Housewarming Parties In Korea: A Gifting Guide

When my husband and I moved a couple years back, I decided it was high time we had a housewarming party or a jipdeuri (집들이) in Korean. We invited friends and on the day of the get-together I was confused when my husband said we had to go get this food or that drink. Had I under prepared? Wouldn’t our friends be bringing food and it’s Korea, so probably drinks, or flowers and plants? As Emily Post had taught me, guests, though it’s not a rule, often bring drinks, say a bottle of wine, perhaps some bread and the odd plant or two. No, this is not the case in Korea and so lessons on culture in Korea and gifting at housewarming parties ensued. Here’s what you need to know!

In Korea, housewarming guests bring cleaning supplies, but more than any of that, they bring loads of tissue or toilet paper. By the time the party was over, we were stacked ceiling high and certainly set for the year when it came to tissue. What was that all about, I wondered.

Wondering what to take to a housewarming party in Korea? Definitely toilet paper… and here’s what to know about the Korean custom:

• Korean Housewarming Party Customs
• What to give at a housewarming party in Korea
• Why take cleaning supplies to a housewarming party in Korea
• Alternative times to give toilet paper as a gift
• What do you take to housewarming parties?

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Korean Housewarming Party Customs

Originally, jipdeuri (집들이) was the actual moving from one house to another and a ritual was done to thank the spirits and pray for good luck and fortune in the new abode. Come evening, family and friends would stop over to partake in a feast to celebrate.

Probably due to lack of electricity, the gifts way back when consisted of lots of candles and matches to “light up” the new house with good fortune and happiness. If the period in the previous home was especially prosperous, families would take embers from the previous home to the new home still lit to continue the prosperity.

These days, not everyone in Korea holds housewarming parties because people move much more often and the rituals just aren’t done as often. If a housewarming party is done, due to the lack of need of candles and matches, the gifts have shifted to cleaning supplies and tissue.

What to give at a housewarming party in Korea

• Toilet paper
• Laundry Detergent
• Other house cleaning supplies
• Plants

Why take cleaning supplies to a housewarming party in Korea

Cleaning supplies and tissue used to be luxury items as they were expensive so the gift was seen as a pretty special one. Cleaning supplies like detergent bubble profusely and as such mean the person hopes the residents wealth will “bubble over”. Detergent doesn’t just symbolize a physically clean/pure home, but the round, shiny bubbles represent money and prosperity. It’s a wish for the new homeowners to have a clean and prosperous place to live.

Rolls of tissue and kitchen towels are long also adding to the prosperity wishes to the friends or family that has moved as it unravels smoothly and everlasting. It’s also very practical as it doesn’t go bad so having a lot of it isn’t a bad thing.

Potted plants add color and Koreans believe that the green plants represent prosperity, health and a thriving life. Two of the more traditional plants to bring are the window-leaf plant and the snake plant. The window-leaf plant tolerates dry, warm weather and is really low maintenance so being easy to take care of makes it good luck for business. The snake plant blooms with dusky green flowers and likes dry, shady growing conditions

For our own housewarming party we ended up with a substantial pile of toilet paper, laundry detergent, and one friend even bought us a small vacuum cleaner. In the end, I may actually like the Korean custom of giving toilet paper and other cleaning supplies for a housewarming party more than the American tradition of wine and food. Stock me up with useful things? I’ll take it!

Alternative times to give toilet paper as a gift

Toilet paper as a gift came up in my life recently because though we’ve lived in our house for over two years, I was gifted more toilet paper from the manager of a nearby construction crew. Because they were bound to be noisy and cause commotion in the neighborhood, he was going around offering toilet paper and tissue to the neighbors. This was the third time that a construction crew manager had given me some sort of paper cleansing gift. Suffice it to say, if you want to gift something to a Korean and be generous, toilet paper is a good go-to and never seems to be out of the question.

What do you take to housewarming parties?

In Korea, it’s important to know what are and are not appropriate gifts for various events. Sometimes it’s money, sometimes it’s toilet paper. A great gift option when you’re headed to a Korean family home is actually seaweed like laver. Get ready for your next event here in Korea.

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