by Kiki Nelson | Mar 10, 2017 | Ettiquette
My very first “question of the week” comes from Colorado, and you can bet she gets a lot of company.
“What is the best practice when it comes to bed linens when you’re leaving? Should house guests strip the bed or make it?”
When we lived in Seattle we had so much company, and I changed so many sheets, I felt like a Vegas motel maid with hourly rates (the motel, not the maid). So my answer is yes, strip the sheets and leave them in a heap on the bed along with the towels you used (unless the towels are wet, then drape them unfolded over a towel rack).
There are three main reasons for this:
- It’s easier for the host to collect stripped sheets for laundering;
- If the host has more than one bed in the guest room, they will know which bed was used. This is much more pleasant than a sniff test;
- If a guest makes the bed, the host might assume that guest simply makes the bed and doesn’t change sheets between occupants in their own home.
Feel free to disagree with me, it wouldn’t be the first time.
Thank you for visiting and I hope you’ll stay tuned for next week’s post,
Kiki
by Kiki Nelson | Feb 23, 2017 | Host, Hostess
Everyone has their own sensibilities, and no one can read minds. These two elements of human nature can set you up for uncomfortable situations when it comes to houseguests. Here are some best practices that apply to just about anyone…I think. I sincerely welcome your remarks and additions. Leave a comment below or send me an email at
kiki@mybestguests.com.
For the Host
- Your ultimate responsibility is to the safety and wellbeing of the family and household you have created. This doesn’t mean you can’t be gracious.
- Be mindful of your guest’s resources.
- Give your guest downtime and respect their privacy.
- Be interested and be interesting.
- Be appreciative that your houseguest values your company enough to stay in your home.
- If you are not enjoying the visit, fake it!
For the Houseguest
- Show up.
- Respect your host’s schedule and resources.
- If you are staying more than two nights, provide a meal.
- Give your host downtime and privacy.
- Offer, but do not insist, on helping with household chores such as meal prep and clean up.
- Don’t offer unsolicited decorating or cooking advice.
- Be interested and be interesting.
- Be openly appreciative.
- No whining unless it comes in a bottle.
- If you’re not enjoying the visit, fake it!
In my next posts, I’ll go into more detail about these best practices and will have other topics as well including; host/hostess gifts, houseguesting with children, houseguesting with pets, meals/food, what to have on hand, and electronic etiquette. I’ve decided to turn houseguesting into a verb.
Thanks for visiting,
Kiki
