| Facing Day 738, I’m continuing to ponder existential questions like: “Should I bake banana bread?” “What snacks will I have with cocktail hour?” “Do I get on the scale today?” You know, the important stuff. |
| And I still haven’t decided where to go for my birthday . . . The Living Room or The Bedroom. Given February had 29 days, March had 300 and there were 5 years in April, all of us may be wanting a change from looking at our same four walls. If there ever was a time to think about what home means, it is now. This may be the time to make your requisitioned kitchen/office, dining room/office, laundry room/office, living room/office, bedroom/office, livelier, brighter, more efficient – before you are so languorous, you start taking seeds off a strawberry with tweezers. There has been much talk lately of silver linings, but one inevitable outcome is our renewed relationship with our home and the things in it. And I’m not talking about your new pals – headphones, wall outlets, hair-trimmers, speakers, floppy hats, and your credit card number. Every object, piece of furniture, and picture reminds us of the love we have for certain things, the hours spent scouring shops, or the good fortune to find them. |
I have always been a firm advocate of “use what you already have” decorating.
In other words, before shopping for new, shopping your own home for forgotten treasures, to notice what you have already seen.
| Often we already have what we need – we just don’t realise it yet. Like those barbells stashed in the back of the closet. |
While we continue to hold treasured travel memories in our heads, our hearts, and in our scrapbooks, now room travel is de rigueur. And there are no lineups at security, no flight delays, no loud passengers (well, maybe your room mate), and no waiting for your luggage. Room traveling, or somewhat less poetically, plain old-fashioned puttering from room to room, has been legitimized by our current state of affairs. |
| The beauty of shopping your own home is that everything is free and there is an unlimited return policy. You can move things around and try them out with no risk. If you try it and don’t like it, you can put it back to how it was and in the process, you will have learned something about design, as well as about your own personal taste. |
| Sometimes we have become so accustomed to seeing certain things in certain places, it’s like they’ve earned the right to be there (whether they belong there or not). It’s tempting to say, “Oh, I know, I’m keeping it, but I’ll just leave it there for now.” The rickety dresser that’s been in the guest bedroom for as long as you can remember, is now like a member of the family. It almost feels disloyal to uproot it. But once it’s out in the backyard, with the light of day shining on it, it’s suddenly nothing more than an old, chipped dresser with drawers that won’t close properly. Most everything has an expiration date. Especially childhood dressers. |
1. FURNITURE ARRANGEMENT
Arranging furniture is always the first place to start with any decorating, whether in quarantine or not. The smallest tweaks in a room can make a huge difference.
Think about arranging you furniture so it makes sense for the room AND how you want it to work for your current lifestyle.
What is it that you love to do?
Play the tuba, watch Netflix, take cute photos of the side of your neighbour’s house, bake brownies, do jigsaw puzzles, knit, water houseplants?
As an aside, I’ve tended to be very clingy toward my plant babies since the lockdown, so now I have set emotional boundaries and I don’t overwater them.
Rearrange rooms (not according to how many guests come over, which is zero), but according to what is best for you.
- Put the couch under the window for better lighting or face it to the TV if you enjoy movie nights.
- Arrange seating around a coffee table to encourage board games.
- Make a reading and writing nook with space for your favourite books, laptop or kindle, and some munchies.
- Design a quiet zen zone with plants, candles, pillows and mat for your daily yoga.
- Bring in accent furniture, area rugs and pieces from other rooms.
- Change out artwork.
- Switch out a lamp or the shade to brighten up a space and/or make your chosen activity easier.
| 2. PURGE AND ORGANIZE |
| Given that we must prevail in this situation for a while longer, it may be prudent to be as clutter-free and spacious as possible in order you don’t get crippled by an overwhelming feeling of claustrophobia and frustration. |
| Maybe you don’t need to rearrange, but just edit items that are making your rooms less than spectacular. By editing, you’re able to reintroduce your favorite pieces, and only those. The rest can go to storage, charity, friends, or back to your mother-in-law, so you’re left with a fresh, well-edited space. By the way since you are in those closets and cupboards, what better time to organize them, than during a pandemic? But be careful about that Japanese decluttering thing where you hold each thing you own and throw it out if it doesn’t give you joy. This doesn’t mean your vegetables and electric bill. This happened way too recently. Suggestion – every few days, try your jeans on just to make sure they fit. Pyjamas will have you believing all is well in the kingdom. 3. REPURPOSE. REUSE. RETHINK. Put empty frames to use: Photo projects require a ton of time and energy to complete, which means they sometimes never make it off of your to-do list. Go through the house and add photos to any frames you’re not using or swap out older photos for new ones. Look through your storage spaces and drawers for posters, record covers, favourite pages of a book, old postcards, or love letters you’ve saved over the years. Frame and hang as a gallery wall or in spots around the house. |
Textiles can be striking art when hung, as well as filling up an empty wall.
Think about any cloth items you may have picked up in your travels. Perhaps a quilt, an antique kimono, or a blanket you’ve stashed away.
Dressers are one of the most versatile pieces of furniture, providing both display space and storage. Try using one in the entryway for holding mail on top, scarves and hats in drawers below.
Put one in the dining room to use as a buffet, with linens housed in the drawers.
If you are a crafter, paint an old dresser and keep your supplies organized in the drawers.
Paint
We all have those leftover paint cans that are essentially 85% empty, but we keep them just in case.
Why not use some of that paint to refinish a piece of furniture, highlight an alcove, design a wall graphic or make a feature wall?
Dip-dye the legs of a chair, repaint picture frames, the mantel or door for an instant refresh and change.
Floral arrangements
Fresh flower bouquets are difficult to obtain at this time, but we can bring in nature by picking a few leafy branches outside (pussy willows are in season) and display them in a vase.
| Experiment with items in new ways. |
| Use a stack of books as a side table or a small side chair as a nightstand.Bowls, creamers, cake plates, serving dishes and trays make fabulous organizers for everything from jewelry and makeup brushes to office supplies and mail.Glass bottles, pitchers, and trophy cups can be repurposed as vases or utensil holders. Use a dining table as your desk. If you have an old dining table you no longer use, consider swapping it with your desk for more room to spread out. Be honest about how you use (and how you wished you used) your home. If you hardly ever use your formal dining room but seriously need more space, why not give in and make your dining room the office? Design your home office with a professional looking corner and backdrop. You could hang up your degrees, organize the books on the shelves, and display small artifacts to create the perfect setting for video calls. And wear pants. Upcycle architectural elements as decorative displays. If you have old windows, doors, shutters, or ladders lying around, think about how you might use these creatively around the house. Doors can stand in for your headboard, lean against a wall as art, while old ladders be a side table or hold books, pictures, plants or magazines. Okay, I’m going to bed now, I’m exhausted from all that shopping. |
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