though nobody has ever lived there. Most of that feeling doesn't come from the sofa or the dining table. It comes from a handful of small things the stylist puts in every house.
Each of those things makes a good present. They get used, and they stay out long after the decorations have gone back in the loft. So this year's gift guide is seven show home tricks, with the pieces I'd give to pull each one off.
Everything here was in stock when I wrote this. Most of it needs ordering by Friday 4 December to arrive for Christmas, and the dates are at the bottom.
1. Lamps on, big light off
Once you know to look, the first thing you'll notice in a show home is that the ceiling light is off. The room is lit by lamps at different heights, one on a side table and one standing in a corner. It makes a room look warmer and somehow bigger.
Almost everyone could do with one more lamp, which makes it a safe present. The Marching Hares lamp is antique gold with a green velvet shade, and it's the one with the most personality. The Sepia Shadows squat lamp sits neatly on a sideboard or a bedside table. For a dark corner, the Seraphia floor lamp stands 154cm tall with an edged linen shade.
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2. A throw over the arm of the sofa
Show home sofas nearly always have a throw folded over one arm, and cushions that go together without quite matching. It tells you you're allowed to sit down.
A throw is the gift I'd give almost anyone, because there's no size to get wrong and it gets used every evening until spring. Malini's Cosy throw comes in mink, olive, teal and black, and it's the cheapest throw here. The Camberwell is faux fur in taupe. The Raffles in whiskey is the one to buy if you want it to feel like a proper treat.
Then add one cushion in a colour nothing else in the room picks up, like the Zebedeedodah in orange. That odd one out is what makes a sofa look styled.
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3. A tray on the coffee table
Look at a show home coffee table and you'll usually find a tray with a few things on it: something tall, something low, and something you'd pick up and turn over in your hand. It looks deliberate, and once real life moves in, the tray is where the remotes go.
So give the tray and a couple of things to put on it. The silver hexagon trays come as a pair, so one can go on the coffee table and the other on a sideboard. Add the matt black hammered vase, which is handcrafted steel with a lid and stands 41cm tall, and a stone apple for the thing you pick up.
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4. Something out on the kitchen worktop
Show home kitchens are never bare. There's a board propped against the splashback or a bowl on the island, something that makes it look as if someone's about to start cooking.
For whoever is hosting this year, the acacia cheese board set comes with grey ceramic bowls and cutlery, and the acacia lazy Susan comes with its own ceramic serving bowls. Both look right left out on the worktop between parties. For the person who always turns up with a bottle, the antique pewter champagne cooler is the showpiece. It's 48cm across, and when there's nothing to chill it makes a good bowl for clementines.
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5. A scent you notice at the front door
This is the one most people don't spot until it's pointed out. A show home smells of something the moment you walk in, and it's never fresh paint. A reed diffuser in the hall does that all day without anyone having to light anything.
Sences diffusers start at £12, so it's easy to buy two: one for the hallway and one for the landing or the bathroom. Cypress & Grapevine suits a hallway at this time of year, and White Sandalwood is softer for a bedroom. If they'd rather spray than wait, the Oud Wood room spray does the job in seconds.
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6. One shelf with a bit of character
Every show home has one shelf or mantelpiece that makes you smile. Among the books and vases there's one odd object, and it's what gives the house a personality.
Our Jazz Band is that object. There are five of them: the saxophonist, the trumpeter, the violinist, a string player and a seated squeeze box player, all cast in resin. They're under £30 each, which makes them a present you can keep adding to. Give the saxophonist this Christmas and you've got the next four birthdays sorted.
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7. Somewhere to put a cup down
Sit in any chair in a show home and there's a surface within reach. It's the thing most real living rooms are missing, and you only notice when you're balancing a mug on the arm of the sofa.
A side table is a bigger present, and it's the one on this list that gets used every single day. The Contour side table has a drawer for the remote and the reading glasses. The Ravi stool from Jaipur is mango wood on an iron base. It's a side table most of the time and a spare seat when everyone comes round.
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Or let them choose
Every show home starts with the furniture, and furniture is the hardest thing to choose for someone else. An Xshowhome gift card lets them put it towards the sideboard or armchair they've had their eye on. Cards go from £25 up to £500, they never expire, and they can be spent online or here in the showroom.
They're also the one present on this list you can still buy once the delivery dates have passed, because the card comes by email. If Christmas Eve creeps up on you, it's sorted.
When to order for Christmas
Christmas Day is a Friday this year. These are the last dates I'd order by for delivery in time:
| What | Order by |
|---|---|
| Lamps, throws, cushions, trays, tableware, ornaments and side tables in this guide | Friday 18th December |
| Sences diffusers and room sprays | Friday 18th December |
| Gift cards | Christmas Eve, as they come by email |
I can't guarantee these dates, but they're the ones I'd work to myself.
If you'd rather choose presents in person, come and see us at the showroom: Buzzards Valley, 37 Shirrall Drive, Drayton Bassett, near Tamworth, B78 3EQ. We're open Monday to Friday 10am to 5pm, Saturday 10am to 4pm and Sunday 10am to 3pm. Give us a ring on 0121 270 3390 if you want to check something's in before you travel.
Christmas gift questions
What's a good Christmas present for someone who loves their home?
Something they'll use every day and keep out all year. A lamp, a throw or a reed diffuser are the safest choices, because none of them has to fit a size and all of them change how a room feels.
When do I need to order for Christmas?
By Friday 18th December for the lamps, throws, cushions, trays, tableware, ornaments and side tables in this guide. Gift cards come by email, so you can buy them right up to Christmas Eve.
Do Xshowhome gift cards expire?
No. They never expire, and they can be spent online or in our Tamworth showroom.
What can I buy for under £30?
The Jazz Band figures, the acacia cheese board set, the acacia lazy Susan and the stone apple are all under £30. Sences reed diffusers start at £12, and gift cards start at £25.
Stuck on someone? Tell me a bit about them and their house and I'll suggest something. Email info@xshowhome.com or call 0121 270 3390.
Love, Gemma x