Easy Ways to Keep Your Home Running Perfectly

Hi lovelies,

Being a homeowner brings with it a lot of benefits. Having the freedom to unleash your inner interior designer and decorate your rooms in your own style has to be one of the biggest benefits! However, there are also a lot of responsibilities that come with owning your home. Taking care of every aspect of your property is essential to keep it running smoothly. Regularly maintaining your home will help save you from the hassle of lots of bigger problems and expense in the future.

Here are some of the ways that you can make sure that your home stays looking great and in perfect working order:

Clear Out Your Clutter
Clutter is something that seems to creep into your home over time slowly. Everything can be neat and tidy, then one day you will look around to find that you are surrounded by mounds of ‘stuff.’ Clutter is a problem for many reasons, but some of the main issues are that it attracts dust and can be a major trip hazard too! 

Having lots of clutter littering your house can make it feel like an unorganized place to live, and in turn, can make life feel more stressful. To be able to relax in your home you will want it to feel like a homely sanctuary. Unfortunately, lots of clutter can have the opposite effect, and instead, create a stressful living environment.

Decluttering doesn’t have to be a huge hassle. You can make decluttering manageable by taking time to tidy things away little and often. This is the key to keeping your home clutter-free and fabulous.

Don’t Skip Services
As a homeowner, sometimes you will inevitably need to call in the professionals. Calling in a technician is not something that only needs to happen when something breaks; it is something that you should do to keep your home well-maintained. Getting items such as your HVAC serviced regularly by a company such as mes-ac.com is crucial to keeping it working at its best. Not getting your heating and air conditioning means that potential issues won’t be picked up. If your HVAC unit then breaks you could find yourself uncomfortably hot in the scorching summer, and freezing in the winter months.

Don’t Ignore Warning Signs
The best way to handle potential problems in your home before they become a significant issue is to get them sorted out as soon as you notice them. If you think that you may have a leak, or you have seen a crack, it is far better to get it checked out when it first appears. Ignoring potential issues allows them to become a bigger problem at a later date. By taking action early, you will help to prevent the problem from escalating further.

Spring Clean
Spring cleaning is the ultimate way of showing your home some love. A good top to toe clean will help you identify any issues such as mold or mildew, and will help your home look at its very best.

*Photo credit for this collaborative post: Image credit - Pexels CC0 License

3 Ways to Turn Your Home into a De-Stressing Centre

Hi lovelies,

Stress will kill you. That’s something we’ve all been told growing up, and it’s also one of those bits of folksy wisdom that also turns out to be backed up by scientific evidence.

When our stress levels are elevated, it’s not just a matter of us “feeling” one way or another. The sensation of stress is connected to “stress hormones,” particularly cortisol and adrenaline. In short-term situations, elevated levels of these hormones may save our lives. But when they are heightened over a prolonged period of time, they contribute to systematic damage to the various organs of the body – not to mention premature ageing.

Our homes should be naturally relaxing paradises – but often they just add to the stress we are already experiencing.

Here are some tips on how to turn your home into a de-stressing centre, instead.

Fill it with furniture and features that up the comfort level dramatically

It would be difficult to relax and de-stress your home, if you had no comfortable furniture, and the overall ornamentation and style of the home naturally worked against you.

The first step in helping to turn your home into a de-stressing paradise, is to get some furniture that you find both comfortable and visually appealing. For some, that may mean classic shell chairs, for others, the kind of plush sofas you can melt into.

It’s generally pretty easy to figure out when your furniture is making it more difficult for you to relax. Just ask yourself the question, “is there anywhere in this house other than the bed where I’d feel comfortable curling up with a good book?”

If not, you’ve got some work to do.

Be sparing with the gadgets – and don’t have too many things going at one time

It’s difficult to de-stress when you are constantly being bombarded with information from all sides at once. And yet, that is the situation that most of us find ourselves in, in the modern world.

Not only do we have to deal with the demands of our bosses, take care of those ominous-looking letters from Inland Revenue, and deal with everything that goes along with maintaining family and social connections – but we also have to deal with dozens of daily news reports that convince us that we’re facing the end times. Then, there’s the latest entertainment gossip, and more.

If you want your home to be a de-stress paradise, consider going easy on the gadgets. Specifically, spend less time online, and less time watching TV.

Also, try to do only one thing at a time if you can, rather than overloading your attention and stressing yourself out by “multitasking.”

Always have the fridge stocked with nutritious, home-cooked meals

It’s hardly a secret that home-cooked meals, from whole food ingredients, are better for us than processed snacks.

But it’s not only a matter of how long you might live, or how free you might be from some kind of illness years down the line. Eating nutritious food – and the right amount of it – helps to regulate your hormones and keep everything behaving as it should.

When you don’t have enough nutritious food in the house, you’ll likely tend to either starve yourself (which contributes to significantly elevated stress hormone levels), or you will order takeaway, and experience mood and energy instability as a result.

Cook your food in big batches, and always keep the fridge stocked with nutritious meals.

*Photo credit for collaborative post: Pixabay - CC0 License

4 Things To Remember When Buying Your First Home

Hi lovelies,

Buying your first home is a big step and it’s the most expensive purchase you’re ever going to make, so you need to make sure that you don’t rush into things. It’s harder than ever for young people to get their foot on the property ladder and people spend a long time saving up the deposit that they need. When they finally get there and it’s time to start looking at houses, a lot of people find that they don’t really know what they’re looking for. If you’re about to start looking for your first home, here are a few simple tips that you should follow. 

