Image: Clair Strong Interior Design
Happy New Year! I hope you celebrated the arrival of 2016 in style.
We all ring in the New Year with a list of resolutions; to eat better, exercise more, learn a new skill or make more time for family. These are all great resolutions, but they neglect one really important area of life; the home. Let’s make 2016 the year of interior resolutions! Here are some ideas to get you started:
Take a Chance with Colour
Colour can be an intimidating thing but taking a design risk can be so rewarding. If there’s a hue you love, but are a little afraid of, make a resolution to try it out in your home this year.
You don’t have to paint the entire living room in bright turquoise; you can choose a more discreet area, like the downstairs bathroom or a wall in the dining room to experiment with instead. And remember, paint isn’t permanent – if you really dislike it, you can paint right over it!
Show Neglected Spaces Some Love
The hallway, utility rooms, home offices, the downstairs bathroom – these are all spaces we often ignore in favour of other ‘more important’ rooms in the house.
If there’s a room in your house looking a little neglected, your resolution could be to give it a makeover this year.
Buy Less but Buy Better
This resolution can extend to every area of life. It’s all about choosing quantity over quality, and shunning clutter from our lives.
For me, buying better might mean I have to save up for a few months to get the sofa of my dreams, or a piece of solid wood furniture that I know will last 20+ years. It’s a slow, considered consumerism, but it pays off in more ways than one.
Complete Half-Finished Projects
How many of us are guilty of starting a project and leaving them half-finished? 2016 is the year to go round your home and finish these little jobs.
If you can’t finish them, make it a priority to enlist the help of someone who can. You could even go one step further and resolve not to start any new projects until the old ones are finished.
Enjoy Your Home
I’ve left the most important resolution until last. Enjoy your home in 2016; invite friends over for dinner, have impromptu dance parties with the kids, make your bedroom a sanctuary and your bathroom a spa. Do whatever it is you love to do, at home.
