With the children back at school and a cold snap in the air, autumn is the time of year when sniffs and snuffles start to appear. We drag out the vitamins, stoke the fire and snuggle under a blanket… we nurture our bodies to help prevent that dreaded cold of a runny nose, thumping headache and aching muscles.

 

You recognise the symptoms when our body is sick and ailing, but how do you know when your home is unwell?

 

Your home supports and nurtures both your body and your mind to help you relax and unwind, whilst at the same time giving you energy and inspiration. Sometimes, however, your home can become a bind, a burden or an eyesore… your home will have that dreaded cold.

 

The symptoms might be a mound of paperwork snaking across your desk (a runny nose), a pile of washing growing in the corner (a thumping headache) or a bulging cupboard groaning at the seams (aching muscles).

 

Your home becomes unhealthy not because you’re messy or untidy but because you’re busy and modern day lifestyle causes a cascade of clutter.

 

How healthy is your home? Could you open the front door to me today and welcome me into your home with confidence or would you feel as if you need a few hours to tidy up first?

 

You’re not alone as many women worry about the presentation of their home and that moment when you have an unexpected guest.

 

Unless you have a full time housekeeper clearing up after the family then your home will become untidy, so I’d like to share with you my designer top tips that will make it easy for you to keep on top of things and create your healthy home.

 

• Everyday Gorgeous

 

My first top tip is to stop trying to achieve perfection and strive for a home that’s #everydaygorgeous.

 

Unless you have a full time housekeeper then your home won’t be perfect because there’s constant interaction as it’s continually being used. The interaction with a home brings life and energy to a room but it also brings clutter and mess. Even a room that isn’t used will naturally become dusty.

 

Everyday gorgeous accepts that a home will become messy and untidy but it’s also organised to suit your personality so that it’s quick to tidy up and keep on top of things. In this way, your home is practical for your everyday but also looks presentable when you’re entertaining family and friends.

 

A home that’s everyday gorgeous is healthy because it allows you to have fun and reflects your personality whilst also looking stylish and welcoming. It nurtures you as an individual and reduces the worry for the unachievable perfection. Everyday gorgeous creates a healthy home that supports and nurtures both you and your family.

 

To create a home that’s #everydaygorgeous, the key is to be very specific and organise your home so that it suits your clutter personality.

 

• Your Clutter Personality

 

Have you ever had a pile of paperwork on your desk that you’ll deal with later? Why does it stay there for so long?

 

Maybe you feel it’s not important, perhaps you’re not sure what to do with it or you might just be too busy to put it away.

 

Things pile up in the home for many reasons. I find it’s particularly noticeable at the weekends when we’re busy or when the children are on school holiday! This in itself isn’t the problem, the problem is that I don’t like the sight of the mess and it plays on my mind until it’s cleared up.

 

It isn’t healthy to have things lying around because mess attracts mess which means that the pile gets bigger and less manageable. The bigger the mess then the longer it will take you to tidy up and the more out of control you can feel. This can make you feel overwhelmed with the task of clearing up and also leave you with feelings of guilt every time you look at it. Even if the mess is in a cupboard then it can still play on your mind and niggle at you because you know it’s another thing on your TO DO list.

 

An untidy home can lead to headaches and lack of energy alongside stress, sadness and even depression in severe cases.

 

To manage everyday life, maintain a healthy home and keep on top of the mess then you need to have the correct processes and storage in place to suit your clutter personality. Having an organised home that suits your personality will save you time, reduce stress and eliminate those guilt feelings because everything has a place in your home and it’s so quick for you to put things away.

 

Let’s take a brief look at clutter personalities and how you might organise your home to best suit your personality.

 

Personality 1: ‘JUST IN CASE’

Description: You keep things ‘just in case’ you need them in the future because you feel as if you have to be prepared.

Storage Solution: Have clear boxes so that you can see what’s inside them. Organise each box with a label or a photo of the item inside it, eg: elastic bands in one box and paper clips in another.

