Have you found yourself quarantined to your home to avoid the flu or coronavirus? 🦠A week or more away from work with no travel plans means that now is the perfect time to begin spring cleaning!
Here are a few suggestions to get you started:
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Now that many schools are temporarily closed or reverting to e-learning during the Coronavirus conundrum, students around the country (and globe) are missing out on classroom time. This doesn't mean they have to miss out on educational experiences! Here are some free resources available during this time: Fun Educational Games and QuizzesAn online tool used in many classrooms is available to students outside of school as well.
In all honesty,I have to say my least favorite color is… you guessed it, yellow. I find it obnoxious and unsightly. Would you ever wear a yellow prom dress? Reupholster all your furniture in yellow? Maybe I’m just unpleasant, but something about the overpowering, joyful Walmart-smiley-face-dingy-taxi-cab-yellow-snow-uncleaned-teeth-baby-poop color is not appealing to me at all. However,I have been growing fonder of the color yellow in home design. When used correctly (and the right shade), yellow brings a luster and warmth to interior design. One of my new fall favorite colors has become mustard yellow. When paired with another fall favorite, teal, the two colors add a brightness and cheery feeling to what eventually becomes a dull-colored season when everything begins to turn brown.
Used sparingly (small accent wall, rug, throw blanket), [mustard] yellow is the perfect way to add a pop of color, cheerfulness, and warmth. Everyone knows about the notorious “spring cleaning,” but have you considered the benefits of an autumn clean up and clean out? Not only does a clean space help you feel less stressed and less distracted, but here are some other benefits of cleaning up your house in the fall: 1) Prepare for Flu SeasonAccording to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), flu season begins in the fall. Kick-start your prevention actions by disinfecting daily used surfaces like phones, door knobs, and cabinet/fridge/sink/toilet handles. 2) Tidy for Holiday GuestsEven if you don’t anticipate the entire family arriving at your doorstep for the holidays, it’s still nice to have a tidy and presentable home for neighbors, church patrons, or friends stopping by to distribute holiday gifts and homemade goodies. Below are some ways to keep your house tidy in case of unexpected visitors:
3) Make Room for GiftsIf your family is anything like mine, the “no gifts this Christmas” rule never applies. We’ll promise each other no gifts, but all cars arrive to the party loaded with sweaters, slippers, hand soaps, lotions, coffee mugs, tea towels, and other presents. The worst part? Finding a place to put it when you get home.
Here are a few things to throw away or donate to prepare a place for new gifts:
Creating a visually appealing makeup vanity can inspire many women as they start their morning makeup routine - or the organization can make the routine run smoothly. Either way, we can all agree that a well-arranged makeup area feels and looks comforting. Here are some unique ways to achieve this goal:
Warmer weather is the perfect opportunity to revamp and freshen up your living space. After doing some spring cleaning, why not brighten up the indoors, and incorporate the refreshing qualities of spring and summer to your home? Here are five quick and easy ways to do so: 1. Fresh Cut Flowers Fresh cut flowers are one of the prettiest and easiest ways to bring the radiant outdoors inside. If you do not have flowers of your own to cut, many markets or grocery stores with a floral department sell bundles of cut flowers for upwards of $3 - $5. Get creative with the vase! Use something colorful to resemble spring/summer, or use a simple glass vase for elegance. If you're planning to use the flowers as a centerpiece or to impress house guests, be aware that cut flowers only last a few days at the most. Therefore, buy/cut them immediately before they're needed, choose the healthiest looking flowers, and place them in water as quickly as possible to preserve them. 2. Lighten Up White is the crispest color in spring and summer decor. It brightens, goes with everything, and looks great polished or distressed. Accentuate your indoors with white furniture, ceramics (think flower vases), or throw pillows. Too much white can be overwhelming by itself, so make sure to embellish with color. This brings us to #3. 3. Add Pops of Color with Accessories and Decor Check out your local antique shops or department stores for inexpensive spring and summer decor. At the end of winter, Hobby Lobby usually has spring items 40% off so you can stock up on warm weather decor. (Don't forget about Hobby Lobby's 40% coupon that you can use year round on your HL smartphone app.) Always remember to look at clearance shelves or discounted items in department stores as these are where you can score some of the best deals. In antique or thrift stores, ask about cash discounts since many private owned shops offer savings when you pay by cash or check. Be on the lookout for earthy colored items (throw pillows, artwork, rugs, figurines, etc) that make you reminisce of a warm spring or sunlit summer, and search for items that will make unique vases for your fresh cut flowers. 4. Bring Potted Plants Indoors What better way to visualize and celebrate the natural earthiness of warmer weather than by nurturing a potted plant inside your home? I know, I know. I'm not capable of keeping a plant alive. I don't have a green thumb. Well, check out the post, Choosing Indoor Plants, as a guide for selecting the right plant for your house. My personal favorite plants are Haworthias because they require low sunlight and only need minimal watering once or twice a month. 5. Freshen Up Your Linens Your spring cleaning will most likely involve a change of bed sheets, and this is a prime opportunity to prepare for warmer weather. Opt for quality light colored linens that are high thread count and 100% cotton. Accentuate bedding or other furniture with throw pillows and blankets that are usable as well as decorative.
