{"id":12685,"date":"2015-11-25T17:46:09","date_gmt":"2015-11-25T22:46:09","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/?p=12685"},"modified":"2015-12-21T18:28:03","modified_gmt":"2015-12-21T23:28:03","slug":"ask-the-designer-home-for-the-holidays","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/ask-the-designer-home-for-the-holidays\/","title":{"rendered":"ASK THE DESIGNER: Home for the Holidays"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Jean Bisnaire
\nNiche Decor<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cI have recently moved to Aurora from Ottawa, and my family is coming to stay for a few nights during the holidays. I\u2019d like to make the space feel like home but I\u2019m not sure how to create that homey and inviting feel\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

It\u2019s that time of year when friends and family pack their bags and head off to visit loved ones. Many of us have extra space in our homes to accommodate these guests but these are usually the last rooms we decorate. Most of us use the guest room to store our old furniture and to house seasonal clothing or belongings that we can\u2019t bring ourselves to get rid of. It\u2019s easy for your guest room to end up looking like a storage locker, which is hardly inviting or relaxing for your guests. Below are some creative ideas to get your space feeling like an Oasis for your guests!
\nThe first bit of advice I have is to clear that clutter! When you have visitors its important that they feel at home, so do your best to remove your paperwork, your stack of unopened bills (is that just me?) or that pile of clothing that you\u2019ve been meaning to donate for months now from the space. Now that you\u2019ve de-cluttered, give some thought to the things you love most about staying in a hotel. Is it the comfortable bed? The desk in the corner? The little shampoo bottles? Making a mental note of what makes YOU feel at home when you\u2019re sleeping away will help you create a thoughtfully appointed guest bedroom.<\/p>\n

1. Sweet Dreams
\nThere\u2019s nothing more inviting than a nice bed made up hotel style- white sheets, a fluffy duvet, comfortable pillows and a luxurious throw. Adding these things to your guest room will help your guests feel like they can relax and unwind at the end of their day. After a long trip to see you, this will definitely be appreciated. Bonus: white bedding can be thrown in the wash with some bleach for easy cleanup after they\u2019ve left! If you\u2019re converting a communal area into a temporary guest room, think about investing in a quality sofa bed. We have some amazing ones in our showroom- they are extremely comfortable and can even accommodate a tempur-pedic mattress!<\/p>\n

2. Thoughtful Furnishings
\nI love having a spot to put my luggage when I\u2019m travelling. This could be a bench at the end of the bed, a sofa in the corner or a practical luggage stand. It\u2019s nice to be able to look through your bags without having to get down on your hands and knees. You want your guests to feel like they\u2019re in a retreat, not a youth hostel. On the topic of luggage, make sure that you leave some empty hangers in the closet and free up some hooks for wet towels.
\nAnother thing I love about staying in a hotel is being able to pull a chair out on to the balcony, or curl up in front of a window and read a book. If you have space in your guest room, invest in a comfortable occasional chair for your visitors to relax and unwind in. <\/p>\n

3. Here Comes the Sun!
\nNothing ensures a good night\u2019s sleep like black out drapery. It\u2019s incredibly easy to create window panels with a black out or light filtering lining. This will keep early morning sun as well as street lamps and the beam of headlights from shining in on your guests and disrupting their sleep. You can even line existing drapes with a liner if you don\u2019t want to get a brand new window treatment. Tending to artificial lighting is just as important as natural light. Make sure you have a bedside light or a reading lamp so that your guest can see in their room after hours. <\/p>\n

4. Bring Your \u2018A\u2019 Game
\nA well outfitted night stand is the icing on the cake for a nice guest retreat. Make sure the bedside table has an alarm clock, some tissues and a bottle of water or snacks just in case your guest wakes up in the night. Some magazines and fresh flowers will brighten up the room and make your guest feel well looked after.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t forget, a guest room doesn\u2019t only have to be for visitors. It can be an oasis for you too. Enjoy the beautiful surroundings you\u2019ve created and put that new chair and magazines to use!<\/p>\n\"Facebook\"<\/a>\"twitter\"<\/a>\"mail\"<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Jean Bisnaire Niche Decor \u201cI have recently moved to Aurora from Ottawa, and my family is coming to stay for a few nights during the holidays. I\u2019d like to make the space feel like home but I\u2019m not sure how to create that homey and inviting feel\u201d It\u2019s that time of year when friends […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[26],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-archive"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3D2k4-3iB","publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-17 10:41:32","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12685"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12685\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newspapers-online.com\/auroran\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}