Welcome Baskets for Guests Staying Over

All of our family and lots of our friends live in France or South Devon, so when they come for a visit, they stay with us. We also organise sleepovers regularly, sometimes children and their mums too, so I get to have a friend there as well! Having guests staying over makes me very happy!

I won’t lie: I find the cleaning and pre-visit bit stressful, but it’s so worth the excitement of that knock on the door, and the time spent with people I love. As soon as the guests arrive, all worries evaporate. An hour earlier, I would have stressed over the shelf I’d forgotten to dust or the peeling paint in the bathroom, but once my guests are there, nothing matters other than catching up.

We have countless cups of tea and coffee, sitting at the table and munching on cake. We eat lots, we laugh and we chat until silly o’clock every night. I find that when I have guests around, I really allow myself to unwind and just enjoy being at home, with great company.

When Wayfair challenged me to put together a hamper of goodies for guests staying over, I didn’t hesitate for a second and chose this pretty set of baskets. In fact, my cousin is coming from Paris in a few days’ time, so it was the perfect occasion to put together a little hamper full of welcome goodies and essentials.

M. is my live music buddy. Every single time he visits, we have a concert booked. In the past ten years or so, we’ve seen U2, Muse, The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, AC/DC, Paul McCartney, The White Stripes, Blur… and I’m probably forgetting a few others. Next Wednesday, we will be enjoying a bit of Queen and Adam Lambert live. I cannot wait! M. is the best person to go to a gig with: he’s as enthusiastic as I am (probably more so actually), is always in a good mood and doesn’t care if we get home late or have to wait ages to get on a train after the concert.

I can’t remember whether our last concert together was two or three years ago, but it was certainly ages ago, before we had our loft conversion done, and M. stayed on the sofa bed. This time, he will have his own space, and I want to make sure he feels at home and is as comfortable as can be.

M. always travels light. When I say light, I mean LIGHT. His case is always lighter than any handbag I would ever carry when I’m out and about. I told him not to bother bringing towels, toiletries or a toothbrush, so these were the first things I gathered for him.

Next, Crevette suggested a sleeping mask. Now that’s a great idea! In France, everyone has shutters, but we only have curtains here and our family and friends always mention the fact it’s quite bright in the morning in our bedrooms.

I also got him some ear plugs. He might (or might not) need them. I have four noisy children after all! M. hasn’t got children yet, but he’s pretty amazing with my four. It doesn’t mean he won’t need to hear his own thoughts though!

On a trip to TK MAXX last week, I spotted some warm, fluffy slipper socks, so I added these to my basket because my friend Cé always says it’s cold in my house when she stays over. It’s a late 1890s house with draughty floorboards downstairs…

I also found a nice, festive mug, so I thought it would be nice for M. to have his own mug to use at home, and then take back to Paris afterwards. The children quite rightly decided he would need ‘midnight snacks’ so we went for a bit of chocolate and a few mini candy canes.

We just added a large towel, a flannel and our little welcome baskets were ready!

After I read a couple of other blog posts, I added a few more things. Adelle at ‘H is for Home Harbinger’ inspired me to add our WiFi password to the hamper (clever lady!), and Jenny at ‘Let’s Talk Mommy’ mentioned blankets. Of course! I would add a nice, fluffy blanket in there, as well as a bottle of water.

Here is my little list of essentials for guests staying over:

• towels
• flannel
• fluffy blanket
• slippers or slipper socks
• soap or shower gel
• shampoo & conditioner
• moisturiser
• toothbrush & toothpaste
• deodorant
• eye mask
• water bottle
• ear plugs
• mug
• treats
• WiFi password

Have I forgotten anything? How do you make your guests feel welcome?

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Wayfair. I only ever collaborate with brands I truly believe in and as always, all photos and opinions are my own.