PINTEREST ROUND UP: The Sweet and Simple Guestroom
Guest rooms can be tricky. They need to be cozy and comfortable without feeling fussy. In our last house, we used the guest room as an office/guestroom/husband's closet. It is so hard to have the right amount of rooms to give guests a singular place that won't be interrupted by say, my husband needing to get dressed in the morning, or me running in there "real quick" because I need that one file folder I forgot to grab yesterday. I learned a lot having our guest room as a multi-use space and I still think of ways I could have made that room more simple, more sweet and more functional for everyone. Ohh, if I could do it all over again...but I can't so here's my advice for making any guest room, multi-use or otherwise the perfect space for, hopefully, short stays.
Make the room comforting and cozy without feeling cluttered. Guest rooms should be a comforting place. Keep it warm and inviting with just the right amount of comforts and avoid displaying lots of knick knacks in the room. If you have a multi-use guest room think about cord management, and have an easy system for putting away files. Some guests will actually appreciate having a printer/fax/scanner at their fingertips, but everything else should be very comfy and un-cluttered. I always put one of these out to help with suitcase management.
Use items that are durable and not likely to be broken. Consider that guests come in all shapes and sizes, sometimes with dogs or kids or both. There was a time my husband and I stayed the weekend with our close friends in San Diego. Our son was just starting to walk, he was into everything and ended up knocking over an expensive lamp in their guest room that we had to spend $1000 to replace. You don't ever want guests to feel nervous about the items in their room, so keep it super simple and try to avoid decorating with floor lamps.
Don't feel like you need to spend a lot of money on bedding. I love for guests to feel like they can take a glass of wine to bed, or spend extra time snuggling with their kids/dogs in the morning. If you love linen bedding in a guest room (like I do) you can always switch it out when a guest comes with a pet or a child. And always make sure the mattress has plenty of protection so spills don't soak through! I buy micro fiber sheets at Target for the guest room and everyone loves them, but of course I always add an R+W cashmere throw for a little luxury. They can go right in the washer when guests leave. I use The Laundress Wool and Cashmere wash for my own.
Use art instead of personal photos. If you are looking for a place to put those extra family photos do not head to the guest room. Guests know who you are and what your kids look like. Inundating them with personal photos will make them feel less at home than they already do. Instead head to shops like Minted or shop our limited edition prints from Shawna Ankenbrandt to bring beautiful art into the space.
Make sure there is lighting by the bed. Guests will love that you were thoughtful enough to add bedside lighting. They can be simple plug-in sconces like these or these. Make sure they are easy to turn on and off. Stick a fun book on the side table in case they forgot to bring their own. Funny Girl is a quick read, but it's not so serious that guests will feel like they need to finish it before they leave.
AND, My #1 Rule for having guests is never clean the guest room while it's occupied. You are not running a B&B, or even an Airbnb, so no need to clean up until guests leave. Then you can go in with a hazmat suit and scrub 'til your heart's content.
Happy Decorating! And, I would love to hear your thoughts in the comments below! R+W
Photo Sources: 1. Jacklyn Clark 2. Coco Lapine 3. Pinterest 4. Coco Lapine 5. i.pinimg.com 6. stadshem.se 7. Arkadivsz Fydryszewski 8. Apartment Therapy 9. Coco Lapine
