Even if you only have a three people in your home, you are sure to sometimes have a large group that will show up, it may be planned, but it may be unexpected. This is why it’s very important to plan your homes layout so that you can have a large group if needed. There are some very simple ways to do this:

1. Buy a table that expands and make sure you have room for everyone to sit when it is expanded.
2. Buy ottomans that can be used as both seating and storage
3. Have a small collection of fold out chairs
4. If you have an outdoor area add a table or chairs to help guide guest out when the weather permits it.
5. Don’t fill your home with un-needed stuff, keep it organized and clean so guest don’t knock things over.

It’s very simple to keep a home that is ready for lots of guest. With summer fast approaching and many events being planned already having these things in place will help take some of the worry out of the big day.

Technorati Tags: large group design, party planning

I promised I would write up this post and though I am later then I planned I think you will find that my 7 tips helpful.

1. Classic is not boaring, it’s classic. If you love the read and green colors of christmas use them.

2. Contrasting colors are a great way to add drama to a table. Use White and blue to make a cool statement

3. Plants are your friend, freash plants are great, but don’t forget to keep them fresh so that you don’t have a fire.

4. Use candels at each setting to make your guest feel warm and cozy. Use led candels for kids.

5. Don’t worry about folding napkins, roll them up and use christmas hairties or ribbion to hold them in place.

6. Skip the pointsettas, use evergreen or even fake gifts as a centerpiece

7. Get the kids involved. Christmas is a children’s holiday after all, who better to help you pick out the table decor.

Technorati Tags: Holiday decorateing, Holiday table setting ideas

Decorating for the holidays is a long hard task for many people, but there are some great ways to make holiday decorating very easy.

The first is to decide your color scheme. Are you a traditional red and green decorator or do you love the idea of blue and silver? If your not sure, I have a small list of some great color combination’s for christmas that go beyond these 2 popular themes.

Maroon and silver
White and purple
Blue, teal and cream
Black and white

Almost anything works for christmas decorating it’s that time of year where festive colors are in and we feel so much better about everything. Now once you decide on the colors you need to decide if your going to use real or synthetic materials for trees, wreaths and swags. If you decide to use real I would suggest making sure you are ready to take care of it. The last thing you want is a huge fire hazard.

The next step is to decide what rooms you are going to decorate. Many people only do one or two rooms, others do every room in the house. My suggestion is if you have to spend more then $200 a year decorateing your home it’s too much. Now if you have no decorations $200 is not that bad, but after that inital buying spree keep it to about $100 or less. Decor looks best when it’s simple. Use that $100 to buy new led lights if you don’t already have them and update to new colors, this could also be part of your “real plants” budget. Other then that many decorations you already have are fine.

Lights are the next step and really it’s pretty simple. Use lighting with synthetic garlands to create a warm look you can use over and over. Use candles on the christmas eve and christmas day or whenever your family gets together, to create a warm cozy and scented look that will make everyone feel wonderful and loving the holidays.

Well that’s it for part I, The next section will deal with table decor!

Technorati Tags: Christmas, decorating for the holidays, LED lights, table decor, wreaths and swags

Thanksgiving is this Thursday as I’m sure most of you know. I hope you have an idea of what you are going to serve, but do you know what your table decor is going to look like? If you don’t and you need some help I hope these items will give you some inspiration for your holiday table. You can buy all of these items on Amazon if you want to get them too.

Technorati Tags: table decor, thanksgiving table

There are so many ways to light up your Halloween. You can decorate your house with lights, goblins and witches or you can do that and have a party where you decorate the inside too. You may not even celebrate Halloween and just use harvest decor to celebrate the season.

What is my idea of the perfect Halloween? Well it’s one that is energy efficient and one that is a lot of fun. Halloween is one of my favorite holidays and decorating for it is fun. I love using lights to show things off. Spot lights are a great way to highlight something you want everyone to see. Add a timer to it so the light goes on and off and you have a great feature for your scary decor.

I also love to use black lighting and Par38 Halogen because they do not use much electricity, since they are florescent. I love using them everywhere. They make everything glow and add a scary element to a room even without decorations in it.

So how have you decorated for Halloween and the fall season?

Technorati Tags: black lighting, Halloween, holidays