5 Tips to Design a Home for Entertaining

How to Design a Home for Entertaining

The holidays are coming up, and it’s got me thinking about gathering with loved ones. Your home plays a significant role in your ability to host friends and family during the holidays and throughout the year. It can be frustrating when it lacks the spaces and structure needed to comfortably accommodate your guests. The good news? You don’t have to move to get a hosting-friendly home. Keep reading for five home remodeling tips to design a home for entertaining.

How to Design a Home for Entertaining

Design is an essential component of any home remodeling project, whether it’s a small kitchen renovation or a complete overhaul of your home. When creating a home for entertaining, there are some key features to incorporate into your design plan.

1. A Hosting-Friendly Layout

One of the biggest considerations you have to make is your home’s layout. When it comes to hosting, an open floor plan is the best choice. This type of floor plan is excellent for hosting because it makes the home feel larger and more open. It can also accommodate a crowd while still feeling cozy and inviting. Extra touches, like a spacious kitchen island, allow you to mingle with guests while preparing food and drinks. 

Open floor plan home for entertaining

2. Navigation and Flow

Traffic jams are frustrating on the road and in the home. Navigation and flow are critical to a home designed for entertaining. As you design your home, think about how people move from one space to the next. Add logical pathways and wide hallways to ensure people can move effortlessly throughout the home without bumping into things, cutting across workspaces, or invading others’ personal space. 

3. Entryway Storage

Guests come with an abundance of shoes and coats. Having a dedicated storage space keeps them from clogging up the entryway. If you have the room, consider adding a mudroom with a combination of hooks, cubbies, and lockers to keep shoes and outerwear organized and contained in one area.

Don’t have the space for a full-scale mudroom? Build a mini dropzone in the entryway or garage. Maximize the available space by adding a built-in bench with hidden storage and hooks.

Home for Entertaining Mudroom Entryway Storage

4. Ample Seating

Hosting and seating go hand-in-hand. Make sure to have plenty of comfortable seating options for guests, including couches, chairs, and accents like poufs, pillows, and ottomans. There are also a lot of ways to add built-in seating that doesn’t get in the way or have to be stored when guests leave.

Some popular seating options include:

  • Seating at the kitchen island
  • Banquette seating in the kitchen or dining room
  • Built-in benches or window seats in gathering spaces
  • Seating around a basement bar

5. Guest Rooms & Sleeping Spaces

If you plan to have friends and family from out of town stay with you, they’ll need their own private space. This is where a dedicated guest room comes in handy — preferably with access to an adjoining bathroom. And don’t forget about the little ones! Bunk rooms are a wonderful way to create fun sleeping spaces for kids.

Guest room suite holiday hosting design a home for entertaining

Trusted Home Remodeling Contractor in Minneapolis, MN & Nearby

Excel Builders can help you design a home for entertaining. We offer superior home design and remodeling services, including kitchen renovations, bathroom remodeling, basement finishing, and more. We even elevate your home with custom cabinets, millwork, and furniture designed and built in our in-house custom cabinet shop.

Want to learn more about how to create a hosting-friendly home with our design-build services? Get in touch with our team at (612) 306-4064 or trent@excelbuildersmn.com to get started. In the meantime, visit our project gallery for some design inspiration!

Excel Builders proudly serves Minnesota homeowners in the Greater Chanhassen and Twin Cities West Metro, including Minneapolis, Edina, Carver, Plymouth, Minnetonka, Chaska, Excelsior, Eden Prairie, Wayzata, Shorewood, and the surrounding area.