With the coming of each new year, the distraction of the holidays ends abruptly with the necessary (but, let's face it, somewhat depressing) removal of the decorations and the return to normal schedules. I've never been one to make resolutions, but the suddenly noticeable drab and gray of winter each new year does awaken my need for change and freshness. And what better place to start than my house?
In the midst of packing up decorations and making room for the year's gifts, the tendency to reorganize and rearrange comes naturally. Each year, I try to focus that energy into a few ways to refresh and brighten the house—and with it, my outlook. With a new baby, no budget, and a lack of time and energy, I've settled this year on three no-cost but effective ways to embrace the new year in our home.
1. Purge. The truth is that I'm already a chronic purger; I have no problem clearing out items we no longer need or use. I used to spend entire (gloriously cathartic) days going through one closet or room simply reorganizing and setting aside items for donation. That was, of course, pre-baby, and with a five-month-old always on my hip these days, all-day purging fests are long gone. Desperate to get rid of all that's been piling up since she's arrived, I'm keeping a "donate basket" in the hall closet. Every time I straighten the house or open a cabinet or closet, I keep my eye out for underused items. My goal is to place at least one item into the basket each week. Once the donate basket is full, it gets dumped into a box in the trunk of my car, which I will drop off next time I visit the thrift store. A quicker, simpler, and more approachable way to purge is exactly what I need to help make room for all those Christmas gifts.
2. Rearrange one room. I like change; in fact, I crave it. I get that not everyone does, so this may not be your idea of a happy way to embrace the new year. But there's something so satisfying about just spending a few hours moving furniture and decor to find yourself in a whole new room. And with no money spent! This year, I've already overhauled our living room, and the view from the couch's new location is so refreshing that I've found myself sitting on it simply to look around the room and smile.
3. Clean the windows. I have some kind of unexplainable mental block on cleaning windows. A chore that is often left for spring cleaning and that I love to avoid is one that has the most immediate change to my mindset. It really takes no more than a few minutes to clean the windows in one room. Starting in the newly arranged living room, I'm cleaning the windows (inside and out) in one room each day. It can be tackled while the baby is sleeping, and dingy windows throughout the entire house should be but a memory by the end of next week. Letting in that little bit of extra sunshine on bleak winter days has already helped brighten my New Year.
Whatever your New Year outlook may be, whether you abide by resolutions or steer clear, a bit of remixing, purging, and fresh outlooks around your house are certain to be welcome changes. What are your tips for embracing the new year in your home?
(Image: Leela Cyd Ross/Charley & Jessica's "Patina Clean" House Tour)
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I always feel great after I clean out and reorganize the fridge.
"the couch's new location is so refreshing that I've found myself sitting on it simply to look around the room and smile."
I love that feeling!
I wish it were that easy to clean my windows. Unless you've got tilt-ins it's a huge undertaking.
It's always refreshing to hear that I'm not the only person who likes moving furniture around just for the sake of a new view. Though, it does suck when you find the PERFECT set-up and have to decide whether having a fresh look is worth destroying the most ideal placement for furniture in that room.
These are 3 things that I was supposed to be doing this week but so far I have accomplished none of them. Today is the day!
Cleaning windows is such a pain. We do have tilt-ins, but I still put it off to the point where we can barely see outside, they're so filthy.
Would like to hear more about how you clean the outside of your windows. I have a mental block here. Thx!
I agree with this. We have a sectional and it's fabulous and in the perfect spot, but I occasionally find myself imagining where i'd put it other than where it is. It's never as good as where it is now, but since it's different, it holds a certain allure.
Oooh I wrote almost the same post just yesterday!! ;) Nice to know we're all on the same page and couldn't agree with you more about cleaning the windows!! On those dreary days, every little bit of light certainly helps!
http://blog.appliancesonline.co.uk/home/how-to-12-steps-to-a-winter-home-refresh
I always clean the insides of the windows that the dogs put noseprints on (front window and glass slider) but just the idea of removing all of the screens and getting out the ladder to clean the outsides seems like such a huge undertaking that I have never done it.
I'm a constant purger too, but still have enough accessories that I have to keep some stored away at all times. This time of year I like to have something green in every room, a houseplant or just snip some leaves,etc and stick them in a vase. And I like putting throws or quilts on the sofas to give the room a cosier feeling.
I'm on a second story and would love to hear how folks clean the outside of their windows. I don't have a ladder tall enough.