Nurturing and growing indoor plants is a great way to clean the air in your home while supplying a visual element of earthiness. Before purchasing just any plant to grow indoors, it's imperative to know the types of plants that grow well inside. While many people (myself included) adore the charm and quaintness of succulents, I do not recommend growing these indoors because even in a sunny window, they still stretch (losing their whimsical appearance) and tend to not survive or be healthy; This is just from my personal experience with indoor potted succulents since many of them require full or direct sunlight. With that being said, here are some tips on growing low maintenance plants indoors. 1. Evaluate how much light the plant needs.
2. Choose plants with minimal pollen.
3. Consider where the plant will be placed.
4. Research the plant you're considering. There are thousands of different types of plants, and no amount of guess work will confirm whether a plant is the right choice for your home.
Be sure to read the information that may come with the plant to learn about how much sun and water it takes, and research the plant online to be aware of the proper accommodations for your specific greenery. When the proper measures are taken, you're guaranteed to end up with a healthy and flourishing addition to your indoor decor. When researching information online, one thing everyone does is look for a reputable and reliable blog or website. Searching for a dependable design blog is no different. Author and philosophy professor, Shannon Vallor, shares her feelings on digital ethics through her interview in a Santa Clara University Youtube video. Although it's deep thinking, Vallor relates philosophy to online websites by suggesting that a website viewer should question what they receive from a site just as a philosopher questions what they receive from life situations. Here are some questions to make you consider what you're receiving from a design website when searching for a reputable and established design source: #1. Does it fit my style? Does this blogger/publisher share my concept of design? Or is their style unappealing to me? #2. Does it portray achievable goals? Does the website contain too detailed of DIY projects for my skills? Too much designer-brand or expensive furnishings with no alternative suggestions? Or does it have pieces or looks that I can easily replicate? #3. Is it professional? Does this website look like it was made by a high school student who's in a hurry to complete a project for their web design elective course, or does it look like it came from an actual design enthusiast/professional who pays attention to detail in their writing as well as their interior design? #4. How valuable and unique is the design ability and information on the website? Does the site provide generic information, or did I learn something new? #5. Will it be a website/blog I'll reference/visit later on? Look for design blogs and websites that have abundant tips, topics, and information! The best design blogs are the ones where you find something new with each click, and spend hours browsing through the same site. These are where you'll most likely find and learn something new to add to your design inspiration. Black is a very intriguing color to use in decorating. It's a necessity to incorporate, but must be done properly in order to be effective. When used correctly, black adds a pop of sophistication and comfort. In the blog post, The (Surprising) Color Every Room Needs!, blogger, Sarah @ Thrifty Decor Chick, uses pictures from her own house to show the power of incorporating black into design. Even though some people are afraid or apprehensive to use such a strong color, Sarah believes that "nearly every room can take some black accents!" It's a versatile color that can be paired with any color and design idea. Using black as an accent color against white is a wonderful way to modernize a space and add a bold contrast from light to dark. If you're unsure of blatantly using a large amount of black to begin with, start by featuring small accessories such as throw pillows, lamps, picture frames, or a small side table in black. Another great feature about black is that it matches every single color! When decorating with black, feel free to use other earth tones like tan and green, or even add pops of color with red or yellow. For a country farmhouse look, check out Sarah's blog post in this link to see pictures of her black home decor that's accessorized with green, grey, tan - and my personal favorite, blue. Black can also take on an industrial vibe. Black plumbing pipe furniture, like the shelves in the graphic below, have become a fairly trendy way of adding unusual flair to a design plan. (Visit this website for instructions on making your own industrial pipe furniture.) The black color of these metal pipes looks very chic when paired with the exposed brick walls, and the accent black furniture and lighting make for a cozy and intimate design plan. After all, you cannot go wrong with black. What better color to accessorize with than the color that matches everything and can take on any look!
Did you know the colors around you can affect your mood?
Fellow design blog, Freshome, states that each color has a psychological value; Colors have the ability to make you feel angry, sad, excited, or calm. Too many dark, bold colors in a room tend to be heavy and make the room feel smaller, while lighter colors can make a room feel brighter and more airy. Check out this video for colors that soothe emotion and anxiety:
The great thing about all of these natural, earthtone colors is that they can each be used singularly, or you can incorporate them all into one design plan.
My personal favorite way to distribute earthtone colors evenly in a design plan is by focusing on 2 colors - one of the more colorful choices (blue or green) and one basic color (grey or tan). Too much of a brighter color can seem overwhelming and too much of a basic color can seem dull. By offsetting one with the other, you can have a simplistic room with pops of relaxing colors, or you can create a happier space that's toned down with neutrals. Do this by painting your walls a soft beige and incorporate pops of blue or green in throw pillows, lamps, and other decorations. |
Emmy
Just a person with a passion for comfortable design.
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