Is your home ready for the holidays?
Shopping, parties, guests, visitors, meals, gifts, decorating…oh my! It happens every year – the holiday season sneaks up on us and we’re never ready. Then the panic sets in!
Here are 6 easy holiday tips that will make your home look and feel more inviting and welcoming for your holiday guests and help make all the season’s festivities just a bit easier.
1. Create a welcoming festive entrance outside and in.
Greet your holiday guests with a hint of what they’ll find inside. Decorate your front entrance with fresh and fragrant boughs, bright and shimmery decorations and lots of twinkly lights.
Just a touch of seasonal decor in a foyer will welcome your guests with a festive holiday spirit. Create a simple but elegant arrangement on a hall table composed of fresh or faux boughs and florals, candles or string lights and shimmery ornaments to set the tone for all your holiday celebrations.
2. Mud rooms are a must!
Clients are increasingly requesting practical spaces in their homes. Built-in cabinets offer a bench for sitting to shed the layers of winter outerwear and boots. Hooks, drawers and cupboards offer storage space for all the family’s winter gear. When company arrives, your entrances present a clean and tidy room with lots of space to accommodate the overflow of your guests’ hats and coats.
3. Be ready for holiday sleep-overs! 
Consider installing a space-saving wall bed in a spare room. They’re more stylish and comfortable than ever before and are a great solution for accommodating unexpected or occasional visitors over the holidays. Wall beds from Organized Interiors instantly turn a spare room or home office into a convenient bedroom for visiting guests at any time of the year.
4. Add portable accent tables and ottomans.
At this time of year, food and drinks are a big part of the holiday festivities. Small, portable accent tables will come in handy for serving drinks and appetizers, and provide a surface for accent lamps, candles and decorations. Leather poufs and cubes, ottomans and coffee tables can double-duty for seating and serving. Have lots of trays handy to serve and place food and drinks on unstable upholstered pieces and also provide protection.
5. Update your heirloom dining room table.
Can’t bear to part with grandma’s treasured dining table? Give it a modern look instantly by simply replacing the dining chairs. Choose comfortable upholstered chairs with durable, long-wearing, and easy-to-clean leather or poly/blend upholstered covers. Above: Canadian-made Jane by Jane Lockhart ” Capri” dining chair by Statum Designs. Available in over 240 fabrics at retailers across Canada.
