T-minus five days and counting until my mother-in-law gets into town and I’m finishing up last minute details for the guest room. I know I personally don’t like to feel like I’m intruding when I’m staying with someone, so I always try to think ahead when we have guests. What does this person like? What could they need? What would make them feel most at home while they’re staying with us? I really don’t think that there’s a cookie cutter explanation or example since everyone’s guests will differ and have different needs, but I thought it would be fun to show you what I stocked in our guest room to give you a few ideas for when you have guests staying with you! I guess you could call it the guest room essentials, at least for now…
Let’s start with what I’m calling the “comfort basket.”
I have this basket right on top of the built in on the side closest to the bed. It’s in plain view so my mother in law knows this is for her, and to help herself! Some things I put in there are…
- magazines
- bottles of water
- little snacks for those night time munchies
- moisturizer
- lip balm
- hand sanitizer
- hand cream
- mints
- tissues
It doesn’t have to be fancy. Just a few little things that can be picked up anywhere that sells travel size things. That brings me to the next part…toiletries. Air travel is my least favorite thing to do! Not only am I deathly afraid of flying, but the whole process of going through security gives me anxiety like you wouldn’t believe! I’m always afraid I’m going to get stopped for having “too much liquid” or “something suspicious looking” in my bag, so most times I will severely under pack what I really do need and don’t realize it until I go looking for it when I get to my destination. I never want to have my guests feel like they need to go and spend money at a pharmacy after they already spent so much to travel to see us.
So keeping a stocked “guest pharmacy” is something I decided to do to lessen the stress for them. Forgot your toothbrush? No worries…I’ve got you covered! Need a painkiller? That’s there too…
Some items to include in your guest pharmacy are…
- shampoo and conditioner
- hairspray
- toothbrush, toothpaste, floss
- mouthwash
- facial cleanser
- makeup remover
- soap
- wet wipes
- variety of over the counter meds and vitamins
- feminine products
- deodorant
- qtips
- lint roller
- sunscreen
- first aid supplies
- razors for shaving and creams
- hair brushes
- anything else your guest may need
I decided to keep all of these things tucked away in the cabinet, but once my mother in law gets here I’ll just show her where everything is, that way she won’t feel like she’s bothering me to ask for anything and can discreetly use what she needs without asking for it.
In the cabinet along with the pharmacy items I have nice quality, clean white towels. Your personal towels may have been through 100+ washes and are starting to see better days (I know mine are) so it’s nice to have towels designated just for your guests that look and feel great. I also have a small basket to the side of those that house the feminine care products, along with small facecloths and a few different loofahs and sponges that are disposable so that way when she or anyone leaves they can be tossed out and replaced with new ones for new guests, same goes for the toothbrushes, hair brushes, and razors.
Last but not least, and this is certainly optional 🙂
I know personally for us we have big time tea drinkers in our family and friends circle. So when we built the builtins, I wanted to utilize the outlet that was potentially going to be covered up. We cut out the back of the cabinet so we could still access the outlet, but I didn’t want to see the cords, so we also cut out a small hole (just big enough for a plug to fit through) on top of the wood counter and top of the cabinet so we could fish cords through. I haven’t gotten around to staining it yet. That’s one of those “finishing touches things” I talked about in this post.
But the whole purpose of doing this really besides the obvious lamp cord, was to be able to set up a coffee/tea station in the room for them 🙂
Eventually I’d like to set up a small Keurig in there (I ran out of time) but for now and electric kettle, some nice assortments of tea, and a few pretty cups will have to do. 😉 I just think it’s the perfect little touch to say “welcome, my home is your home,” ya know?
I know our guests will appreciate that little touch, maybe your’s would prefer a small mini bar though…Actually, we have a few of those kinds of guests too 😉 haha!
A few other things that are often over looked when creating a guest space are…
- a small alarm clock/radio combo
- a tv with cable or netflix, or some form of night time entertainment
- a hamper
- hooks on the back of the door for coats, robes, wet towels
- extra hangers in the closet for them to hang their items
- a seat of some sort so they can sit down to tie their shoes, or just a place to put their bags
- extra blankets, sheets, pillows
These are all other “extra items” I have in our guest room.
