Here’s what I love… gracious guest rooms

Here at elle design, we LOVE designing bedrooms. We obviously love textiles so these spaces give us lots of opportunity to play with colour, textures and pattern.

I wanted to show you some ideas for fantastic guest specs to welcome family or friends into your home.

Guest rooms are sometimes dedicated spaces for the enjoyment of guests, be they main floor, attic or basements rooms.  Occasionally they do double duty as offices, craft rooms or play spaces.

Regardless where they are or how they function, it’s the special touches you provide that make guests feel not only at home, but also truly ‘welcome’.

The Basics:

A gender-neutral décor will make everyone feel comfortable.  A great lamp for the nightstand, and brochures of local attractions are must haves.

Room darkening shades or drapery are a plus for weary travelers and if possible a location away from busy family zones like the kitchen make for sweet slumbers.

A complete set of towels per person in a colour or pattern unique to your guests prevents mix-ups in the bathroom.

Think Hotel:

Provide a basket filled with trial sizes of frequently forgotten essentials like toothpaste, hair care products, soaps and lotions.  Throw in slippers, a robe, sleep mask and earplugs and they’ll think they are in a swank resort hotel.

Considerate Gestures:

A choice between feather and polyester filled sleeping pillows is thoughtful especially if your guests have allergies.

A bedside water carafe or bottle of sparkling water with a tumbler prevents midnight wanderings.

Add an extra blanket or quilt for chilly nights, or for wrapping around shoulders while reading in bed.

Recent magazines in a small basket are a treat for most people; my favorites are foodie or literary anthology issues.

An accurate alarm clock is welcome, especially if early morning flights are involved in your visitors’ itinerary.

Luxury Extras:

Spa essentials are a delight to find when traveling to friends’ or family’s homes. A bath brush, loofah sponge or pumice stone tucked in a wash bag with a bath pillow will wow them.

A posy of fresh flowers or lavender sachet will reinvigorate a less frequently used room (make sure you check for allergies first!)

A radio tuned to a local soothing music station, and a pile of great books transforms any spot into a home away from home