Wow your guests with your service and etiquette by following these tips.  Of course, wowing them with the food is entirely up to you!

1. Invitations - they can be written, delivered by phone or in person, or emailed (only for the informal get-togethers!). Guests are expected to RSVP.
2. Greet your guests as they come to the door. Have a place for their personal items. Introduce people. Accept host/ess gifts graciously. 
3. Offer guests beverages and hors d'oeuvres. 
4. During hors d'oeuvres, slip out to the kitchen quickly to get the first course on the table before the guests are asked to take their seats (unless that first course is hot, in which case you should wait until the guests are seated). 
5. Call guests to the table and direct them to where you want them to sit, either with place cards or verbally. 
6. Follow an etiquette book as far as setting the table. Many things have changed in recent years.  Not all of the pieces that were once used are necessary now, and some utensils are placed in different locations. A guest should never have to move a utensil to get to his/her napkin.
7. After each course, remove the plate and utensils used.
8. After the entree, remove all plates, used utensils, salt and pepper, butter, dressing, and so on. The dessert fork and spoon are usually placed at the top of the plate. They would remain on the table until dessert is served.
9. Serve dessert and coffee cups. Place sugar and creamer on the table.
10. After dessert, you do not need to remove the dessert dishes, unless they will be seen from the living room or family room for the rest of the evening.
11. Hors d'oeuvres and cocktail glasses should have been cleared already.
12. Games and conversation are both acceptable during this time.
13. When guests leave, get their coat and belongings, walk them to the door, say a brief good-bye and return to the other guests. 

Wanting to learn how to do some outdoor or indoor grilling?  Here are some helpful tips to follow:

1. A hot grill is your best defense against sticky situations.  Be sure that the grates are piping hot before laying down your food.
2. Keep a spray bottle of water close by to tame any flare-ups.
3. To oil your grill without creating a wild fire:  fold up a cotton kitchen towel, lightly dip in vegetable oil, and use your tongs to glide a coat onto the grates.
4. Barbeque sauces contain sugar that caramelize and then quickly burn.  Try a dry rub in the beginning and then at the end of grilling baste with a thin coating of sauce.
5. When cooking anything skewered soak the wooden sticks in water first to prevent them from burning.

First impressions make a significant impact on a buyer's decision-making process! 

Once your home goes on the market, it becomes a product. Home Styling or Staging simply allows you to highlight the best of your home and de-emphasize its flaws. It's not about decorating, but actually turning your home into a model, to appeal to the broadest range of prospective buyers. The goal is to make people feel like they could live there, and the best way to do this is to "neutralize" the surroundings.

Try out these helpful styling tips taken from Setting the Stage - REALTOR® Magazine Online. They've compiled the best tips from stagers and real estate pros—things you can do for little or no expense—to put a home in prime showing shape.

• Clear out closets and clutter—sellers can give away or pack up toys, linens, and small kitchen appliances to store offsite. Buyers are also forgiving of storage boxes neatly tucked away in a garage or basement.
• Focus most on the most visible areas—the foyer, kitchen, living room, master bedroom, and family room.
• De-personalize the home by removing photos, mementos, and dated items.
• Use plants in colorful pots or inexpensive wicker baskets to fill in empty spaces.
• Look to home catalogs for little details on beautifying the home. For instance, group books, pictures, and objets d’art appealingly on bookcases.
• Try angling one or two pieces of furniture slightly and move furniture 4 inches to 6 inches from the wall to create more interesting room spaces.
• Put away large collections— porcelains, plates, and so on.
• Remove valuables, prescription medicine, collectibles, and breakables.
• Trim trees, prune shrubs, and make sure the lawn is mowed and watered regularly.
• In summer, turn on the sprinklers for five minutes, 30 minutes before the open house. It makes the lawn and driveway sparkle.
• Refrain from cooking anything that leaves a distinctive odor, such as fish, garlic, or cabbage.
• Hire a professional service to clean the home, including the carpets and the windows.
• Set the dining room table with attractive linens, dishes, and stemware.
• Arrange fresh or silk flowers throughout the home.
• Light a fire in the fireplace in fall and winter.
• A mirror in a pretty frame can make a small room feel more open.
• Use as much natural light as possible. Add extra lamps in dark rooms or corners.
• Make functional repairs—fix dripping faucets, sticking doors, and broken fences.
• Bring in another pair of eyes—even if it’s not a professional stylist. The person may see problems you and have missed.

Scents and aromas can have a dramatic impact on people’s emotions, otherwise, there wouldn’t be a multi-billion-dollar fragrance industry!

Don’t ignore the power of fragrance when showing your home. Smoke, pet odors, and cooking smells can each dramatically impact how potential buyers feel about your house.

If your potential buyers never form an emotional connection to your home, chances are that they will remain just that – potential buyers.

Don’t allow smoking in your house for weeks leading up to showing it, find a pet-sitter for a few days, and clean, clean, clean!

Once you’ve removed any aromas that might be off-putting and freshened the air in your home, you can actually use scent to your advantage.

Consider doing some baking prior to showings. The scent of fresh apple pie is hard to beat when it comes to creating the atmosphere of a welcoming home!

TIP: In a pinch, a mixture of water, vanilla extract, and brown sugar in an oven on low heat can be used to create the pleasing aroma of fresh baking.

To a certain extent, buyers make purchase decisions based on their emotional response, so it’s important to make it easy for them to fall in love with your home. Pleasant smells are one more way to do so.

Whether it’s a splash of salad dressing, a drop of barbeque sauce, or a full assault of coffee, stains happen. They happen to the cautious as well as the careless and usually when we least expect it.

These tips are for washable fabrics only. Always test for color-fastness in an inconspicuous spot first.

Here are a couple of quick tips I’ve gathered:

Red Wine
Salt is great for “holding” red wine at bay until the item can be washed. This has saved countless pairs of jeans and blouses.

Makeup
Shampoo is great for getting out cosmetic stains.

Grease
WD – 40 is great at getting out greasy stains (salad dressing, lipstick and butter). Spray on the stain, wait about ten minutes, and work in undiluted dishwashing soap – launder in the hottest water possible for the fabric.