Making Room for Christmas Guests
Preparing your home for guests over Christmas can feel overwhelming, especially if space is at a premium. It takes a bit of planning and organisation to create a welcoming environment that’s comfortable for everyone. Here are some tips to help you declutter and make the most of your space during the festive season.
Assess Your Space
Begin by taking a thorough look around your home to identify areas that need decluttering. Common trouble spots include living rooms, kitchens, and guest bedrooms. As Christmas approaches, these spaces can quickly become cluttered with everyday items, decorations, and other belongings.
Create a Welcoming Atmosphere
Having everything clean and tidy really helps create a welcoming atmosphere for guests. Start by sorting through items that you won’t use or need, from furnishings to small kitchen appliances. If you need the space they’re currently occupying, find somewhere else for them to go so there’s more space for guests, games, dining, or just relaxing and chatting.
Prepare Guest Rooms
If you have a designated guest room, take some time to prepare it for your visitors. Remove any personal items that might make the space feel cramped. If your guest room is also used for storage or office space, consider moving non-essential items to create more room by looking for cheap storage space to rent. From lockers to whole rooms, there’s a wide choice to help you manage your home environment more effectively.
Fresh linens, towels, and perhaps a small welcome basket can go a long way towards making your guests feel at home. Use the extra space you’ve created to add personal touches, like festive decorations or a few reading materials.
Focus on the Sitting Room
The sitting room is often the heart of festive gatherings, with the kitchen coming a close second. Thoroughly declutter this area, and make sure there’s a seat for everyone.
Storage ottomans can double as seating and storage, and large floor cushions are often fun for children, especially for cosy TV-watching. If space is really tight, consider investing in a few fold-up chairs that can easily be brought out as necessary. They may not be as comfortable as an armchair, but they’re better than standing.
Manage Your Kitchen Efficiently
With guests around, your kitchen is likely to see a lot of action. To ensure everything runs smoothly, declutter countertops and cooking spaces to create an efficient cooking environment.
It helps if you clear out whatever you won’t need. Pack them away in strong cardboard boxes and pop them over to your storage room for the duration. You could include small appliances you won’t need, duplicate utensils, surplus baking trays, or anything else that lives in the kitchen but won’t be used over Christmas.
Plan for Extra Guests
If you anticipate the possibility of people dropping in, perhaps friends joining for drinks or family members staying over, make sure you have enough seating and even sleeping arrangements available.
- Ask family and friends if you can borrow chairs or cushions if you’re short and don’t want to buy new stuff you won’t use later.
- Make the living area adaptable. If you’ve stored away non-essential items, you may now have room to introduce a few more seating options or even space for a camp bed and sleeping bag. Over Christmas, anything can happen.
Add Festive Touches Around the House
With a houseful of guests, it’s lovely to have a house full of decorations too. Extend Christmassy touches along the hallway and up the stairs, with just a little in the bedrooms, such as a blooming Christmas cactus, small poinsettia or maybe a candle or two.
Make the main entrance extra welcome. You don’t have to go to extremes of flashing lights and giant Santas unless you really want to, but a lovely wreath and a few twinkling lights help set the atmosphere.
Once everything is organised and clutter-free, you’ll have an environment that not only feels spacious but will give you confidence to host a grand Christmas for the people who mean the most to you. Happy Christmas!
