10 things your guests will notice first

We list the 10 things that your guests will notice in your home, and how they should be primed to appear to their advantage.

Entertaining guests at home is pure pleasure, made more pleasant by your beautiful home. But your home is so much more than just the four walls and a roof – it’s about how you decorate and maintain your house. An unpresentable home becomes a conversation starter for the wrong reasons!

So here’s presenting, in no particular order, the 10 things your guests will immediately notice about your home:

1. Your doormat. The doormat is often the first thing anybody sees, and it speaks volumes about what to expect inside the house. A tattered, dusty doormat implies that you are not interested in cleaning and caring for the house. Get a new rubber doormat with a quirky print on it, so that it immediately attracts attention. Be sure to vacuum it clean every week.
2. The nameplate. A nameplate bearing the names of the house’s owner(s) helps identify the house. But instead of a generic metal or plastic one, why not get an interesting nameplate in canvas, or one with an asymmetric shape? If you have a large entrance foyer, get an imposing nameplate mounted on a large metal or wooden board.
3. Your furniture. A home is made more inviting by its furniture. It is always a good idea to coordinate the furniture pieces, especially in the living room, so that they represent a unified whole. Every room in the house can have its own colour combination, and the furniture in it must reflect that combination.
4. The colour of the walls. The rule of thumb when choosing wall colours is this: The larger the room, the darker the colour, and vice versa. But it is not enough to pick out an unusual shade of colour for the walls – keeping them clean and free of dust is equally important. You may have displayed the best arrangement of photographs or a stunning oil painting, but if there’s grime on the walls, that’s all anybody will see!
5. Your furnishings. Furnishings are meant to make the home prettier, and you can have a lot of fun picking out the drapes, sofa cushions, designer bathmats, bed runners, tablecloths and other items that add creative touches to your home. Your guests will quickly notice if the furnishings are picked with care, so as to create an interesting contrast with the furniture and serve a functional purpose.
6. The crockery. Serving your guests tea or coffee in generic tea cups is a strict ‘No’, unless you are serving refreshments in the 1980s. You can pick beautiful steel and glass tumblers, or coffee mugs with matching coasters. These pieces are eye catching and good conversation starters.
7. Your coasters. Always have coasters handy when you serve tea, coffee or drinks – they will protect your tables from getting ‘rings’ of condensation later. But there’s no need for plain boring wooden ones – pick tough plastic, or ceramic or even rubber, with a gorgeous print.
8. Your artwork. Now that your guests are comfortably seated and having their refreshments, their eyes will fall on the art you have put up on the walls. If you’re an art connoisseur, you’re bound to have a stunning painting or two on display. Or you can get wall art online and display it in an interesting manner, so as to invite the guest for a closer look. A montage of family photos is also a good idea for wall art.
9. Your light fixtures and lamps. An evening party requires mood lighting, or at least enough visibility without becoming too obtrusive. Coloured lampshades can soften the glare of the lights, while stunning metal candle holders can diffuse light softly. Choosing the light fixtures depends entirely on what suits your living spaces, and the kind of effect you are aiming for.
10. The state of your floor. A plush home demands an excellent floor. If you haven’t got patterned tiles, you could consider throwing an elegant rug in the seating area, or carpet the bedroom floors. Your guests will be wary of a slippery floor, but a parquet or carpeted floor will make a big difference.