Journal
Creating Inviting Guest Spaces This Holiday Season
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by Natalie Akins
While anticipation of hosting the holidays during the summer months is exciting, as the date approaches, stress may begin to build. How can you possibly create a memorable holiday season for both your immediate family and extended friends and relatives? To ease your worries, we've put together some simple, effective tips to help you create inviting guest spaces this holiday season.
Be Ready to Receive
After a long flight or a stressful drive through winter weather, guests may arrive feeling weary. Help them feel immediately welcome by preparing your entryway. Provide a coat tree for jackets and scarves, a mat for shoes, and, if space allows, a holiday-themed bench for a comfortable transition indoors.
Eliminate Cold Drafts
The cold holiday weather will expose any weaknesses in your home's insulation. Frigid air will seek out the easiest escape routes, potentially making your home uncomfortable, especially for guests who might find themselves in a draft. Take steps to eliminate cold drafts by sealing joints in window frames, upgrading exterior wall insulation, and adding trim around the doors.
Reduce Clutter
Many people tend to hoard. They just can’t seem to let go of items they didn’t even know they had. While you may feel comfortable coexisting with your quaint possessions on a day-to-day basis, guests will feel conspicuously less empowered to ask for permission to move the stack of garage sale items off your couch. One effective way to tackle clutter is by renting a residential dumpster to quickly and efficiently dispose of unwanted items, giving you a clean slate. Therefore, take a less-is-more approach this holiday season to create a spacious and welcoming environment for your visitors.
Prepare for Guests of All Ages
From the youngest family member experiencing their first holiday to the oldest, make your home a warm and inviting place for all ages this season. Place rubber pads on sharp tables and counter corners to reduce the risk of head bumps. Install outlet covers to protect curious toddlers from danger. Install shower grab bars in the bathrooms. Use non-slip finishes and area rugs near doorways and in mudrooms to reduce the risks associated with melting snow.
Stock the Bathrooms
As a guest, there is nothing more awkward than having to ask where the toilet paper is. Put your company at ease by ensuring a well-stocked bathroom ahead of arrivals. Towels, scents, soaps, tissues, and toilet paper should be plentiful and easy to find for your guests this season.
Invest in Zone Heating
While it's important to keep your home warm and cozy for guests, you don't have to sacrifice energy efficiency. Zone heating is an effective strategy: strategically placed space heaters can directly heat specific areas as needed, avoiding the energy consumption of a full HVAC system. Radiant floor heating is another innovative option. This system uses app-controlled heating mats under the floor to provide consistent, stove-like warmth. This direct approach to heating can be more energy-efficient than traditional forced-air systems. While heated bathroom floors require an initial investment, they offer immediate benefits, including increased guest comfort and long-term energy savings that extend beyond the holiday season.
Ensure Connectivity
Count on it: your guests will ask for the wi-fi password minutes upon entering your home. It’s just a fact of life in 2024. Displaying this information in a common area is a very thoughtful touch. It is also a great idea to invest in holiday-themed charging strips to guarantee that your guests never run out of power. If your home has any smart features, give adults a tutorial on how to use their phones or the home’s smart remote to control the HVAC, wall mounted ceiling fans, door locks, and any other features to increase their comfort and peace of mind while enjoying your property.
Decorate Tactfully
Decorations are a key part of the holiday spirit. However, when hosting guests, it's important to strike a balance. Small, tasteful decorations will be far more inviting than trying to create a full-blown winter wonderland. Opt for white lighting around doors and windows, a moderate-sized Christmas tree to keep the living area as open as possible, and a dining room centerpiece that evokes a festive mood without taking up too much precious table space.
Create the Ideal Guest Ambiance this Holiday Season
Although hosting the holidays is exciting, there is a bit of pressure to get things right. From reducing clutter to choosing the most tasteful decorations, consider the ideas listed above for the most inviting guest experience. For more interior design and home staging ideas to inspire your holiday preparations, visit Amy Youngblood Interiors today!
Author Bio:
Natalie Akins is a freelance writer that loves sharing her knowledge and expertise in interior design and remodeling. She also has a background in the Hospitality and Real Estate Industry. She lives in her hometown of Austin, Texas where she enjoys spending time with her husband and decorating with her children. Natalie’s work as a freelance writer can be found on Building Product Advisor, a new construction industry resource site.
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