Ten Guest Room Essentials

Today is the day I've been looking forward to for months!  One of my absolute blogging besties arrives here in Charleston tonight for a long-awaited girls weekend.  Macy and I have been talking about this adventure for so long, and I cannot wait to sip and eat all around this city.

Now that we have a house, I love hosting guests!  In our apartment, we had two bedrooms, and with Mike working from home, our second bedroom was an office/guest room/closet/storage room/golf locker.  Now, we can dedicate a full room to our guests!  We chose the second floor back bedroom that has its own bathroom so that guests can have their own space (and feel like they're really on vacation).  Over the past month, I've had fun starting to put our guest room together, and now that we've had a few weekend guests, I've come up with a list of 10 essentials that (I think) every guest space should have:

1. Their own space ||| It was important to us to make sure that we didn't fill the guest room with our own things.  The drawers are empty, there are hangers in the closet, and the tops of the chests aren't cluttered.  Guests can put their belongings where they want and not have to move ours to the side.  Even if you're blowing up an air bed in the living room, give the guests their own corner of the room with a clean table to drop their wallet as well as a luggage holder for their bags.

2. Alarm clock ||| Self explanatory and especially helpful for those guests traveling across time zones.

3. Pillows and blankets ||| Try to find a combination of soft and firm pillows to suit guests' needs as well as an extra blanket or two.

4. Playing cards ||| Maybe your guest goes to bed later than you or wakes up earlier.  Give them something to do, if they'd like to stay and hang out in their space.  We also have a tv with cable in that room, and I put an adult coloring book in the welcome basket, as well.

5. Snacks and water ||| We have a stocked fridge and pantry, but it's all the way downstairs.  It can be uncomfortable to ask for things in someone else's home - so give them some treats in their room!

6. Pen and paper ||| Give guests the ability to write down memories from the trip or even a phone message.

7. Sewing kit ||| Mine is a simple kit from Target with needles, thread, scissors, etc - just in case!

8. Candle ||| Candles make every room feel like home to me, and this one is chose is local.

9. Toiletries ||| Guests have their own bathroom in our home, so there is a basket with everything they might have forgotten: shampoo, ibuprofen, floss, deodorant, or shaving cream.  If they use a shared bathroom in your home, consider placing a few essentials in their room so they won't have to feel uncomfortable digging through your cabinets.

10. A note ||| Not only do I want to welcome my guest, I also want to let them know important things: WiFi password, location of the thermostat, security or garage codes, location of the coffee maker, or any special instructions.

Macy, we're ready for you!! Can't wait to see you in a few hours!