Article Posted By: Bre Eggert of Average But Inspired.
Bre Eggert is the founder of AverageInspired.com, where she strives to inspire creativity in the home by providing DIY and craft tutorials, furniture upcycle projects, and home décor ideas. For a daily dose of DIYs, home décor tutorials and much more, follow her on Instagram at @AverageButInspired.
The holiday season is ramping up, and your to-do list contains the usual suspects: shop for gifts, send holiday cards, and make Aunt Ruth’s famous fruitcake (okay, we actually give you permission to take that off your list).
But there are other important things you might not realize should also be on that list: important things that will help you get your home totally ready for the holidays.
During a season when we spend lots of time at home, these are among the most important things to do! I’m Bre from the blog Average But Inspired, and I’m happy to be guest posting for Green Gobbler to fill you in on these Five Tips for Getting Your Home Holiday-Ready. Each of these items is sure to help you have an enjoyable and stress-free holiday season!
Tip 1: Purge and Donate
During the holidays we bring a lot of stuff into our homes. From clothing to gifts to food and more - it can feel like there is always something new to take up space.
This becomes problematic when there is nowhere to put these items. Letting things pile up can create feelings of anxiety and loss of control, and this can be overwhelming during a season that is stress-inducing in and of itself!
To avoid this problem, go through closets, drawers, and storage spaces, and collect items that are no longer needed. Gather them together and take them to a local donation site as soon as possible. (Pro Tip: Don’t leave them in the back of your car for months like I tend to do! Donate them immediately!)
Not only will you feel “lighter” by having cleared space for the new items being brought into your home, but you’ll also feel good for having made a difference through donation in your community.
Tip 2: Capture the Scents of the Season
While seasonal décor certainly creates an ambiance of holiday festivity, don’t overlook the importance of a festive fragrance to match. (Translation: swap your usual house scent from Fido’s dog bed to a more appropriate fragrance for this time of year!)
There are numerous ways to invigorate that sense of smell, and here are some of my favorites:
- Scented candles: long-lasting jar candles in subtle winter fragrance are perfect for adding aroma and ambiance
- Stove top simmer pot: fill a pot with water, cinnamon, cranberries, and some orange slices, and simmer it to release a lovely scent
- Fresh winter greens: purchase or gather evergreen clippings and arrange them in a vase for an authentic winter smell and vignette
The next time you’re running errands, make a point to get what you need to add a lovely scent to your home.
Tip 3: Go With the Flow
During the holidays our homes’ plumbing gets a lot of extra use: from the preparation of food and baked goods in the kitchen, to more showers (hello, we all want to look good during the holidays!), to other things we don’t need to go into detail about . . . the point is that we need those pipes to be flowing!
From personal experience, I know that a clogged sink can really put a damper on holiday preparations and celebrations. I’ll never forget the year my mom had a house full of guests and the drain clogged and the sink almost overflowed. Pure madness ensued!
For those reasons, I stock up on Green Gobbler Drain Clog Dissolver and Green Gobbler Bio-Flow Drain Strips, and make sure to be ready for whatever my pipes throw at me.
And it’s also odorless, which is a huge advantage in my book. Have you ever smelled those other drain cleaners? They’ll instantly wipe out any steps you took in Tip No. 2 above.
The patented blend of ingredients makes Green Gobbler Drain Clog Dissolver safe for PVC and copper pipes in all drains (sinks, bathtub and shower), toilets (seriously!) and septic systems. It will dissolve hair, toilet paper, soap scum and other organic materials commonly found in drains.
It’s also perfect for DIY unclogging because the unique bottle comes with two premeasured applications. You don’t have to measure anything and there is no mess whatsoever. In the event of a drain clog during merriment and festivity, you will not ruin your holiday attire.
Green Gobbler Drain Clog Dissolver is fantastic to have on-hand for those unforeseen circumstances (like my poor mom’s holiday fiasco).
And, in addition to being prepared for the unexpected, I like to be proactive and use Green Gobbler Bio-Flow Drain Strips as part of a monthly routine to prevent clogs from occurring at all.
These amazing strips use slow-dissolving enzymes to breakdown food, grease, soap scum and other organic matter that can clog drain lines. They’re safe for all pipes and septic systems, and they couldn’t be easier to use! Simply drop one Green Gobbler Bio-Flow Drain Strip into the drain each month and enjoy a clog-free and odorless drain.
Add both Green Gobbler Drain Clog Dissolver and Green Gobbler Bio-Flow Drain Strips to your shopping list, and make sure to pick them up the next time you’re at the store or shopping online. In the meantime, learn more about both products here.
Tip 4: Conduct a Pantry Inventory
There’s nothing worse than getting everything ready to bake Aunt Ruth’s famous fruitcake and finding that you’re missing the secret ingredient you thought you had on hand (wait, I thought we ditched the fruitcake back in the first paragraph... hmmm).
Okay, well fruitcake or not, nobody likes to be unprepared when it comes to holiday food preparation and baking.
Because of that, it’s very important to conduct a pantry inventory before you brave the grocery store to do your shopping. Get out your clipboard (it makes you look extra official) and get to work documenting the pantry staples you have plenty of and what is conspicuously missing.
Then, cross-reference your inventory with any recipes you plan to make so you will be sure not to forget to add anything to your shopping list. You’ll save time, money, and headaches if you take ten minutes to do this.
Tip 5: Cozy Up The Place
During a season with a lot of family togetherness at home, it is comforting to extend your décor and furnishings to those things we can touch and feel.
Consider adding soft, warm, and textural elements like faux fur throw blankets in a basket near the couch, or cozy sweater pillow covers that you can pop over pillows you already have. Items like these are often forgotten, but they’re impactful and help spread that feeling of comfort and joy in the home! (And hey, if you need a break from the family, just throw one of those cozy blankets over your head and hide.)
If you have a fireplace, you’ll also want to be sure to have logs on hand to start a fire whenever the mood strikes! A roaring fire definitely amps up the cozy factor in any space. And if you don’t have a fireplace, no worries! A fun alternative is streaming a faux fireplace on the television. Services like Netflix and YouTube have options that even make crackling fire sounds.
Well, with those five tips for getting your home holiday-ready, you should be all set for a fantastic holiday season! A little planning, preparation, and drain cleaning with Green Gobbler Drain Clog Dissolver and Green Gobbler Bio-Flow Drain Strips will go a long way toward helping you relax and enjoy these special times with your family.
Get Your Plumbing Ready For The Holidays With Green Gobbler
