While many of you may be enjoying the increased time at home, I know for many others, the novelty is starting to wear off. You may be starting to go a little stir crazy by now, counting down the days until you can go out again.
That’s perfectly okay.
For so many of us, home is the only environment that we’re frequenting right now. Perhaps you are feeling restless or maybe you’re soaking in the quiet time available.
No matter how you’re feeling during these possibly stressful times, you can stay calm, collected, and in the right headspace for you.
For some of you, that could mean a cozy stack of books, your favorite drinks, or enjoying some music. For others, this could be a time to Marie Kondo your home, start that creative project you’ve always wanted to, or do a little rest, relaxation, and self-care.
What’s important is doing the best thing for you in these moments. There is no right or wrong way to go about this.
However, if you’re looking for some advice, today I’ve got 5 tips for you that might help you be calmer, happier, and peaceful while you #stayathome.
1 ) Start With One Designated Space
Your home may be feeling chaotic. Adjusting to working from home, having kids home all day, and keeping everything else in order might be overwhelming. And having an organized, decluttered, and maintained dwelling during this new dynamic might feel like too much to take on right now. That’s okay.
If that’s you, start by designating one space to focus on and maintain. It can be a bedroom, kitchen, common area or any other space you’d like. Once you’ve decided, make this area the single space you worry about being comfortable in.
This space is yours and you are free to do whatever you’d like with it. You may decide to redesign it, spruce it up a bit, reorganize it or simply make it feel welcoming for you. Whatever you choose, use this area as one dedicated space in the house you feel good about.
You’ll find that focusing on just one space can help you feel more grounded and organized without stressing you out over the entire house.
Bonus tip: Get the whole family in on it! Helping everyone decide on how to make their space a little more special and sacred for them can be a lot of fun!
2 ) Spring Cleaning
If you’re ready to get your blood flowing inside, try spring cleaning! It can be a great way to refresh and rejuvenate the house. It’s also one of the activities of this current season that you’re free to do. If you want to try a full spring cleaning, consider decluttering, organizing, and cleaning for a beautifully refreshed space.
Create a home the design gurus would marvel at, if you’d like. Pretend you’re staging your home for buyers if you want to.
You can arrange everything in a weekend (or a couple of weekdays – who’s keeping track anymore) or take it slowly and gradually over a few weeks or a month.
Here are some quick steps to get you started:
Choose one room or space to focus on at a time.
Pull out everything – from drawers to corners to closets and cabinets.
Go through each item and decide what you don’t need or want or that doesn’t serve you in your life. Separate these items into donations, trash, or items to sell, and then remove them from the area you’re working on.
Organize everything you’d like to keep and put each item back or in its new space. Be sure each item has a specific home.
Clean! Now that everything is decluttered and organized, clean the space from top to bottom.
Repeat for each room!
Or maybe you just want to do some light housekeeping.
That’s fine, too.The choice is yours!
Regardless, organizing your physical space your way can do wonders for your stress levels and mental clarity.
3 ) Keep a Routine
Do you feel like you’re missing some structure right now? Perhaps you enjoyed the added freedom from routine for a little while, but are looking for a way to feel more organized in your day. Try creating a new at-home routine. There’s no need to create a strict hour-by-hour schedule if that’s not your style – all you need is level up the routine that helps you feel on track.
This amount will look different for everybody, so experiment with what works best for you.
Not sure where to start? Here are 5 things you might want to block time for:
Waking up/morning routine
Hours for work or school
Mealtimes/snack times
Fun/leisure Time
Going to bed/nighttime routine
Bonus tip: Keeping your routine simple at first can make it easier to make changes and adjustments that work better for you later on.
4) Try Social Distancing (At Home)
We’re used to being apart from family and household members for at least some part of the day. We’re not usually around them 24/7, so it’s okay if you need some alone time. You can try setting “quiet hours” or working with your family to block off some time every day just for you and whatever you need to get done. It’s a great way to open up family communications and to kindly express and respect the needs of everyone in the home.
5) Replicate “Out of Home” Spaces
You may not be able to leave the house just yet, but maybe you can bring “going out” in.
If the coffee shop was your favorite place to go, for example, try replicating it at home. You can set up a small space in the kitchen designed for your morning coffee ritual. Or have a specific spot to enjoy your quiet cup of joe. You can even go as far as coffee shop music (yes, they have playlists for that!) or some ambient background noise.
As another example, if you’re used to the office environment to get your work done, try setting up something similar to it at home. This could even help you be more at ease, leading you to be more productive and focused while working at home.
So while none of us know if or when things will return to normal, it doesn’t stop me from dreaming away about the places I’ll go and activities I’ll do once we are able to, including frequenting my favourite local Vancouver shops and restaurants, maybe a little bit of travel, and definitely reconnecting with friends and giving them long overdue hugs.
If now is the time for you to do an interior design makeover, I would love to work with you. Much of the design process is virtual and for the build phase and the design work that needs to be in-person, I have a robust covid-19 safety protocol to keep both you and the PURE team safe and healthy. Let’s chat about your dreams!
Stay safe and cozy, dear ones.
XO
Ami