Tips to Help You Prepare for Holiday Guests

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If you are expecting holiday guests, whether over Christmas or New Years itself or ahead of time, you know it can be both stressful and fun! Prepping ahead of time will make a huge difference in allowing you to enjoy the time with guests and be both merry and bright. I’m sharing some of my musts for holiday guests in hopes that it will help you get ready and help your guests have a good time, too. Plus, it isn’t always easy being away from home on a holiday, so going the extra mile to make them comfortable will be totally worth it!

Prepare for Holiday Guests - Enjoy festive time with your guests by preparing early and spreading some holiday cheer! | The Love Nerds #ad #AtHomeforChristmas #AtHomeFinds

Deck the Halls in the Main Home Areas

I come from a huge Christmas decor family! When all 4 of us kids lived at home, every corner of the house was decorated. But Mom had 4 kids to help her do so. Now, my philosophy is to make the main areas of the home as cozy as possible and then add quick little touches to any other areas where guests will spend a lot of time. My main areas? I used At Home Christmas Decor for the family room and mantel, the dining room, and the entry way.

Prepare for Holiday Guests - Enjoy festive time with your guests by preparing early and spreading some holiday cheer! | The Love Nerds #ad #AtHomeforChristmas #AtHomeFinds

When decorating the entry way, my favorite feature is greenery and lights. At At Home, you can purchase pre-lit greenery so all you need to do is hang the greenery around the doorways and up the staircase. Then, plug it in and you will have a gorgeous glow to welcome guests into the home. Much prettier than a big overhead light! Since there is wood trim in my parents house, we just nail in some long nails into the wood trim for the greenery, and I have used 3M hooks in my own place.

Prepare for Holiday Guests - Enjoy festive time with your guests by preparing early and spreading some holiday cheer! | The Love Nerds #ad #AtHomeforChristmas #AtHomeFinds

Since the entry way makes the first impression for guests, I always want to add a few more touches. I saw this white glass house that I absolutely loved at At Home and had to buy it when I saw the price! At Home has such great everyday low prices which makes it easy to add new pieces to your decor or totally overhaul a room like I did with our dining room decor this year! But back to the white house … I filled it with red, white and silver shatter proof (yay!) ornaments and added a couple other pieces, too. The Noel Reindeer is one of my favorite new pieces for the year!

Prepare for Holiday Guests - Enjoy festive time with your guests by preparing early and spreading some holiday cheer! | The Love Nerds #ad #AtHomeforChristmas #AtHomeFinds Prepare for Holiday Guests - Enjoy festive time with your guests by preparing early and spreading some holiday cheer! | The Love Nerds #ad #AtHomeforChristmas #AtHomeFinds

Add Holiday Cheer to their Guest Room

I’ve been away from home for the holidays before, and it can sometimes feel strange or lonely. Adding a little cheer to the guest room is a fun way to show that you were thinking of them and their experience for the holiday. It’s also just fun! It doesn’t have to take a lot of time either. Add a cozy blanket, a holiday pillow, and a couple decor items to the dresser or night stand. I’m loving these black and gold reindeer items and need to go back to purchase this blanket as soon as possible.

Black and Gold Reindeer

Essentials Basket

Whether you put this in the guest room or in the guest bathroom, make sure you have essentials ready for them. Think through all the things you have ever needed or used when staying over somewhere – ibuprofen, hair dryer, kleenex, etc. PLUS, don’t forget the wi-fi password. That is my favorite thing to have when staying over night somewhere. Having it all ready for them means you won’t be interrupted while doing other things to help out.

Make Clean Up Easy with Disposables

No one wants to miss the party by spending a ton of time in the kitchen doing clean up, and you don’t have to when there are such fun plastic plates at At Home. Seriously, these are gorgeous for disposable plates! If you want to add a special touch to your table, consider using chargers instead of fine china. You will thank me when you can sit down with your guests after eating or when you can actually go to bed at the end of the night.

at home plates

Do as much prep ahead of time

Again, you don’t want to be in the kitchen and ignoring the guests. Before they come stay with you or before they arrive for the party, get as much prep work done as possible. Have the table set, put drinks out, chop any veggies, mix up dips, etc. I strive to have everything in containers ready to go so I just have to transfer to it’s dish and that’s only when I can’t store it in it’s dish to begin with. I even set out all my serving plates and bowls on the food table so I know everything fits. Need more serving ware? You know what I am going to say. Head to the housewares section of At Home. The big serving bowl I used in my Dining Room Center Piece would normally cost twice as much as what I purchased it for at At Home.

Mixed Metallic Christmas Decor - Create a gorgeous winter wonderland with a blend of silver, soft gold and white! | The Love Nerds #ad #AtHomeforChristmas #AtHomeFinds

Set the Stage

After decorating for the holidays, there are a couple smaller little ways that really set the stage for guests – holiday candles and holiday music! If you are nervous about too many open flames, light a candle in a discreet or tucked away spots so the house smells amazing – try the hazelnut scented candle at At Home – and then use remote flameless candles. They are super easy to turn on and off and still had great ambiance.

You can’t forget the tree!

I can’t post about preparing for guests and the holidays without talking about Christmas Trees! I always have a big tree set up in the main living area, which goes back to my first tip. I have set up little trees before in guest rooms, which is always fun for them, or in other smaller spaces in the house. At Home has 101 varieties of Christmas Trees with lots of fun options – especially colors. You will definitely find something for every room and everyone! I know I’m dreaming of a new Tree for Me in our house this year! 

With so many At Home Christmas Decor themes available, I am confident you would find something you love, too! I only sing a stores praises when I truly love it, and I love At Home. I have so many items I am eyeing at the store for when we move! 

at home first two posts

Want to see more Christmas ideas? Make sure to check out the Berry Christmas Mantel I decorated for my mom using the At Home Berry Platinum Collection and my new Mixed Metallic Decor that I am obsessing over!

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