One of our favourite Sunday pastimes has always been reading the Sunday papers. There’s something about curling up on the sofa, cuppa in hand, checking in with the world at our own pace that feels sort of cathartic. We’re not huge fans of the news section right now (!), but we love reading the supplements – especially articles related to wellbeing, home, style and travel (which seems like a futuristic dream right now!). So we were delighted to read an article by Katrina Burroughs in Sunday Times Home called Comfort and Joy, featuring an interview with Michelle Ogundehin, style guru and ex editor of Elle Decoration (one of our all time favourite magazines) which talked about the release of Michelle’s new book Happy Inside: How to harness the power of home for health and happiness. In the article, Michelle says: I think many people underestimate the power of what surrounds you on a daily basis to have an impact on you. Perhaps they even think bothering about paint colours and cushions is frivolous. My point is it’s not. It’s fundamental to your health and happiness.
Futon Company says: Given that most of us have been spending the majority of time at home these past few weeks it’s no understatement to say that our homes are an extension of ourselves. With this in mind, there’s no better time to show your space a little TLC. And rather conveniently we came across a great article in Grazia magazine called 14 expert (and easy) ways to re-spin your home. Check out our favourite top tips:
• Shake up the scene: A simple way to enhance your home is to play around with furniture arrangements. Discover how pieces might sit well in a different room or corner. Create a new seating nook in your bedroom with a chair from your living room
• Cull the clutter: Make a list of all your rooms, starting at the front door, and work your way around each room in your house until you get back to the entrance. Identify the areas you think could do with a declutter. Examples might include: Tupperware cupboard in the kitchen or ottoman in the lounge. Once you have all your lists written up, work out a plan of action for when you’re going to tackle each area. Remember to make the plan manageable and realistic, because the last thing we need is to add to our already very busy to-do lists! So try and have a go at slowly making your way through your plan as and when you’ve got some spare time, ticking each item off as you go, and you’ll be amazed at the progress you’re making. Tidy house, tidy mind!
• Decorative trays are a pretty way to tidy random items – it makes them seem more organised and helps prevent you losing them down the sofa. It’s a great catch-all for everything from drinks to little things such as hairbands and pens
• Go green: A group of plants on shelves can serve as a feature wall. Consider which plants work together in terms of height, size, texture and plant requirements. Cacti, for example, need lots of light, while ferns don’t. Grouping the plants together is good for them and raises the humidity
• Style your shelves. Combine books and decorative objects to create a stylish shelfie. Stack books both upright and horizontally
• Try mantelscaping: Refresh your environment so it inspires you. Create vignettes, for example, move a painting from a bedroom and mix it up with a vase, bowl, postcard, candle. Switching up your mantel piece can help to lift spirits
• Streamline storage: Organise food into categories such as tins and rice. Decant dry foods into glass jars, which look good and save space. Finally place things on shelves in order of how often you use them
Oak Wide Leaning Ladder Shelves