I feel like I’m prepared, but maybe I’m forgetting something so I’d love for you to chime in! I have five more days until we pick her up from the airport so I have plenty of time for a last minute trip to the store 🙂
I hope you found some inspiration here for the next time you’re hosting house guests! Just remember that it’s the little things that mean the most, so you don’t have to go all crazy and buy everything in sight. Your guests really are coming to spend time with you anyway!
Talk to you soon friends, take care!
XO
I love the basket idea! I always take the extras from hotels to stash in the guest room. Small soaps are perfect for guests, always a fresh bar and little waste. Shampoo, conditioner, shower gels and hand cream too 🙂
Wonderful list, the only thing I can think of to add might be a flashlight, for those middle of the night walks to the bathroom..
Debbie
That’s actually a great idea Debbie! We have a nightlight in the guest bathroom that automatically goes on at night, but I could see a small flashlight coming in handy! Thank you! XO
Those are some wonderful ideas we are remodeling our home and this would be a great idea for our spare room.. we have a little fridge were putting in the spare room for guests to out thier cold snacks in .. thank you for sharing
For those of us with small homes, I find that small baskets in coordinating pretty colors, one for each supply category, works better than a cabinet which I don’t have. I line them ou in a shelf in the guest closet. You can even use racks to make double shelves for the baskets. Then a larger basket for pretty towels and washcloths I also suggest a package of wet wipes for quick freshen ups and other obvious uses. Thank you for such great ideas!
Great ideas. I always want to do something when guests come and then times runs quicker than I think and I end up with nothing. But, one day…
I love everything about this post. We are finishing building our home right now and can not wait to welcome guests! I have been looking for perfect ways to prepare the guest room and this has it all! Love it!! I am going to add a little note with the wifi password too. Your mother-in-law must have felt like she was in the ritz!!
This looks amazing (the tea is such a great idea)! I have to say from personal experience, please just make sure there is some empty space! I have to say though, while an open countertop or table may look bare when no-one is in the room, it will be put to good use when the guest is unpacked.
I hate not having anywhere to put my stuff when I’ve unpacked, because the host is only looking at the room when nobody is in there. I need somewhere to charge my toothbrush, and put out my toiletries, etc, without knocking over a plant and decorative soaps, and all the lovely things that are put out. Just my two cents!
Also, sleep a night in your guestroom to really give it a try– does a light shine in? Is the mattress lumpy? Would a fan be a nice addition? Is the alarm clock really bright? You never know until you give it a real run-through 🙂
Great tips! Thank you!
Love your list can I come and stay?? …think of the person [as you have] but think of do they have ailments or health issues that you could help with I live with chronic pain my friends thought of just about everything Hot water bottles or heat packs A small fan [even in winter I get over heated] Space to spread out that’s always a biggie Sleep in the bed see if a street light or car lights can annoy Sleep mask / ear plugs I was amazed how noisy my friends area was and they did not even realise till I pointed it out
Can’t think of anything else
Great tips! Come stay anytime! 😉
How about listing the wifi password for guests?
Yes! Great idea!
Great ideas! I will definitely incorporate some of these. My husband and I move around a lot because of the military so we usually receive a lot of guests throughout the year so I have started to make it more comfortable for our guests to stay. I thought I was the only one who went out this much for our guests but I’m glad i found this post for more ideas. You have a lot of great ideas that I had never thought of and some others left comments with other great ideas as well. Something else I usually do, is that although sometimes I include bar soaps, some people prefer body washes so I have also added body washes and small loofahs. Also, I have an extra hair dryer for guests. Besides the hairdryers, there are also some bobby pins, hair clips, hair ties and other haircare styling products etc in the guest bathroom that they are free to use.
Thanks for the great ideas – love the little pharmacy!
Thanks Shannon! 🙂
This is perfect! Definitely pinning. The only other thing I can think of is wifi password written down.
I do the same for my guests. I add a welcome card that basically says “welcome to our home. the mini bar is here for your comfort. Please feel free to use any and all items as you want. We are thrilled to have you as our guests” Then it is signed. There are a few items here that I don’t have so will be heading to the dollar store for some when I need. Water in the bedroom is handy for when you have medications to take. I have an elderly aunt that comes to stay once a year. She is diabetic so I take care to not supply her mini bar w/sugary items that she should not have but I provide some juices just in case she needs a boost. I provide disposable guest hand towels in all our guest bathrooms. I hate to go to someone’s house, use their facilities and then only find a used hand towel tow dry my hands on. This way you are comfortable that the towel (you may have overlooked) is fresh each time.