Relationship Tip #3: Evening In

Meeting women online is nice and all, but you’re eventually going to have to show them your place. Having a relationship with a woman is different from being a serial dater, and it means you don’t have to put all of your effort into impressing her with every single date you take her on.

It’s time for the evening in.

An evening inside is a great way to have a fun, stress-free, inexpensive date night. If you’ve been looking for love for quite a while, that’s something you’re going to be craving. Not everything has to be fancy and exciting—sometimes, you can enjoy yourselves just as much on the sofa as you can on uncomfortable bar stools.

You’re done with meet ups just for sex. That may have been a decent way to spend time for a while, but you’ve moved on to the next stage in your relationship, and that’s a good thing for both you and for the woman you’re with now.

First, clean your place.

Don’t just tidy up the rubbish on your floor, CLEAN. Clean in a way that would make your granny proud. Use cleaning products. If you’re not sure how, Google it.

If you’re going to be cooking, clean your kitchen thoroughly. If you’re going to let her cook, clean it more thoroughly. If you’re anything like us, it’s been a while since your flat was seriously deep-cleaned, and trust us—you’ll feel better once it has been.

There should be NO strange smells in your place. If there are, find them and get rid of them. If there’s a smell you can’t get rid of (like you live above a kebab place or something), mask it with fresh, clean smells.

Clean the bedroom and every bathroom. You can get away with a bit of a mess in a spare room or storage closet, but all of the main rooms should be picked up completely.

We’re not saying she’s going to conduct a thorough investigation of your place and judge you based on it. Just be aware that she will notice whether it’s clean or not, and she will make certain assumptions and decisions based on what she finds.

Once she arrives, get comfortable.

You’re with this woman because she shares at least some of your interests. In fact, that’s probably one of the reasons you were looking for relationships in the first place—you wanted to be with a woman that you had things in common with, someone who you could talk to, and someone that shared interest in the things you love.

Presumably, the reason you’re with the one you’re with is because she does share some of your interests. Nights like this are the reason why that’s so important, above and beyond the fact that of course you want to be able to discuss the things you love with someone.

Pop in a show.

You should be able to find a show, movie, or program that you’re both interested in, at least enough to watch. Use this time to re-watch a classic old favorite, and see if you two like the same jokes. That can be a great way to truly get to know who a girl is on the inside, and she’ll enjoy learning about you in just the same way.

Go ahead and take turns choosing media. Have a bit of a party with it—ask her to bring her own computer or a few films. Switch off who gets to pick a show, so you both get a moment of fun.

Dinner doesn’t have to be that special.

The evening in is a great break from the grind of dating, for both of you. You’re still going to want to have a meal together, but it doesn’t have to be very high-end.

If you can cook, go ahead and cook for her. Make it simple if you like. A roast or a cottage pie are easy, quick recipes that you don’t have to be Jamie Oliver to pull off.

If she’s mentioned a sort of food she really likes and you can cook it, go ahead and cook it for her. That will make her feel special, and as if you’ve put a lot of effort into making her feel like you care about her.

If you can’t cook or know you won’t have time, pick up take-away from your favorite restaurant. You’re not meeting to critique foods, you’re meeting up to have a great time and enjoy yourselves.

All of the evening should be easy and fun. If it’s not, you’re working far too hard at the evening in. Only cook if it’s going to be easy, and don’t go all-out on buying the take-away. As long as you’re with a woman who’s going to have fun exploring your interests together, you’ll have a good time.