By Kathleen Aked from Sunday Interiors Studio
Well, I don’t need to tell you that this year we’ve spent more time in our homes than ever before. With everything still up in the air and the spring weather continuing to rain on our parade for the start of summer, it’s now the perfect time to start to declutter, organise and freshen your spaces ready for whatever 2021 has to throw at us!
Wardrobes
If COVID and isolation didn’t get you moving on this one, it’s time to get real with yourself! We all run out of coat hangers and space in our wardrobes but how many items of clothing do you actually wear? Do an honest cull; if you know you’re not going to wear something again, donate it, or upcycle it (tie dye is back in and there’s some really fun ways you can do this with ice rather than just the traditional options you likely learnt in school). If you can’t bear to part with something right now, then turn your coat hangers backwards. If you look at these items again next spring and the coat hanger is still facing the opposite direction to your other clothes, it might be time to consider passing it on to someone who might use it and love it instead.
Pantry
Nothing will give you more pleasure than when you’ve done this and you next open your pantry to see a well organised cupboard and everything is accessible. I’m not necessarily talking about buying all new containers but definitely throwing out items which are past their use by date and organising your shelves by the type of food item (condiments with condiments, cake decorations with the baking staples, etc.) and then organise them in size order (taller cans at the back, shorter ones at the front, etc.). This will make accessing everything in your pantry so much easier.
(And if you really want to get fancy and get all new containers and your label maker out, please do!)
Garage
The garage is not my area of expertise! But I do know how much better it feels when you can get your car in without having to squeeze past the bikes and the old storage boxes. There are various hardware and storage stores with some really clever options out there, we all know Bunnings and Ikea are good places to start for some basic shelving and cupboard systems. Thinking a little bigger now though; if you’ve ever lived in the city you’ll know that you can hang your bike up from the ceiling, getting it off the ground and out of the way.
Gutters
With the Australian summer just around the corner and the tumultuous fire season we experienced over Christmas and New Year in 2019/2020 cleaning your gutters has never been more important to protect your home and your family in the upcoming season. Clogged gutters also mean that your water tank may not be filling properly and therefore you’re not using recycled water in the areas of your home that allow you the benefit of not sourcing from our precious dam water.
Given few of us are spending time outdoors or not leaving the home at all, you may not even realise that your gutters need attention, but it’s more important than ever.