My second story windows just get hosed off outside once in awhile but they don't get very dirty. Lower windows and sliding glass door, I use a brush and then a squigee on an extendable pole with some warm slightly soapy water. No ladder needed. If there are screens, then windows and screens get washed spring and fall when they go up and come down.
http://housewares.hardwarestore.com/35-177-scrub-brushes/window-wash-brush-172320.aspx Only need one pole and a brush and a squeegee that screw onto the pole. Well a little elbow grease is needed too. ;)
Second story windows might be worth hiring a window cleaner occasionally. HTH
Alas, the Christmas jewelry for the apartment comes down. *Sigh*
Small apartments should be easier to rearrange, but having two other people to help (two move at a time, the other evaluates) really helps. In my place, I found out that the dining table became the temporary storage area for small tables, lamps and such, while the bedroom was the storage/sorting for the outbox area for stuff on shelves. Having friends move also means more purging help, too.
Re: cleaning windows... Once every decade, we hire it out! Sooo worth it. This is the year.
Ten years of New Orleans living taught me the benefit of Mardi Gras decorating. Purple, Green and Gold are a whelcome color chande after all that red and green. I leave out the Christmas green and gold, pack away the red and dig out my beads. PARTY!
Happily it seems to be fairly common in England to have window washers that do regular rounds. I just asked the guys that were doing the neighbor's house to do ours, too. They come around roughly every two weeks, depending on the weather, and it costs £3. A worthwhile investment, in my opinion, because realistically they would never get cleaned otherwise.
Oh yeah! Nothing better than a good rearrange, then the thrill of rounding the corner to a new view when walking into the room! There's something wrong with us, isn't there?
I'm not a very good purger, but I do have a donation corner in my bedroom. Items from the closet that haven't been used for a while goes there until there's a pile. Then it goes to goodwill.
re: windows that are high up. My husband swears by this product, it's window cleaner which you attach to the end of your hose. It leaves windows fairly streak free and is easy.
http://www.amazon.com/JOHNSON-10122-32OZ-Windex-Cleaner/dp/B000V9QN1A/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1357341993&sr=8-1&keywords=window+cleaner+hose
Of course, this only works if you have access to a hose and can clean from outside.
When I moved in with my (now) husband, I went through the Great Purge... gave away 1/3 of my stuff; threw away another 1/3. It felt amazing, so we do a purge after every Christmas. It feels very buddhist... "don't take in anything unless you can make room for it."
We have a great rule - nothing comes into the house unless a like item goes out. Buy two new shirts, two have to be donated...buy new running shoes, oldest pair gets tossed. It works!
What I do is spray the windows thoroughly with a strong vinegar-water solution, let them soak and drip for about 10 minutes-then go back outside and squirt them again then squeegy them off. I have HUGE paned glass windows on an older house in dust storm central (West Texas) and this method only takes about 20 minutes with the soak time. You may not need to presoak yours if your area isn't so dusty.
I'm in England as well and we've got window cleaners that do ours on the outside for £5 and they come every other week. It's definitely a worthwhile investment as it wouldn't happen otherwise! Perhaps someone needs to fill the US gap in the market ;)
Re: Cleaning outside windows...If you don't have access to an outside an alternative I have used many times is an adapter that screws onto the kitchen faucet to allow a garden hose hook up. It works great as long as there are no leaks in the faucet. If there is a small leak then the extra water pressure will make a huge mess. But, I have found simply placing a towel over the leaky faucet prevents unwanted spraying and works for short term use. The adapter can be found for $10 or less at Home Depot in with the kitchen sink accessories. There are many sizes so keep your reciept and open the package carefully. Using this trick you can wash the outside of the windows with the Windex that attaches to the hose, (I love the product and use it myself)
Too cold to mess with windows now. And to get where purging is hardly needed. not THAT much stuff is "cute, adorable or delightful". Poor reasons for buying and accumulating crap. Period!
Hmm, I have tilt-in windows, and washing them is one of my favorite once-in-a-while chores. Moving the couches to sweep and vacuum is a pain, but I love scrubbing down the windows and watching that glorious clean sunshine stream in.
I'm a huge purger, but my husband is not. I wish he would get on board, it's so cathartic and my life is much less stressful without all the clutter!
I dont clean my windows in the winter (not worth it) but I do in the spring and summer. its HUGE job because the whole darn wall of my condo is a window, plus the balcony walls and railings. i hate it but LOVE it when its done!
I think there is a reason why window cleaning is a spring cleaning event, I don't think I want to clean them when it is -30 and windy.
The one good thing about my windows is that they come completely off from the inside. They're horizontal slider windows. I can remove each piece, wash both sides, and put them back up. In this weather, I have to work FAST so I don't freeze!
