Perfecting your Space for Holiday Gatherings

The days are getting shorter, and the desire to gather around warm kitchens with friends and family is only getting stronger. Holidays are a perfect time to gather your people and celebrate family and friendship in a place you truly love. Hosting takes some work, but with the right space and setup you’ll be equipped to create a welcoming, beautiful, and memorable experience for yourself and your crowd! What goes into designing the perfect space to throw your party? Let’s check out a few design-build tips that keep your social life front and center.

Design Tips…

Whether you’re cooking or pouring cocktails, your kitchen will be the primary gathering place for you and your guests. There are a few elements you can keep in mind to make sure that this gathering space offers comfort and ease. Your kitchen’s layout, seating options, and engagement areas will co-create a space where you can efficiently cook for, entertain, and enjoy the company of your loved ones. When you’re cooking for 10, a user-friendly layout is essential.

Factor Design Build – Orchard Ave.One foolproof solution to creating a functional kitchen layout is the countertop island. With casual high-chair seating options, this layout allows for social engagement amidst the cooking process. Chat with guests as aperitifs are passed around, and enjoy the array of extra cooking space offered by this addition. This functional feature paired with some natural lighting creates a practical and inviting space. The key to an appealing kitchen is a sense of openness. Notice how a source of natural light will open up the space drastically, and lend a sense of freshness to your cooking & socializing space. It’s just not fun to cook and entertain in a confined shoebox space. With vast windows, clean marble countertops, a soft, fresh color scheme, and a center island, you’ve got yourself 360 Degrees of inviting, practical, livable, and party-worthy kitchen space!

Another great way to create a more inviting and effortless hosting experience is by connecting your kitchen and living room area. With one open space, subdivided into engagement zones, you can facilitate a party that simultaneously offers full inclusion and intimacy. 

Factor Design Build – Orchard Ave.

This exemplary Living Room, Dining Room, and Kitchen are all connected in an open space, separated by a simple half wall for intimacy. With the Dining room as the buffer between the family room and kitchen, everybody has a place to socialize independently, as well as a meeting place in the middle. The perfect combination of privacy and openness, this design allows for both you and your guests to each get exactly what you’re looking for; be it Thanksgiving Football on the couch, board games & poker at the dining table, cocktails at the countertop island, or getting hands-on in the kitchen. 

Finishing Touches…

Scent – There are few elements that transform an experience more than scent. However you like to fill your home with the scents of the season, this will immediately pull your entire party  into a more celebratory, carefree, and comfortable mood. We’ve got a few ways to fill your space with the warm and inviting smells of the season. Try simmering apple cider with cinnamon sticks and clove on the stovetop, incorporating botanical arrangements with seasonal plants such as pine leaves, or of course, finding your favorite candle and essential oil diffuser options. If you’re planning on baking a fresh loaf of bread or dessert for this crowd, you’ll kill two birds with one stone, filling your home with the scent of baked goods.

Food Decor – Along with the perfect scents, buff up your appetizer bar with pops of color and a bountiful arrangement of aperitifs. It’s the season to celebrate and be grateful for bounty – the bounty of food and drink, generosity, and celebration. A platter filled with layers of plentiful appetizers is a reminder to your guests that they are well taken care of, and a beautiful aesthetic addition to the table. Alongside the appetizers, try weaving in some decorative botanical elements. Have you tried weaving pine garlands through appetizer plates, or decorating the plate edges with colorful cranberries? Food and decor are by no means mutually exclusive, so play with your food presentation and see how much more color and bounty it brings to the table!

Beverage Space – As fun as it is to have the food and drink intertwined in the same area, having a separate bar corner, or drink stand is a beautiful addition that will organize the beverage options and make them more inviting and accessible. Whatever your style, there are plenty of compact and beautiful beverage carts that can be a festive addition to your kitchen/lounge area. Having a mixing area for guests to help themselves is a way to keep the mess at a minimum, and delete the need for refilling glasses from your priority list! Consider a dedicated area for beverage mixing, and allow your guests to help themselves!

You want your hosting space to be as user-friendly as it is beautiful. Integrating the use of an open layout, mixed seating options, plentiful countertop space, engagement areas, and opportunity for natural lighting will create a party environment as welcoming, fun, inviting, and unforgettable as your crowd is.