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Getting your home ready for holiday company

 
Published Nov. 17, 2014

Having family and friends over can be stressful if your house or apartment isn't clean, organized and welcoming. There are less than two weeks until Thanksgiving, and just over six weeks to New Year's Day. Take the time now to do some de-cluttering, repairing and restocking so you can be confident your place looks its best. Guests will feel comfortable and cared for. Here is advice from five experts on how to get your home ready to ace holiday hospitality.

Cleaning blitz

It goes without saying you'll want to clean your bathroom a day or two before guests arrive. But there are things you can do now to tidy up before the doorbell starts ringing.

Start in the living room and kitchen, prime entertaining spaces. Get rid of newspapers, magazines, catalogs, mail and old candles. Take everything off your coffee table and mantel and put back only a minimal amount.

In the kitchen, clear the counters and wipe them down. Remove all the food from your refrigerator and scrub the shelves and walls with a half-and-half solution of vinegar and water. For the fridge exterior, use a sponge on a black or white model, or microfiber cloth for stainless. Be choosy about what you put back inside.

Dining room chair review

You'll probably be spending more time than usual around your dining table in the next few months. It's a good time to give each of your chairs a test drive. If some of them rock back and forth or feel wobbly, they might need regluing.

Take a hard look at the chair seats. If the fabric looks worn or stained, freshen the chair up with new fabric and maybe some additional padding. If you're a DIY type, go at it. Otherwise, get a pro.

Fireplace checkup

If the weather gets cold enough, you may light a fire Thanksgiving afternoon as the aroma of roasting turkey fills the house and guests start arriving. To be prepared for this, lay in a supply of firewood and have your fireplace inspected. Now.

An inspection can clarify whether you need your chimney swept or repaired, says Ashley Eldridge, director of education for the Chimney Safety Institute of America, a nonprofit group that also oversees a certification program for chimney sweeps.

Eldridge suggests checking your fireplace damper, screen and glass doors to see they are working properly. Know where your fire extinguisher is, and make sure it is fully charged and ready to use. And don't ever burn wrapping paper or pizza boxes in your fireplace, as this can rapidly cause large flames to spill out of the fireplace or go up the chimney.

Plumbing tuneup

Plumbing companies get a lot of emergency calls over the holidays, when homes are packed and kitchens and bathrooms are in use almost 24/7.

Here are few cautionary notes: Clogged kitchen sinks are a huge issue over the holidays. "People are doing a lot of cooking and shoving everything down that garbage disposal," says Michael Hartman, co-owner of Thomas E. Clark Plumbing, Heating and Air Conditioning in Silver Spring, Md., with the two worst culprits being grease and potato peels. "Putting grease down the drain is basically like clogging your arteries," he says. In other words, don't do it. Peels are also dangerous. His advice: Peel potatoes in the sink, but scoop up the debris and dispose elsewhere. Ask any kitchen helpers to do the same.

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Guest bed check

If you are fortunate enough to have a guest room, you'll want to make sure there are a few spare hangers in the closet and a few drawers empty. Inspect your bedding and towels with a critical eye, says Justin Sonfield, general merchandise manager at the Company Store (thecompanystore.com).

Start by stripping the guest bed and washing everything including the mattress pad and the pillow covers, those zip-on protective covers you should have on all your bed pillows. Comforters and pillows should also be inspected to see whether they need to be cleaned or replaced.

If your guest room mattress is the oldest in the house, Sonfield says, consider getting a bed topper to make it more comfortable, possibly a memory foam or feather bed model. If your one set of guest sheets looks a bit threadbare or faded, invest in a new set of white percale sheets, to provide guests with a cool, crisp hotel feeling.

And bring out the towels you'll be leaving out for guests. Do you have a matching bath, hand and washcloth? If you end up springing for new towels, buy extra washcloths, as those tend to get worn out first.