I'm from England and have moved to Brooklyn, living in a brownstone apartment and I NEED someone to fill the US gap of window cleaners!! Discovered from my landlord that they hadn't been cleaned in 17 years and eventual found someone to do them (4 flights up and rotten wood means no chance of doing them myself) and found myself $350 lighter for it). Oh for window cleaners with their special high ladders and super fast, cheap, regular service, sigh!
Room by room is a good way to go. I recently followed these three steps for the media room, which always ends up being the most disorganized (cables, unused equipment, and too many discs). Here's a blog I wrote about media related home networking for reliable media streaming. http://lightarrow.com/a-superior-home-theater-network-for-1080p-media-streaming
I plan to write one soon regarding setting up a Mac or Windows based media server for serving up high quality content to all TVs in the house.
Best regards,
Adi Mishra
OK, so I have a question: unless you have special window film, or always leave light-blocking shades down, how will you prevent sun damage to that couch? I've been wrestling with this problem for years. Since we got new living room stuff from Room and Board a bunch of years ago, I DO leave our ugly, light-blocking roller shades all the way down during the day (when we're mostly not home anyhow). How do other people protect their upholstered furniture from the sun?
Yep, we have a window cleaner too, although ours only comes every 8 weeks and costs a bit more than that since we have a lot of sliding doors and high roof lights to get at. Well worth it though, and I am looking forward to his next visit which should be soon.
LaureltQ, here's a bit of a cheat you might find helpful. Purchase a garden sprayer (the type that hooks up to the garden hose) & a spray nozzle with a high pressure setting. Add a few drops of dish detergent in the sprayer, take a stroll around the house & spray away. It's not a huge undertaking plus it nets two bird with one stone which is always good. You'll be amazed at the dirt & grime which clings to the screens alone. Let the sun shine in!
adding a wee CAUTION here:You can use your 'cleaner' of choice in the sprayer. Just take care that whatever you use won't harm any plantings below the windows.
Hey now, I take issue with that remark! *chuckle* There's nothing wrong with us. Dh jokes he knows the season is about to change when he comes home & finds the furniture in places it's not supposed to be.
I'm in an apartment with huge wall to wall windows that I'm not interested in cleaning. I have purged 6 paper bags worth already (just need to lug it down to my car) Purging makes me feel great and the weight of all those unneeded items are gone. Especially gifts I never wanted or used, old expired medications, clothes that just don't fit, etc etc. I'm not minimalist that I obsessively count my things but purging and striving to be more minimalist is a great feeling!
Interesting to read about regular window washing available as a service. Our area has window washers who also clean the rain gutters. This is usually done on a yearly or every-two-years basis and costs about $150-200. The windows always look terrific afterwards, and things like old nests that have fallen in the gutters get cleaned out.
This year is de-clutter year. With a one year old son, another baby on the way and renovation plans its time to clear out all the excess clogging up the house.
I'm trying to sort, piff or donate something every week.
I got married in late spring last year, and moved into the house my husband has owned for 15 years. The kitchen is small, u-shaped with not a lot of counter space or cabinet space - obviously in a place like this you have to be super-organized. The kitchen had terrible problems with flow, as you had to criss-cross the space several times to complete one task. There was no counter space next to the stove or the sink to use to prep food, because of a large microwave that sits on the counter, so you'd have to do prep work on the other side of the kitchen... but if you're at that counter, people are coming in all the time to get items out of the cabinets (teenage children are constantly snacking).
I thought about this kitchen for seven months, after years of wishing we could just do a gut reno, I finally realized that where I needed to start was by moving the microwave. So I drew up plans in pencil on graph paper, made lists of items currently in cabinets and other lists of where they should go in the reorganized space, I designated zones so there's no more need to criss-cross the kitchen to complete one task and grouped like items together (you'd think this would be common sense, but this was not how the kitchen had been kept for a decade and a half) so everything could be easily located.
What I did not do was purge, other than a handful of way-outdated spice jars. And what I found, after shifting some things around, was that where before I had had two overstuffed pantries and every cabinet overstuffed, I now had one stocked pantry and one half-empty pantry, and multiple empty or half-empty shelves in cabinets. I also found that I could have myself, my husband, and one stepkid in the kitchen at the same time, each working on a task, and nobody getting in each other's way.
My husband and I cleaned our windows inside and out this fall. This will be the last time we will do it until we can afford to buy tilt ins. It was a nightmare! Here is my post about the experience. http://capeofdreams.wordpress.com/2012/09/26/window-washers-we-are-not/