Can you believe Christmas is only 6 days away! I’ll bet if you don’t already have holiday guests at your home, they are about to arrive! We have our in-laws coming for a visit and I cannot wait – my mother in law is a fantastic cook and I love our visits with them (they’re super hands on grandparents!). I’m sharing a few easy tips for getting your home ready for guests and my must-have hosting essentials. I want my guests to feel cozy, well fed and relaxed haha, or as relaxed as they can be with two toddlers running around hollering like they’re dinosaurs at 7 in the morning. #sorryaboutthat
A few easy tips before your guests arrive:
– Clear out some room in the entry way closet for extra coats and boots.
– Have your wifi password ready (or print it out and pop it into a cute frame for your guest room).
– Prep some healthy snacks like veggies and fruit (a must when I’m entertaining plus have two forever-hungry kids running around), plus stock up on cheeses, some meats, crackers, chips and baked goods – a mix of healthy and unhealthy
– Stock up on toilet paper and towels in the bathroom (I tuck a bottle of poo-pouri in there too).
^^ My exact area rug, a similar leather pouf, lamp is from Ikea, pillows are a mixture of H&M and Home Sense
Some of my essentials to make our home feel extra cozy:
– I add a few soft throw blankets to a big basket in our guest room (I have the coziest knits from Wayfair.ca) and toss a few on our couch in the living room. Our previous house had a really chilly basement, so I always made sure to have tons of cozy blankets accessible (our new home has a walkout basement and it’s actually the warmest floor in our house, so lots of blankets down there isn’t really necessary).
– Tuck a stack of coasters onto the side table alongside a few good magazines to flip through.
– Pick up a few bottles of wine (or whatever you and your guests enjoy – we love a mix of red and white) plus a bottle of Bailey’s is always fun to have around for morning coffee.
– Speaking of morning coffee, pick up some extra coffee, tea, coffee cream, etc while out for a grocery shop before your guests arrive. I always stock our fridge with yogurt, snacks, lunch stuff, deli meat and items so that I don’t have to run out a million times while everyone is here. Ideally I do a meal plan as well for stress free dinners but that doesn’t always happen lol.
– I enjoy candles and cozy lighting in the evenings and early morning (it’s dark from around 4:30pm to 9:30am this time of year, I live in northern Canada so that cozy lighting is essential lol). We have a ton of great lighting in this home, but I prefer our Christmas tree lights, a few lamps and some candles in the early mornings and evenings.
slippers, sheepskin rug, area rug, white duvet, dip dye basket, candle, coasters, knit throw blanket, Christmas mug
To really go that extra mile…
Stock the bathroom with some toiletries that your guests might need, double up the duvet on the guest bed for an extra fluffy and cozy sleep, put a sound machine in the guest room (seriously, I’m not sure about other people’s kids, but our two are up super early and they are like a little herd of elephants running around upstairs – this is the exact one I have in our kid’s rooms and we love it). Having black out blinds in the guest room is amazing and putting a few water bottles or a glass on the nightstand is really thoughtful touch.
Of course, the whole point of guests, especially during the holidays, is for visiting and enjoying each other’s company. So the biggest essential when having visitors, is to relax and visit!
Have a wonderful Sunday! M
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