Goals for your home for 2017- Your home's New Year's resolutions

Now that you have set goals and resolutions for yourself and you are drinking more water, being mindful, and adding more veggies to your meals. Let's look around at your space and see what resolutions you can make that will make your home more relaxed, confident, and updated.

Updated Duncan-Phyffe sofa, King House, Montevallo, AL

1. De-clutter and organize

This is the step that makes the most impact! We are in the habit of seeing this clutter everyday to the point that we don't "see" it anymore. So, how can we see it? Play real estate photographer for a few minutes. Grab the smartphone and snap a few images of each room... maybe each wall of each room. What do you see? Perhaps, stacks of magazines, random "decor" that you are now over, pillows that the dog loved too much? You might even print the images and circle the things you want to get rid of, then begin the process of letting those things go. Cull the magazines, box up the decor that you are over and give it to a charity shop, then toss those mushed pillows.

2. Look at lighting

Lighting and the color of light makes a difference in the way the colors look in a space. Though I am a fan of the long lasting CFL bulbs, if you pick the "natural" or "white" light bulbs, you will have a space that feels more like a doctor's office than a home. If you have a collection of various bulbs in a space, the sofa could look like different colors on each end, or the wall color could look different around the room. CFL's also change color over time, so mixing old and new bulbs make the colors look different in the space. The fastest, and cheapest, way to solve this is to sort the bulbs you have and put the like bulbs in the same room. Next, look at the LED bulbs as your next lighting purchase for an update. Lastly, perhaps you looked at your de-clutter images and reconsidered the lamps, chandeliers, and sconces in your space. It might be time for a fixture refresh!

3. Paint

Once you have decluttered and "color corrected" your lighting, is that the wall color you thought it was? Does is look like the magazine images that you tore out and your pin boards? You might need a quick paint evaluation! Paints can change color depending on the light reflected against them and the light in the space. A paint consultation with a designer can offer advice, color correct paint swatches, and a great weekend project. Your space could have a new look for under $100 (paint and consult), with you showing off your mad painting skills.

4. Artwork- adding, subtracting, and dividing

Your walls are painted beautifully and are ready to put up the artwork. You have an opportunity to reconfigure the walls, create a different patterns, make a placeholder for the "good piece" that you expect to purchase at the spring outdoor art shows. You, also, have a opportunity to "rest" some of the art that you are not sure you love anymore. Rested artwork can be like getting out your favorite boots in the fall- excitement and falling in love again with something you already own! 

5. Re-cover, replace, renew furniture

Like that loved, now flat, pillow, your fave furniture can sometimes use a facelift, too! A piece with good bones can be updated with a recover that cost less than replacing the piece with something new of the same quality. You can also find great replacement pieces this time of year, when it's time for someone else to love your old furniture. Antique stores and furniture store typically have sales in January. And, don't forget slipcovers! For furniture that needs a seasonal update, a slipcovered seat or back can offer an easy update that will extend the life of the fabric on the furniture.

6. Indoor Air Quality
Umm, did you just enter a lecture on heating a cooling? Yes and no. Yes we are talking cleaner, more pleasant air, but no I'm not going to deliver a 100 slide lecture that drones like a bagpipe. I'm talking indoor plants. They make a huge difference in the quality of the oxygen and humidity in a space. Yes, they will eventually die. So, talk to a professional at a garden shop, preferable a locally owned, and tell them the way you typically treat plants, they can guide you to ones that will like the way you treat them! Remember plants take in CO2, that we breath out, and they breath out oxygen, that we breath. Your air just got fresher without any plug-in, candle, or spray!

Need a little guidance with any of these resolutions, drop me a line! 

What are your New Year's resolutions for your home? Please share and inspire others!