Benefits: This will save you time because it’s super quick to find things. It will also save you money because you’re not buying something that you already have but couldn’t find. It will make you feel prepared because you know exactly where everything is.

 

Personality 2: ‘EMOTIONAL SAVER’ 

Description: You keep things because they were a gift or you feel guilty throwing it away because it holds memories.

Storage Solution: Give yourself permission to give away gifts to charity because someone else can make good use of it. Have a ‘Treasure Box’ for the most precious items and go through this once a year to make sure you still hold precious all of the items within it.

Benefits: This will help you to keep safe and cherish your most treasured possessions so that you can look through them whenever you want.

 

Personality 3: ‘CASH AWARE’

Description: You feel as if you have to keep things because they still have a financial value attached to them.

Storage Solution: Recognise that someone else can get equal pleasure from the item. Sell it to someone else who can care for it and then use the money towards something special such as a holiday or a day out.

Benefits: Using the money you’ve gained from selling an old item towards something special will help you to create new memories to cherish.

 

Once you know why you keep things then you can organise your home to suit your personality. This will make it quick for you to tidy up because you know where everything is kept and it’s easy for you to find the things you need.

 

As a point to note… if you share your home with others, such as a partner or your children, then you should recognise that they may have different clutter personalities and need their personal space to be organised to suit their own individual style. This is often why a parent is exasperated when their child doesn’t tidy up exactly how they would like.

 

A child’s developmental age will also dictate their storage requirements. For example: a toddler will need boxes to dump their things in (one for cars, one for lego, one for dressing up clothes). They play with each box at a time and then it should be put away before the next box is brought out to play with. A teenager, however, needs shelves because they will have more belongings to display and less bulky toys.

 

A healthy home is organised to suit your clutter personality and is appropriate for your age, level of mobility and understanding. An organised home, that’s a healthy home, will create a calming and relaxing environment.

 

• Your Thinking Space

 

Have you ever been so busy that you ‘haven’t got time to think’? When you haven’t got time to think, your mind becomes cluttered and life becomes overwhelming.   It can lead to feelings of anxiety and increased stress.

 

In a Healthy home, everyone has a space to think because it allows the brain to digest and process information.   It reduces the clutter in your head, gives you the freedom for creativity and energises your thoughts.

 

Time to think doesn’t just happen. With our busy lives we need to put time aside each day to relax, unwind and re-energise. Especially for when you don’t have the time to think, your home environment can organically nurture and support your thoughts. For some, a thinking space is a bedroom but for others it’s the shower or your favourite chair.

 

A bedroom is a gorgeous thinking space when it’s decorated to suit your personality. It’s a haven and a total retreat from the rest of the world.

 

A shower or a bath is an energising thinking space because you’re washing away unhealthy thoughts creating space for new inspiration. For the most inspiring thoughts your bathroom should be sparkling clean because dirt and grime will make you want to wash and go rather than enjoy a pleasurable experience.

 

Your favourite chair is a relaxing thinking space because it holds precious memories that cocoon your body and nurture your soul. Try to make sure that your favourite chair is in a room with minimum distractions so that it’s your favourite spot to get lost in thought.

 

If you find it difficult to relax and unwind then set your stopwatch.  Give yourself a fixed time to settle your mind.   Start with a minute and work your way up to 15 minutes.

 

Creating your thinking space will not only help you relax and unwind, it will also invigorate you with energy and provide you with the opportunity to create new ideas.

 

With these three top tips you’ll create a healthy home that makes you feel comfortable, saves you time, minimises stress, and invigorates you with new ideas.   Why not try these out and let me know how you get on.

 

HEALTHY BODY * HEALTHY MIND * HEALTHY HOME

 

If you’re struggling to create your own healthy home and oasis of calm, then just get in touch and we can have a chat about your specific needs,

Gwendoline.

(M: 07841 519802)