For years, far too many years, I thought that being a successful hostess meant that my house had to be spic and span. So, prior to a gathering, I put in hours and hours dusting and then polishing tops and bottoms of furniture; removing spider webs; scrubbing floors; vacuuming the carpet; washing marks off walls; bleaching the grout between kitchen and bathroom tiles; erasing the accumulation of dirt on top of floorboards.

No surface went uncleaned. I was a cleaning madwoman who wanted everything to be perfect. By the night of the gathering, my house sparkled. There was a problem, however. I was so exhausted that I not only did not sparkle, but I fizzled.

Then I learned about the joys of mood lighting. While some people use candles to create a festive mood, I use lots of them so that the corners of the rooms—the ones I haven’t cleaned for the last five years—are in shadows.

I light lots of candles in the bathroom so guests don’t see the streaks in the mirror or the soap smudges on the tile surrounding the bathtub. (Just in case someone peeks behind the shower curtain! Naughty! Naughty!)

Candles light the table so no one will notice the stains on the tablecloth. (Just in case I can’t find the right-size plate or bowl to cover the spot!) Scented candles fill every available space in the kitchen to hide the mess and camouflage the burnt smells of my cooking mistakes. (One of these days I will have to learn how to cook!) Also, the overhead light in the kitchen is never turned on while entertaining. A lamp on the counter with a low-watt bulb is the only lighting source. Mood lighting? Right!

Mood lighting works…and, luckily, there are dollar stores on just about every corner where I can buy what is needed at cheap prices. What I am now saving on cleaning supplies is coming in handy for the purchase of candles, low-wattage light bulbs, and air fresheners. And guess what! There are air fresheners in that pine scent that is identified with some cleaning solutions! With these supplies, my secret is safe…or, at least it was until this blog post!