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The thing about making a home is that we don’t just do it for ourselves. After (and sometimes during,) the process of choosing, moving into and personalizing a place of our own, we want to share what we’ve done. Whether it is a formal dinner party for 12, hosting the neighborhood bunko gathering or having a few friends over for pizza around the coffee table, we want to bring people into the personal place we’ve created.

Last week, a few of my friends came over to work on a project. After the job was done, we poured a pot of coffee and worked our way through a plate of pastries. Between bites of a sinfully delicious cream puff I looked around and realized that it was the first time since moving in three months ago that anyone other than a member of the family had been at my table. And in a small way, that made me feel more at home in my own home.

That night I looked around at the rooms, fire still flickering in the fireplace and candles still burning on the table, and entertained the idea of throwing a spontaneous party. A couple of phone calls, an e-mail or two, and I could gather a crowd and recapture what I had felt earlier.

But it was Sunday night. There was laundry to do and homework to check. It was time to get ready for another week at work and school. The moment passed, but that one taste wasn’t enough. I think I’m ready to have a party.

Like most people’s homes, my house is a work in progress. I have a long wish list of home-improvement projects. But between now and the New Year – the season of hospitality – I want to open the door and usher friends – some old, some new – inside.

This week in Home

Saturday afternoon three stately homes in Spokane will open their doors to the public. The homes, all of which were built around the turn of the 19th century by the Comstock-Shadle families, are part of one of the most recently designated historical districts in the city.

Brian Plonka’s photos capture the elegant interiors and fine craftsmanship of each one, as well as the personal touches of the newest homeowners.

Garden columnist, Pat Munts offers tips for finding the perfect Christmas tree, and our Beautiful Home page introduces readers to a Post Falls woman whose talent for decorating brought a dated design into the 21st century.

From gingerbread houses to a state-of-the-art garage workspace, this week’s issue is all about open doors and wide-open dreams.

Come on in.