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5 Simple Ideas To Keep Your Home Tidy and Restful

Our living environment plays a critical role in our everyday lives. You spend a lot of time at home, so shouldn’t it be a sanctuary that promotes rest and relaxation?

By Emily Graham || mightymoms.net 

Our living environment plays a critical role in our everyday lives. You spend a lot of time at home, so shouldn’t it be a sanctuary that promotes rest and relaxation?

While there are countless home improvement ideas out there, sometimes all you have to do is declutter and keep it all tidy. Clutter has proven to create or exacerbate stress, and getting rid of the clutter in your environment can significantly reduce your stress levels.

You might be wondering how you can possibly keep a tidier home with everything you have going on. Easier said than done, right? Well, we have listed 5 simple strategies to consider working into your schedule, that will prove well worth it in turning your home into a sanctuary.

1. Purge Your Closet… (this is a big one!)

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A good first step is to go through your closet. If there are any items that you haven’t worn in the past year, do an honest self-assessment— ask yourself, will you actually wear them at all in the coming year? If not, chances are those pieces will forever sit in your closet, taking up space and collecting dust.

To start your purge, sort all your clothes into 3 piles; Keep, Toss, or Store. Gently-used items in your toss pile, can be sold online to pad your budget (ka-ching!), or consider donating them to a local nonprofit.

For more tips and tricks, check out How To Organize Your Closet

 

2. Declutter Everything Else

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Once you’ve taken care of your closet, tackle the rest of your home, one room at a time. You might be surprised by how much décor and stuff you have lying around, that you don’t really need anymore. Consider storing away some of your sentimental pieces for safekeeping and minimizing your décor, furniture, and other elements to create more breathing room in your living environment.

 

3. Get Your Furniture Cleaned

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If you have any upholstered furniture that’s seen better days, consider getting it cleaned. Along with helping your home look tidy, cleaning your furniture can remove bad odors, refresh the fabric, and make your pieces look new again.

Look to a site like Angi for online reviews to find a few furniture cleaning companies in your area. Once you’ve found several different companies, get some customer referrals and estimates before choosing who to hire.

TIP: If possible, avoid hiring cleaners who use all-in-one solutions.

 

4. Invest in attractive storage solutions.

Another way to keep your home tidy is to find storage solutions to incorporate into your interior design. Using the right storage allows you to keep everything you need within reach, without cluttering up the space. Invest in shelving and closed storage like jars, bins and containers. These solutions that will help you stay organized while adding to the overall aesthetic of each room.

TIP: Start with your pantry!

 

5. Come Up with A Cleaning Routine

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Taking a weekend or two to deep clean your home can make a major difference in fostering rest and relaxation.

Develop a routine for keeping your living space clean and tidy. Your cleaning schedule will largely depend on your lifestyle and obligations. Some people clean for 15 minutes a day, some tackle one room a day, and others clean for a little longer every few days. Figure out a regiment that helps you to maintain a comfortable, clean, and organized living environment.

TIP: Don’t let this mount up. Deep cleaning your home regularly and keeping a tide home will keep your stress levels down.

In The End…

Your home should be a place where you can escape your daily obligations and find rest. Consider the tips above for making and keeping your living environment clean and tidy. Not only will your home look more appealing, but it will also benefit your overall health and well-being in the process.

Till next time… #livelifebeautifully

Hugs

Lynda

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Interior Design Lynda Ngaamba Interior Design Lynda Ngaamba

For Goodness Sake! Wallpaper Your Powder Room - and have fun with it!

The Power Room, aka ½ Bath, aka Guest Bath, is usually a room that is largely ignored. See the different ways you can give this room the BIG personality it deserves!

I always push for the opportunity to use wallpaper on all my projects, because Wallpaper is AMAZING! For my clients who are unsure about designing a room with wallpaper, I always push to have it, at the very least, in the powder room.

Let’s face it, this room is one of the most boring rooms in the house. It was usually a 2 piece bath, with a mirror, no windows and poor lighting and yet, it is a room that is used and seen the most by all your guests.

For this reason, I think there is an opportunity to make a big/huge impression, while people handle business in those 10 (less) minutes they spend in there.

When you design your powder room, either extend your theme into this room, or give it it’s very own personality, which is my fav approach.

Here are some examples of powder rooms done right! Let me know which is your fav!

 
Jeweled Interiors

Jeweled Interiors

Coalville - Lattice

Coalville - Lattice

Jessica Antola

Jessica Antola

@damoncsf

@damoncsf

Mercia Vines Blue - Newton Paisley

Mercia Vines Blue - Newton Paisley

Jonathan Adler

Jonathan Adler

Serena and Lily

Serena and Lily

Rebecca Atwood

Rebecca Atwood

McGee and Co

McGee and Co

One Kings Lane

One Kings Lane

Anthropologie

Anthropologie

Serena and Lily

Serena and Lily

Lakeside Development

Lakeside Development

Till next time! Have a great day!

