We’ve all been there, your guests are about to arrive and the house isn’t anywhere near as ‘ready’ as you had hoped it would be. But don’t worry, we have you covered! For quick and easy tidying, follow the tips below:

1. Start at the beginning

Step outside and take in the view. See all those leaves? Grab a broom and give it a quick sweep. Tidying your house from the outside is super important as it is the first impression your guests will have of your home. Next, move on to your foyer, straighten the rug, give the mirror a quick wipe and make sure the entryway doesn’t smell like feet. Notice all those coats lying on the ground? Hand them up on your PEGrail and make sure to leave space for your guests to hang theirs.

2. Sort the shoes

If your house is anything like mine, the next thing to tackle will be the mountain of shoes scattered around the inside of your front door. Our LOWboys are a great way to organize the clutter and encourage guests to keep it tidy once they arrive. Simply pick the size you need— LOWboy 1800 works really well— and then neatly stack your shoes. When using the LOWboy 1800, the 3 cubbies provided work really well for organizing your shoes by owner or style. (Handy tip: Keep one cubby empty as this will encourage visitors to neatly store their shoes as they arrive, resulting in a tidy entrance-way for every guest, and not just the first lot who show up)

3. Head to the kitchen

Since the kitchen is probably on of the main social areas in the house, make sure it looks tidy. You may not think of dishes as clutter, but it is. So, first thing first, if you have a dishwasher—load it! Out of sight, out of mind. Or if you don’t have a dishwasher (and you have more than 10 minutes) quickly wash the dishes and then don’t forget to dry and pack them away. If neither option works for because you don’t have a dishwasher, and your guests will be here in about 5 minutes, embrace the emergency plan—Hide. Grab the dishes and put them in the oven or in the laundry or if you don’t have a laundry, pop them in the washing machine (that way you won’t accidentally burn your house down and you can’t forget about them for very long) Desperate times call for desperate measures. No-one is judging over here. (Handy tip: If you are choosing the ‘Hide Method’ make sure you have enough dishes left over to offer your guests a drink!)

4. Spruce!

Give the bench a quick wipe (possibly with a yummy smelling eco-something-or-other). Straighten up all the things. Swap out the grubby tea towels sitting on your BUTCHERboy for fresh ones. Hide the spices and whatever other ingredients you used the last time you cooked.  Open the window to let some fresh air in.

5. Next, the Lounge…

This doesn’t mean that you have to hide every toy your kids own. This is your space. And it is totally fine for it to be laced with hints of the people who live here. In saying that, their toys do not need to be scattered all over the place, if you don’t want them to be! The 1 Bay 5 High BOOKboy looks really good in a lounge setting and when they are paired with our Single or Double Crates they work well as a way to display the things you love and store the things you usually use in this area, but don’t always want to see. 

6. Organise that coffee table

The coffee table is a common place for cultivating clutter. With our COFFEEboy this is an easy fix. Simply sort though what is on the table, decide what you would like to keep and store it in the handy drawers provided.

7. Beautiful Bathroom

The chances are pretty high that your visitors will need to use your bathroom at least once during their brief stay. Which is why it is a really good idea to give all the surfaces a quick wipe down. It doesn’t necessarily need to be a deep clean today, but making sure that surfaces are not covered in grime or dust is a vital part of your pre-visitor tidy. Also, make sure all personal items are hidden away in a drawer. And last but not least, make sure that your bathroom smells nice.

Those are all the tips I have for you today. All the best to you! Hoping you manage to smash it out before your guests arrive!