How to Create the Perfect Home for Entertaining
The Holidays are over, now what? Did you have the perfect home for entertainig this holiday season? Maybe you had some good laughs with family and friends? And if you were lucky, maybe a bit of downtime?? AND, if you were really lucky enough (or is it luck?…stay with me) our homes served our holiday guests perfectly.
Well, I know from having worked with clients over this past year that isn’t always the case. Quite often the needs of our guests get overlooked until you have a pile of shoes, jackets, suitcases and multiple days of entertaining guests to contend with.
While holiday entertaining is still fresh in our minds I encourage you to think about what worked well in your home over the holidays and what did not. This can work if you went somewhere for the holidays too… just think about what was enjoyable (or easy) about your experience and what could have made it a touch more comfortable (then apply to your own home). Exactly what was it that made you think "this is the perfect home for entertaining."
You might be thinking, what are you talking about? The food was great…we laughed, presents were exchanged, movies were watched, mince pies and cookies were consumed. And those are definitely signs of a great holiday get together (and I don’t think you needs a new sofa to have a better holiday).
But what about ….
Did you have a place to hang your guest’s jackets? An easy spot for them to sit and take off muddy shoes post-meal walk?
If you had overnight guests (or maybe you were one yourself), did you have a place to hang your towels, place your suitcase and hang up a few clothes? Did you have a mirror in your room? Or a light by your bed? Extra blanket?
In the lounge, were there enough seats for everyone? Or were you sitting on the floor with cramped legs at someone’s house?
How was the flow in your kitchen as you worked to get food from the oven to the table? With all of this in mind I've come up with a plan to help.
Carrie Cotton's 3 Top Tips to Create a Perfect Home for Entertaining
When I start working with a client I usually have them take me through their typical day, their average weekend, their entertaining style, and holiday hosting duties. This is how I get to the bottom of their needs inside the home (I am big advocate of getting the bottom of your needs BEFORE the pretty stuff goes into your home).
While I can’t get to the bottom of your needs from my blog…(although I do offer a 3-hour design house call that does)…I can help you think about ways to improve areas in your home to increase everyone’s enjoyment over the festive period! Here are 3 things to think about before the holidays roll around next year. And since we are discussing holiday entertaining, I think it’s going to be way more fun if you approach this post-holiday recap like a party.
The Pre Party in Your Entryway - Welcoming Your Guests
As soon as your guests enter think about where they can easily hang a coat, set down a bag or slip off their shoes. I know a grand entryway isn’t always possible so you might need to get creative. Hooks are an easy way to add useful storage in your entryway. You can even add 2 rows of hooks…one up high for grown up jackets and one down low for bags and smaller/children’s jackets. This can really maximize your entryway coat storage.
You can also get creative and extend hooks or storage into another room off of the entryway. For example, one of my clients has a sitting room off of their entryway. I am adding hooks to the sitting room as well as covering the radiator just below the hooks to create a drop zone for keys, gloves, etc... The clients will keep their coats and keys in this spot so the entryway feels less cluttered and ready for guest’s coats. AND it’s an easy way to add more storage (who doesn’t need that?). Keeping this kind of clutter out of the way helps to set the tone of your home for entertaining guests in style.
Entryway with storage - Carrie Cotton Design
2. The Actual PARTY in Your Kitchen - Feeding Your Guests
I am not someone that can cook, serve food, and chat with my guests all at the same time so before I host friends and family I like to think about what I need to get done and where I would like my guests to be ‘hanging out’ while I get these things done (and in front of the oven is not a good place to hang out!). Here are a few ideas to help you stay sane in the kitchen. Set up a mini bar away from your cooking/serving area so guests can help themselves while you are getting the food ready. It can be a small table from another room or a bar cart. Same with appetizers and snacks that you have out. Place them where you want the guests to hang out…not on the counter you are trying to get dinner ready on.
Bring a small table from another room into the kitchen…or use a pop up table (with a festive tablecloth of course!). Buy an extra chair or two to keep in your kitchen for additional seating…they don’t have to be expensive and when not in use you can place them in a corner and add a plant on top (or your cook books…or both!)…see my moodboad below with extra seating.
3. The After PARTY in Your Lounge - Entertaining Your Guests
Some people play board games, some watch movies, some musically- inclined families make Christmas music together… whatever your holiday tradition is, everyone would like a place to sit. The floor always works but it can get a bit uncomfortable. Here is an easy way to make sure all of your guests have a seat during the holidays: mulitpurpose furniture. This can be storage cubes/small stools tucked under a coffee table or console table that can double as seats. A coffee table sturdy enough to sit on (again, see my moodboad notes below about extra seating). Folding chairs. Dedicated floor cushions and/or bean bags. A bench. I don’t have room in my living room for all of these things but I do have a bench in front of my bed which I can move to the living room for exta seating when needed (great excuse to buy a bench for your bedroom too!).
Moodboard by Carrie Cotton Design - For this client I selected storage cubes that are used as a coffee table (we grouped 4 together) and could be pulled apart to use as seating. I also ordered 2 extra black dining chairs that work as accent chairs and extra seating when needed at home for entertaining
I hope these ideas have helped with a some quick inspiration to get your home holiday ready for next year…and one less thing to do during the 2020 holiday season (which we all know will be here before we know it)!
Did these tips help at all? If not, book a 1-on-1 design call with me. This design call lasts around 30 minutes and you will be speaking with me, personally. I'll help you identify what is already working in your home and give you ideas on how to improve.