Lynda


 
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Interior Design Lynda Ngaamba Interior Design Lynda Ngaamba

Loving the Shift to Black Hardware & Trim

While I still love brass/gold hardware, I can’t ignore all the matte black finishes that have been making an entry to the design scene. Check out these examples

Ok, Let’s talk black hardware and trim. For the last 2-3 years, gold and brass have been the go-to alternatives to chrome and nickel fixtures. But lately, Matte Black has been steadily growing as a popular finish and I must say, I’m loving it!

From shower enclosures, to light fixtures, to cabinet pulls, the contrast between the black and white backgrounds, give the spaces a clean, sleek and modern feel.

Here are great examples of how you could incorporate black in your next project and let me, would you install a black faucet in your next kitchen project?

 
Albert Albright Photography

Albert Albright Photography

Michelle Dirkse

Michelle Dirkse

Patterson Custom Homes

Patterson Custom Homes

ArentPyke

ArentPyke

VIGO

VIGO

Studio McGee

Studio McGee

Sarah Stacey Design

Sarah Stacey Design

Rejuvenation

Rejuvenation

Till next time, have a great day!

Lynda


 
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Leisure & Travel, Lifestyle Lynda Ngaamba Leisure & Travel, Lifestyle Lynda Ngaamba

Best Girlfriends Weekend Getaway in Upstate New York

Are you thinking of planning a chill girlfriend’s getaway and looking for inspiration? My girls and I went upstate New York and had an awesome time. Only 2 hours away! Check out what we did and where we stayed.

Hey You!

Are you thinking of planning a girls’ weekend getaway and not sure where to begin? Well, I’ve got you covered. Keeping on reading and start planning your trip today! #getinsipred

My girlfriends and I just got back from an amazing weekend getaway in Update New York. It was our first time in the Catskills and Hudson Valley regions and our visit was… perfection!

 Initially, the plan was to go to one of Arizona’s spa retreats and when that didn’t work out due to scheduling, availability, etc., I come up with plan B; mini-road trip!  Since it was just for the weekend (Friday – Sunday), the destination had to be no more than a 2 hour drive from NYC. Also, we travelled with a dog, so everything had to be dog friendly, (woof, woof!).  

 Here are the highlights of our Update New York trip.

 Where We Stayed

 The Woodhouse Lodge

This place is gorgeous! We got there around 7pm on Friday and we were greeted by our host with a chilled glass of Rosé; who wouldn’t like that! Our room was very comfortable and clean, but the main lodge (what they call the A Frame), was the show stopper. It was perfectly designed, featuring modern décor, with a touch of rustic flare, that worked beautifully to highlight the building’s mid-century architecture.

 
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 The Grounds

The property sits on 4 acres of nothing a but serene beauty. Oh… the hammocks are crazy comfortable!

 
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 … and Yoga!

Being September, the morning air was crisp, fresh and just right for our private yoga class, that was taught by the amazing Kelley Curran. It was hands down the best Yoga class I’ve ever had😊😊

Thanks Kelley – Namaste.

 
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 Where We Eat… and drunk of course!

 The Woodhouse Lodge is located in Greenville, NY and by the time we arrived and checked in, the local eateries had already closed for the evening; but that was a good thing. We ended up going to Hudson, NY, which is just a 30 minute drive away and that’s how we ended up at the…

 Backbar

A low key supper cool spot, with the most delicious Malaysian cuisine. Everything we had was spot-on (yum) and the cocktails were aaaaamazing ; the Savage Garden (tequila, watermelon, passion fruit and prosecco) was my fav.

 
Source: Backbar

Source: Backbar

 
 
Source: Backbar

Source: Backbar

 

 The River Grill

This restaurant sits right on the banks of the Hudson River and is open May – September. They have an outdoor wood-fired grill, where all the meals are prepared, which is kinda cool. It was a chilly September evening and they offered us blankets, which we really appreciated.

 
Source: Stewart House

Source: Stewart House

 
 
Source: Stewart House

Source: Stewart House

 

Wm Farmer & Sons

Also located in Hudson, NY. We had a late lunch here on our last day and the weather was perfect for alfresco dining. The brunch-lunch menu mostly had chicken dishes. We had Abigail’s Fried Chicken Basket, Hot Dip basket and the Chicken Sandwich and it was delicious. The décor of the interior space was beautiful. This spot is known to have a great dinner scene, so reservations are highly recommended.

 
Source: Wm Framer & Sons

Source: Wm Framer & Sons

 
 
Source: Wm Framer & Sons

Source: Wm Framer & Sons

 

NOTE: Check out Amtrak for scheduled lines to Hudson, NY. There are amazing places to stay in town too, if you opt not to drive.

 What We Also Did

 After Yoga on Saturday, we went hiking at the Hannacroix Preserve  . On our way back, we popped into Sister Salvage for some antiquing. On Sunday, we also stopped by Door 21, which is a huge warehouse brimming with all kinds of antiques. We were there for about an hour and a half, but we needed more time…. There’s just too much to see. Lastly, we took loads and loads of pictures!

In the end, our weekend gateway was just what the doctor ordered to recharge the mind, body and soul.

Please comment and let me know when and where your next girls getaway will be.

 Till next time,

#livebeautifully #getinspired

Hugs, Lynda


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