Spring and the longer evenings are finally here but after what seemed like a long winter, you could be forgiven for feeling your home has seen better days.
However, giving your home a detox or spring clean could be the perfect way to spruce it up, make you fall in love with it again and put a real smile on your face heading into the summer months.
These five steps will help you detox your home.
Step 1: What your home says
Your home is a unique expression of your character. The furnishings, pictures and ornaments you choose, and how you use and combine colours, as well as the general tidiness of the place, creates an overall image of who you are and what really matters to you. Learn to read your space like a book and give prominence to the elements that give you the most pleasure.
- Furniture: Seating that is arranged so people can sit close together shows an enjoyment of other people’s company. Furniture that has more to do with style suggests the occupier is concerned with status.
- Television: A TV that dominates a room relegates conversation to second place. If you put your TV in a cabinet, it suggests you like to feel some control over your home and the outside world.
- Lighting: Soft lighting suggests someone who may have romantic intentions, would like to feel secure or get rid of stress. People who choose bright lights are likely to be less sensitive to their surroundings and the people around them.
- Music: Hard rocks suggests someone who’s tough and resilient. People who like pop music generally put a high value on feeling part of their peer group. A preference for classical music indicates someone with deep emotions who is not easily swayed.
- Plants: People who cultivate plants enjoy nurturing their own environment and the people around them. Artificial plants show someone who may be willing to settle for second best.
- Pictures: Abstract pictures indicate someone who may have mental or emotional issues to resolve. A fondness for displaying photographs reveals the need to be part of a family or peer group.
Step 2: Know what comes in
The atmosphere of your living space does not remain static. When you invite people in, they bring their own energies with them. If this disrupts your home you need to know how to re-establish harmony and balance.
Revitalising the mood
– Create some sort of order; if you have too much clutter to tidy up immediately, simply put everything that needs sorting into a few plastic bags.
– Clean the kitchen floor, make the bed or plump up the cushions.
– Open the windows to let in fresh air, change the temperature and generally move the energy around.
– Add a few drops of essential oil to an aromatherapy burner or to water in an atomiser that can be sprayed around the home.
– Put on some soothing music.
Step 3: Clear that clutter
Banishing mess will make you feel more in control, happier with your environment and less bogged down by chores. A better-organised life will give you time to do the things you really enjoy.
A methodical approach
- Start by identifying the areas in your house that need work. On an A4 pad, write down a heading for each section of your home, then walk around your home and mark down all the areas that need to be cleared out and detoxed. This could be an entire room or a cupboard.
- Once you have listed your clutter areas you can make a detox plan by allocating enough time to tackle each section of your home and marking it in your diary. As you complete and tick off each section, you should feel good about yourself and this should strengthen your resolve.
- Next, find large bags or boxes and a rubbish sack, label them and sort your clutter into the respective containers. Write on the box or bag a deadline by which you intend to have the items sorted. Put these dates into your diary too.
Keeping on top of clutter
- For most people clutter is part of everyday life so if you want to stay on top of it and keep your space detoxed you should be aware of where the clutter in your life comes from, what control you have over it, and the ways you can keep it under control.
- If you have a clutter problem always ask yourself three questions before bringing a new item into your home: will this make a positive difference to my life? Have I got room for it? Am I prepared to let go of something to make room for it? All items that have already found their way into your home should have a place to live. If they haven’t put things away in easily accessible storage such as concertina files, drawers and boxes. There should also be places for in between items – clothes that you have worn and plan to wear again or magazines that are half read.
- Get into the habit of putting things away as soon as you have finished with them – when your clean washing is dry put it in the cupboard straight away. When you have finished looking at a book put it back on the shelf.
Step 4: Create an energy flow
You may feel that the atmosphere in your home is in some way stressful or stagnant. If you do, the time has come generate a positive flow of energy.
Five quick fixes
- Lighting: Use lamps to introduce an atmosphere of relaxation and intimacy. Candles are particularly good for creating a relaxing and romantic atmosphere.
- Mirrors: Mirrors can be used to double the size of a room and create a sense of light, openness and space.
- Pictures: You can set the scene for a particular room by choosing pictures or photographs that represent the image you are trying to portray. If you want to create a peaceful environment you might choose a picture of green pastures or wild flowers.
- Plants: Plants are aesthetically pleasing and show that you care for your environment. They can also swiftly improve the quality of air in your home.
- Colours: The two or three main colours you choose in any room of your home to cover the largest areas will set the tone for that room. Warm colours are associated with an intimate environment, while cool colours create an impression of distance.
Step 5: Cleanse and refresh
You may have cleared you clutter, moved your furniture around and changed the colour of your walls – and yet your home just doesn’t feel right. If this is the case, you need to cleanse and refresh the energy in your home.
- Open a window in every room. This will encourage the air to circulate and allow any stale air to disperse.
- Carry out a thorough spring clean of all the surfaces, fabrics, windows, mirrors and anything else that could do with a clean.
- Change the smell of each room or each floor by burning some incense. Sage oil or citrus oils are particularly effective for cleansing the atmosphere. You may also decide to do some cooking in the kitchen to change the smell. Garlic and onion are traditional cleansers – both for the body and for the atmosphere. You could also make some real coffee; the smell will lift the atmosphere.
- Place fresh flowers or plants around the house.
- Change the feeling of the house by playing uplifting or soothing music.
