Friday photo: home design ideas

I thought I'd share a recent purchase with you (I follow the one in, one out rule when buying things for my home!) to give an example of how making your home feel welcoming doesn't necessarily need to be about buying expensive items.

I bought this 'Love' sign online for £1.99, and the vase was a gift from a relative. I've seen similar ones for sale at low prices in charity shops/thrift stores. The rose is from a rose bush that I have growing on my window sill. You could replicate it with a silk flower to be even thriftier - they can be purchased pretty cheaply. Arranged together, they help create a warm and cosy feel to my lounge.

Mini makeover: under my kitchen sink

Here's one of my mini makeover projects - I decided to revamp under my sink as the storage container I was using was a little too small and I couldn't easily see what was what. Here's what it looked like before:

I took a trip to my local shopping centre which has a low cost store that sells containers and household goods. I bought 3 small red containers and used two of them for storing the household cleaning products under the sink, and I used an adhesive hook to hang up the dustpan. It often got in the way when closing the door, so hanging it up creates a little more storage space:

 

The red baskets were a set of three for £1.99, and the adhesive hook for the dustpan was part of a set of 20, which cost £1. A great bargain!

What's your clutter About? Interview with Peter Walsh

Peter Walsh is something of a guru in the organisational world - he's down to earth, direct and refreshingly honest. Check out this recent interview with him:

How to: make the best use of your computer by adding your most used programmes to the taskbar

A quick way to help you save time when you're using your computer, is to pin the programmes that you use most often to your taskbar.

Before:

To add your programme, click the Windows button on the bottom far left of your computer desktop:

Find the programme that you want to add - I'm using Internet Explorer for my example:

 

Right click with your mouse over the icon/picture of the programme. This menu will appear:

Choose and click on 'Pin this program to taskbar'. That's it!

If you want to remove a taskbar programme, just hover over it, right click with your mouse, and click 'Unpin this program from the taskbar'.

Please comment below if you'd like any more computer related tips!

Two minute tidy tip: keep disinfectant wipes in the bathroom

There are some jobs that need to be done around the home that can be tricky to get motivated to do. I sometimes find cleaning the bathroom a challenge!

I wish this was my bathroom!

My quick two minute tidy tip: keep a pack of disinfectant wipes (or even baby wipes) in the bathroom. When you've finished your shower or bath, grab a wipe and quickly wipe down the surfaces. It really does only take a couple of minutes, and it'll save you having to do more work when you next clean your bathroom.

Quick fix for tidying: organising blankets and cushions

Where to store blankets and cushions? I used to keep mine on top of my wardrobe but found that they were blocking out some of the light into the room:

I found these great folding canvas boxes that I could  use to store them away in a cupboard:

There are lots of great solutions available - this is perfect as I can pull them out if I need to and they'll be less likely to get dusty. And, they cost just £1 each - bargain!

Routines to help keep your home organised: make time to do the dishes

An important part of decluttering and organising is setting up a few short routines to help you maintain your home. It might sound a little boring, but it's key to creating an organised and homely environment for yourself.

Try and find time to wash up and wipe down your surfaces before you go to bed - that way you'll wake up to a nice clean kitchen and it helps start the day off on the right track.

 

You'd be surprised at the difference it makes, and it really won't take as long as you think - I promise!