Photo From Pexels CCO License

Always Budget First 
It’s easy to get carried away when you’re looking at houses, but if you want to avoid disappointment, you should always budget first. If you start looking without a clear budget in mind, you might fall in love with a house, only to realize that you can’t afford it. You need to look at how much you have for a deposit and what you can realistically afford to spend each month. It’s also a good idea to look into home loan pre-approval so you can work out what kind of mortgage you’re likely to get before you start viewing houses. If you go in with a clear budget in mind, you can manage your expectations and you won’t waste time looking at places that you will never be able to afford. 

List Your Priorities 
When you are trying to narrow down your options, you need to make a list of your priorities for the house and for the area that you live. Do you want somewhere with a nice outdoor space? Do you want a big kitchen? Are you willing to live in a rural area where there isn’t much going on or would you rather be nearer to the centre of a city? If you list your priorities and then rank them in order of importance, it will be a lot easier to choose which houses you want to view. 

Imagine Yourself Living There 
When you start viewing houses, you need to think about the practical stuff and check for any damage or signs of damp etc. but you also need to really think about whether you could imagine yourself living there. It’s important that your house feels like a home, and even a house that is perfect on paper might not necessarily be right for you. Keep that in mind when looking around and try to imagine where you would put all of your things and how you would use the different rooms. 

Always Get A Survey Done 
No matter how many times you look around a house, there are always things that you will miss. You don’t want to buy a house that has lots of hidden problems that are expensive to fix, which is why you need to have an independent survey done before you buy. A surveyor will be able to spot things like roof damage, damp problems, faulty plumbing, and dangerous wiring. You won’t notice these things yourself, so always get a professional opinion as well. 

If you follow these tips when you are viewing houses, you can make sure that your first home is perfect.

Simple Ways To Make Your Home Feel Like a Home

Hi lovelies,

Moving into a new house can be stressful. Even once the boxes are put away and you’ve put up your gallery wall, there can still be a feeling of newness that can stop you from feeling 100% comfortable. Sometimes it can take until your moving in party, or once your decorating is completely finished to allow you to settle into the feeling of being truly home. 

Many renters and house-sharers know that there is a huge difference between simply living in a place where you go to eat, sleep and wash and a home that really feels like home and you feel comfortable in. There's often the difficulty of not being able to decorate, knowing that your tenancy is only for a year and also living with people who you may not know.  But a sense of home is all about how you see things, and regardless of the external factors it is possible to curate true warmth, joy and personality no matter where you’re living.

Figuring out how to make your house feel like a real home is about finding out what makes you feel safe and cosy at home. Only you know what truly makes you feel at peace and warm, safe, and happy, but by sitting down and brainstorming on what those things are and then coming up with creative ways on how  to incorporate them into your house or apartment is the first step toward creating a sense of home. Here are some ideas to get you started.

First Impressions 
The hallway is a great starting place and goes a long way in creating the initial impression people have when entering your home.  Make sure your passage is clear of shoes, bags and other clutter. Keeping the colours light and airy to help the space feel less claustrophobic. Keep a door mat on both sides of the door to stop dirt and mud from the outside creating a mess on your carpets. 

Keep Your Clutter Away and Clean Up 
No-one likes mess and unnecessary clutter. A messy or unclean home can invite a whole host of health problems not to mention invite yucky vermin into you home. Think you’ve got a rat or mice problem? Sort it out quickly by hiring a pest control service, to get your home feeling safe and clean again as soon as possible. 

Let Your Nose Do The Talking
Nothing is nicer than entering a home that smells great. Smell plays a huge role in creating a pleasing environment. Fill your home with air diffusers, incense, scented candles or even fresh flowers, for a home that smells clean and lovely. 

Let The Sun Shine!
It’s a well-known fact that colours can affect our moods. Cool colours like sky blue or lilac are known for being fresh while yellows are known for being invigorating. Warm and autumnal colours are known for making a room feel relaxing. Warms also work really well with neutrals and allow you to keep your space from looking too bland. 

Your home should reflect your personality.
Most importantly, being authentic to your own personal tastes and interior style will instantly add character and atmosphere in your home. If you create an environment that you love to be in, the rest should naturally follow. 

AMAZON SHOP: Must-Have Favorites From My Amazon Shop

Hi lovelies,

I’ve been working on curating my Amazon Shop just for you guys of all of my favorite things that I love and use on a daily basis!

Check them out here and let me know what you think!

SHOP MY AMAZON SHOP HERE

HOME DECOR: How Every Lifestyle Influencer Elevates Their At-Home Experience With Dr. Vranjes Room Diffusers

Hi lovelies,

One of my favorite ways to make my place feel like a home, is to make sure that it always smells yummy and sweet.

When scented candles just won’t cut it, I turn to Dr. Vranjes Scented Room Diffusers, plus by using the room diffuser, I never have to worry if I left my candles burning when I leave or go to sleep, so it’s a safe way to create an inviting, pleasant, and warm home environment, without the worry.

My favorite scent is the Rosso Nobile, which makes my home blossom with the sweet scent of bouquets of the finest Tuscan wines. It’s the ideal way to enhance my mood and the mood of my guests along with creating a stress-free ambiance while enhancing an overall sense of happiness and wellbeing.

DR. VRANJES FIRENZE ROSSO NOBILE ROOM DIFFUSER