Planning on entertaining guests at your home for a holiday party? The best part of entertaining is spending time with family and friends, nibbling on tasty treats, and sipping eggnog.
The worst part of entertaining? Cleaning up after it's all over.
The piles of dishes, glasses, and scraps of food left all over the place makes it seem like a small army fought a battle in your home.
Take a deep breath and follow our tips to help you get your home back in order-as quickly as possible.
Table clearing If you haven't done so already, empty out your dishwasher.
Head into the dining room next to clear the table.
But before you start clearing, grab a few large bins or laundry baskets.
Collect as many dishes, glasses and utensils as you can and place them in each of the bins.
This will help cut down on making all those endless trips back and forth between the dining room and kitchen.
Bring the trash can with you as well so you can toss paper napkins and food scraps as you clear.
Spilled wine It's inevitable - that filled glass of red wine will somehow topple over leaving behind a frightful red mess on your rug.
There are a couple of tried-and-true ways to handle this common dilemma:

1. Readersdigest.
   com suggests tackling the problem as soon as possible.
   Pour white wine over the red wine spill to dilute the color.
   Blot with a dry sponge to absorb most of the liquid.
   Cover the area completely with table salt and let it sit for 10-15 minutes and vacuum.
   
2. The pros at Goodhousekeeping.
   com advise blotting up as much wine possible.
   Next, mix a solution of one tablespoon each of white vinegar and dish soap with 2 cups of warm water.
   Using a clean sponge, blot the area with the solution, rinsing with cold water.
   

To remove a spill from a tablecloth, BetterHomesAndGardens.
com says to soak the stain using cold water to dilute the stain as much as possible.
Pre-treat the area with a stain-lifter detergent and launder as directed.
If it's safe, add bleach to the cycle.
Candle wax Candles add a warm glow to any table, yet the wax that drips onto wood and tablecloths can be a real nuisance.
To safely remove wax from fabric, BetterHomesAndGardens.
com suggests using a dull knife to scrape as much wax from the fabric.
For any leftover wax, place the waxy area between paper towels and press with a warm iron.
The paper towels will absorb the wax.
Water rings You forgot to put out coasters or your guest didn't use them, now you have water marks on your wood furniture.
While your first reaction may be to panic, don't.
Realsimple.
com has an easy fix for this problem.
Rub non-gel toothpaste onto the stain using a soft cloth.
Gently rub the toothpaste using a circular motion.
Buff clean using a dry cloth.
Stained tablecloth You pulled out your favorite holiday tablecloth to add some festive décor to the party, but after hours of cheer, it's covered by a bunch of stains.
Save your favorite tablecloth from complete ruin by following these stain-removing steps from BetterHomesAndGardens.
com: Coffee: Pretreat the stained areas with a stain remover or liquid laundry detergent.
If you don't have stain remover available, try rubbing the stains with a bar of soap.
Wash as per the directions on the label; rewash if needed.
Olive oil: Pretreat the stain with a stain remover or liquid laundry detergent.
Wash using the hottest water that's safe for the fabric.
Before placing in the dryer, make sure the stain is completely out.
If you don't, the heat from the dryer will likely permanently set the stain.
Tomato sauce: Pretreat using the same method above and launder as directed.
Use fabric safe bleach if possible.
Reference: http://www.
bhg.
com/homekeeping/laundry-linens/stain-removal/treating-tablecloth-stains/