A Perfect Christmas Guest Bedroom in 4 Easy Steps

Do you need to turn your home office or shabby spare room into a relaxing getaway for guests over Christmas? Even in these COVID times, many of us are having visitors, some for the first time in months! For that reason, we want to make our guest rooms so pretty and restful that our guests feel right at home. Or maybe never want to leave. Below are four steps to creating the perfect Christmas guest bedroom, just in time for them to arrive!

Step #1: Clean and Tidy

It sort of goes without saying, but nobody wants to stay in a room that’s filled with junk. Your guest room might be a catch-all for the junk in your house during the year, but come Christmas the extra space has to do duty as a bedroom. So, give it a good clean, add a nice lamp to the bedside table (with a globe! I recently forgot to put a globe in the lamp) and make some Christmas potpourri or light a candle before your guests arrive to make the room smell nice. Hideaway has the most lovely caramel scented candle that has all those Christmassy vibes

Bedding

The bedding you put out can make all the difference to a good night’s sleep. It doesn’t have to be new or luxury but you should at least make an attempt to have pillowcases match the sheets or quilt. If you are on the hunt for last-minute bedding, Bed Threads have great Christmas deals on linen quilt sets at the moment. If you like to make your own cushion covers, like me, you would make some coordinating ones that you can use any time of the year, not just Christmas

While you’re at it, have a good look at your guest pillows and duvet. I send our duvets to the dry cleaners once a year, around this time, because they are too big for our washing machine. They come back smelling fresh and ready for whatever linen I put on them. Likewise, I buy new pillows in Spring. Pillows aren’t designed to last forever. I try to have two sets on the guest bed, one firm and one softer. Everyone has different sleep preferences. Last year I bought a bed in a box mattress for our daughter’s room. It was only a cheap one from Fantastic furniture but she remarked on the comfort. Being comfortable and not rolling about is key to a good night’s sleep.

Storage For the Christmas Guest Bedroom

This is a biggie, especially if your guest room does not have wardrobes to hang clothes. When we moved back to Tasmania, we lived in an old house and had the entire family for Christmas. I thought I had the entire thing sorted until my son asked could he and his partner have some coat hangers! So, make some space for hanging clothes and put a few coat hangers out. Hooks on the back of the door are fine or even a peg rail. Anywhere so that your guests do not need to ask. If you have room for a chest of drawers, clear them a drawer or two and dust the shelves. Add a drawer liner and something that will make clothes smell fresh.

Also, provide your guest with a place to hang their towels, either in the bathroom or in the bedroom. Hanging a towel to dry on the back of a chair is not on. And while you’re at it, make a space for them in the bathroom. Your guests will appreciate a place to put their toiletry bag, even if they don’t unpack it.

Guest Treats and Decorating

One easy way to make your guests feel at home is to put some treats on their bed or bedside table for when they arrive. I love a bunch of flowers, but again, from experience, don’t choose heavily scented ones like lilies! My go to staples for guests are

• a plate of biscuits or a little bowl of chocolates
• some fresh fruit
• the wifi password
• a stash of books or magazines I think they will enjoy. They don’t have to be new!
• some shampoo and soap. (I always have one child who forgets these!) Sometimes I even put out a new toothbrush and a mini toothpaste.

Decor for the room does not have to be over the top either but I do like to have some Christmas cheer to make the house feel festive. I love a Christmas wreath somewhere and a mini tree on the mantel. I also include a Christmas cushion on the armchairs and plan to get red and white quilts for the ends of the beds next year!