Most holiday hosting advice starts with the turkey. On the Gulf Coast, the part that sneaks up on you is the guest room: the sheets that have been folded in a humid closet since summer, the comforter nobody has washed since last Christmas, and the realization at 9 p.m. on Wednesday that there are not enough clean towels for six people. This is a countdown for that room, built backward from Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 26.
It is written for households in Mobile County and on the Eastern Shore, where Everly Concierge picks up, washes, dries and folds laundry and brings it back to your door. Even if you do every load yourself, the timeline still works.
Start with the sniff test
Here is the step most checklists skip. Open the guest closet, take out a pillowcase and smell it. In a climate where indoor humidity stays high for months, linens that sat folded since the last visitor often pick up a faint musty smell. You stop noticing it in your own house. Your guests notice it the moment they pull the sheets back.
If the stored set smells like the closet, it needs a wash before anyone sleeps on it, even if it was clean when you put it away. Do this check two weeks out, not two days out, so you have time to deal with it.
The countdown, working back from Thursday
Two weeks out: Nov 12 to 15
- Do the sniff test on every guest sheet set, pillowcase and spare blanket.
- Count beds, including the air mattress, the pull-out sofa and the kids sleeping bags. Each one needs a full set.
- Pull every comforter and duvet that guests will use. If it was not washed after the last visit, add it to the pile.
- Check pillows. Flat or yellowed pillows are a cheap replacement, and pillow protectors keep the new ones fresh longer.
One week out: Nov 16 to 20
- Send the bulky things first: comforters, quilts and blankets. They take the most room and the most drying time, so get them out of the way early. Everly is running 2-for-1 on comforters and blankets through November 30, which makes this the cheapest week of the year to do it.
- Wash or send the guest sheets that failed the sniff test.
- Store the clean sets in a breathable cotton bag or pillowcase, not a sealed plastic bin, so they do not pick up the closet smell again.
Weekend before: Nov 21 and 22
- Make the beds. A bed made a few days early is one less thing on Wednesday.
- Do the everyday laundry so your own hampers are empty when guests arrive. Visitors double the towel and kitchen-linen load fast.
- Pull out tablecloths and cloth napkins and check for last year’s stains while there is still time to clean them.
Monday, Nov 23: the last comfortable pickup
If you use Everly Concierge, Monday is the day to book your final pickup. Delivery windows can be as soon as 24 hours after pickup, which puts clean towels and table linens back on your shelf by Tuesday or Wednesday with a little room to spare. Waiting until Wednesday morning cuts it too close for anything you need on Thursday.
Wednesday, Nov 25: towels out, nothing new in
Set out towels, put a spare blanket at the foot of each guest bed and stop adding laundry. Anything dirty from here waits for the after-guests reset.
How much linen you actually need
Running out of towels is the most common hosting surprise. This is the math we suggest for a holiday visit of two to four nights:
| Item | How many | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Sheet sets | 1 per bed, plus 1 spare for the most-used bed | Spills, kids and pets happen |
| Bath towels | 2 per guest | One in use while the other dries in a humid bathroom |
| Hand towels | 1 per bathroom per day | Holiday bathrooms see heavy traffic |
| Washcloths | 2 per guest | Cheap to have, annoying to run out of |
| Throw blankets | 1 per guest | For the couch, the porch and the football game |
| Cloth napkins | 2 per seat at the table | One for dinner, one for dessert |
Plan for a Gulf Coast November
Late November here can mean a warm, sticky afternoon and a cold night in the same visit. Guests coming from up north may find a heavy comforter too warm, and guests from Florida may want two blankets. The easy fix is layering: make the bed with a light sheet and a quilt, then fold a clean comforter or blanket at the foot so each guest can choose.
If guests are in town for Magic Christmas in Lights at Bellingrath Gardens, which opens November 20 this year, an evening walk through the gardens can be chilly. Put an extra throw in the car.
The items everyone forgets
- Air mattress and pull-out sofa sheets, which are often a different size than your beds
- Mattress pads and pillow protectors in the guest room
- Bath mats, which get as much use as towels
- Kitchen towels and potholders, which will be used all day on Thursday
- The dog’s blanket, if guests are bringing a dog or yours sleeps in the guest room
- Sofa throws that have been sitting in the living room since last winter
What a guest room reset costs with pickup
Everly Concierge full service laundry is $2.75 per pound, or $2.27 per pound for members, with free pickup and delivery on orders of $40 or more. Comforters are priced by the piece: twin $22, full or queen $30, king $35.
As a rough guide, two queen sheet sets, six bath towels, hand towels and washcloths usually weigh somewhere around 12 to 16 pounds, depending on the fabric and towel thickness. That works out to roughly $33 to $44 at the standard rate. Add a queen comforter and a throw blanket under the November 2-for-1 offer and you pay for one comforter. Your exact total shows in the app before you confirm.
After they leave: the Friday reset
Strip the guest beds the morning your visitors head out, and do not let the towels sit in a pile. Damp towels in a closed room start to smell within a day in our climate. Book a pickup for Friday or the weekend after Thanksgiving, and send the comforters too while the 2-for-1 offer runs through Monday, November 30. By the first week of December the room is ready again for the next round of holiday visitors.
Questions hosts ask us
When should I schedule pickup before Thanksgiving?
Send comforters and blankets the week of November 16, and book your final pickup for everyday laundry and towels no later than Monday, November 23. Delivery can be as soon as 24 hours after pickup.
Do you pick up in Gulf Shores or Orange Beach?
Not for household laundry at this time. Everly Concierge serves Mobile County and the Eastern Shore, including Daphne, Spanish Fort and Fairhope. In Gulf Shores and Orange Beach, Everly offers vacation rental linen service for hosts and rental managers.
Can I mix comforters and blankets in the 2-for-1 offer?
Yes. Through November 30, you can mix and match any two comforters or blankets for the price of one. Details are on the comforter cleaning page.
Where is my laundry washed?
At the Everly Services facility at 23 Station Street in Saraland, AL. Our own team sorts, washes, dries and folds every order.
Reviewed by John McFadden, founder of Everly Services, who brings more than 15 years of commercial cleaning and linen experience. Read the Everly story.
Ready to get the guest room done? Schedule a pickup or download the Everly app.