Happy Friday friends! Can you believe we are in the final countdown to Thanksgiving? If you follow me on Instagram, you know we got our Christmas tree last night. I am so giddy! #merrythanksgiving
Today I am so excited to continue the Southern Holiday Cheer series, where I have invited some of my favorite Southern bloggers to share some southern hospitality with holiday hostess inspiration galore. Today it’s the fabulous ladies from 11 Magnolia Lane sharing some great tips on hosting guests with Southern charm.
Hi, everyone, and thanks so much to our friend Heather for inviting us to join her Southern Hostess Holiday series. What a great idea as we all get ready for the holidays!
My family hosts LOTS of house guests and it seems like we always have; my husband is in the military and so we don’t always live near family and friends. We seem to be a bit busier when we are living somewhere fun–like Savannah or Virginia Beach–but even when we’re living at not-so-nice locations, we still get a lot of business in our guest room.
I’ve come up with a few things that I do when I’m expecting guests, and I’d love to hear your ideas, too!
When you know guests are coming, here are few things to do ahead of time:
- Send them directions to your house well ahead of time so they can plan their route.
- Check on any food restrictions or allergies and try to plan meals accordingly (I have a “partner” post on our blog about being a good guest, because they go hand in hand, and while a good hostess should try to accommodate special needs, a good guest should also be flexible and consider bringing some items along to make this part easier).
- Along the same lines, if you know that your guest prefers a particular type of coffee or adult beverage, stock up ahead of time. If they’re bringing kids, then have juice and Goldfish in the pantry–it’s those easy little touches that make them feel welcome.
While you’re preparing the guest room and bathroom:
- Stock the bathroom with extra tissues and toilet paper, basic medications (Tums, Pepto, Tylenol, ibuprofen), toothbrushes, contact lens solution, a hair dryer, extra washcloths (I like dark gray ones because they don’t get dingy after being used to remove eye makeup), towels, and feminine products. I also put a plunger in the guest bathroom because nothing is more embarrassing than having to come out and ask the host for the plunger–not that this has EVER happened to me! 🙂
- Make sure that your guest bed is as comfortable as it can be. Maybe it’s only a blow-up air mattress or a sleep sofa, but if you use a memory foam topper
and high quality sheets
, it will still be cozy. I also keep down pillows and hypo-allergenic pillows in the house so guests can use whichever they prefer. A throw blanket helps for nights that might get chilly, although I always tell my guests that they are in control of the upstairs thermostat while they’re in residence. I also use {this} laundry detergent to wash all my guest linens; it’s pretty pricey but it smells amazing. I cut it with unscented detergent to make it last a bit longer–it’s worth every penny!
- An alarm clock next to the bed isn’t as essential as it used to be since most people use their phones these days, but ours also is a sound machine
so that sleeping babies can listen to the ocean instead of the raucous adults downstairs!
- I have reading lights and a night stand or table on both sides of the bed, too. I hate not having a place to put my glass of water at bedtime and figure my guests are the same way! If you don’t have two nightstands, a fun pouf doubles as seating or a “table” of sorts.
- Since everyone seems to have multiple electronic devices these days, I usually add a 3-prong extension cord to the guest room so they can charge as many devices as they need to. And whenever we get new phones or e-readers, I throw the old chargers into a drawer in the guest room in case a guest forgets their charger at home.
- Speaking of electronics, everyone will be asking for your wireless password. I’ve framed ours and put it on the nightstand in the guest room:
- You can see in the picture above that I also like to put fresh flowers in the guest room, too. They always brighten up the room.
- I keep local information in the guest room, too. Maps, coupons, and brochures for local attractions help guests plan their visit.
- A little welcome gift can be placed on the bed, and I try to use local items. When we lived in Savannah last year, I gave guests a cookbook.
- If you have tiny visitors coming, be sure that there’s room in the guest room for a pack and play or travel crib. I used to keep one on hand, but it seems like we have very few babies visit anymore. Sigh. We also keep a few toy bins for the younger set in the closet so that we can pull them out when we need a few cars, trains, or dolls, to get through the day. And this is just a small thing, but I always put a bunch of plastic bags in the guest room if we have guests coming who have babies in diapers; they almost always ask for them to wrap them up for the trash, anyway.
- I also keep a stack of Little Golden Books in the guest room, in case a bedtime story is needed.
- Of course, the grownups need reading material, too, so I always include a few novels for the adults, a devotional book or two, and a stack of magazines.
- While I feel like storage room is lacking in our current home, I try to leave closet space and drawer space in the guest room. A bench is also helpful for holding suitcases and duffel bags.
- I love having a television in the guest room, but we don’t have one in ours! We might change that in the future, because we already have a TV just sitting in the garage, unused, but it just doesn’t make sense in this house.
A last few ideas:
- If your guests are staying more than a few days, offer to let them use your washer and dryer, especially if they have children!
- If it’s convenient to give them a house key, then have an extra one made up and kept on a “guest” key ring.
- Be sure to have them sign your guest book–that way you’ll always be able to look back and remember the fun of their visit!
What are your favorite ideas that help welcome guests? I’m sure I missed a few!
Thanks so much for the great tips. I especially love the Guest Book one as this is something my Mom has been really good about. Wish I would have started it years ago, but there is no time like the present!
Happy weekend friends!
Heather
Thanks so much for letting us share with your readers, Heather!