Setting up the nest!

Many years ago I moved into my first home and I wanted to set it up so that I could be like those people on tv - you know the ones who can entertain an unexpected group of people with only a few hours notice. And having spent many years living in dorm, my roommate and I were eager to figure it out! And we weren't the most organized people to begin with so we needed help! So,we turned to The Nest. And boy did they have some fantastic ideas. There was an article called Stealing household tips from the super rich - and by super rich I mean the people who have staff. The owners shared some tips for how they keep their homes running so well. I loved that no matter the size of your place, you can use these tips. The writer of the article Cynthia King, put it nicely - "Until I can hire my own staff, I'm doing the things they're hired to do..."

1. If your core group of friends (the ones most likely to stop by on short notice) drink tea get a nice tea set and have it readily available, if its soda and chips keep a 12 pack and a few bags in the pantry. The way we did it at our home was we used one of our old dorm fridges and stocked it with beverages and put a basket on top with chips and snacks. We kept it in our pantry (boy I miss that pantry...) 

2. Have a home bible - It can be electronic if you prefer it that way. It is simply a binder with all the important information pertaining to your home. The names and numbers of your plumber, electrician, the babysitter, which month the maid (or you) need to clean the drapes. This way all the  info is in the same place. If your roof starts leaking and you aren't home - kids or hubby will know exactly where to go to find the number to the roofer.

3. The first two were given by women, the 3rd is from a man. His first tip about petty cash is to keep some in a drawer and the housekeeper can replace things as needed and replace the cash with a receipt. I don't have a housekeeper but if you do, that's a pretty good idea. Clearly you have to trust the person... He said the important thing is to have lots of what you need. Ex. he bought 2 dozen sets of chocolate and blue guest towels from Target ( didn't like all the bluing and bleaching needed with white towels) and several dozen wineglasses. And he has a signature wrapping paper - Shiny black with brown ribbon, 

Now in addition to these, the author ended by leaving us with a few tips on how to set up your household sans staff

-Figure out your hosting style

-Make your home bible

-Have pads and pencils by every phone (more for those who use land line phones) 

-Have a petty cash drawer - can be used by husband, babysitter, housekeeper- if you have one...

-Choose signature colors and load up on wrapping paper and ribbon

-Arrange your pantry with the products used most up front.

-Stash light bulbs, toilet paper, linens etc in each bedroom and bathroom instead of one central location.

-If you have different sized sheets, label the linen closet shelves

-Forget about whites - chocolate brown towels and shocking-pink napkins are more durable, easier to clean and jazzier!

-Buy whatever you use frequently in large quantities. It will save you tons!

I've done a few of these in our new home. I've arranged the pantry, stashed the bulbs and linens and toilet paper in each room and I buy in bulk when I can. I'm working on figuring out my hosting style. I don't host often which would be one of my least favorite things about living here. No one lives close to anyone! All of our friends live at least 30 min from us. And if we ever took a day to visit them all it would take us hours because they all live far from each other. It's crazy really, but it is one thing I miss about living in Nashville. Our friends may live in different areas but it's such a compact city that getting around is quick and easy! And I love the idea of using shiny blue paper with black or brown ribbon as our wrapping color.

Anything that makes life a little simpler.