The other night my family and I were going through the hectic night time routine. My youngest was about to pop into the bath, and we had just finished up dinner. The phone rang, and there it was, unexpected company on the way. Fortunately, we set in place a way to focus on our home’s first impression, to make it all seem uncluttered and welcoming, even on a moment’s notice in the middle of a hectic time.
The secret to focusing on your home’s first impression is to, for the moment, ignore the rooms that you usually focus on, such as the living room, and instead fix up the areas that your guests will see immediately upon entering, such as a front hall, the doorway and its surroundings.
For example, keep the leaves swept away from the porch and the cobwebs off of the door jam and outdoor light. Make sure that there isn’t clutter in the corners of the porch, flagstones should be straight and dead plants removed. A good time to check on this is when you enter or leave your home. Do a quick inspection. Are the porch light bulbs burned out? Have grasshoppers built a nest above the door? Take care of these issues as soon as you can.
Take care of at least one task a day, such as shaking out the doormat, or bringing in the sports equipment that got dropped, as you enter or leave your home. It will take less than five minutes.
If you have an entryway, keep it clutter free. We have a little desk there, and mail can get stashed in the drawers as needed. You can also grab a shopping bag or a small box and gather up the shoes, toys and other clutter and then quickly stash the bag in a closet or bedroom.