6 Ways to Freshen Up while Staying Inside

A rainy weekend inside is in the forecast for us, so what better time to freshen up the spaces we’ve been in the most lately? We’re sharing a few of our favorite ways to bring new life to our indoors. Scroll through to see a few of our favorite picks, too!

Everyone’s heard it before: purge, get rid of it, declutter, you don’t need to keep all of those filled coloring books from 15 years ago! While getting rid of old junk you don’t need any more is the first step toward a tidier home, to me, the second step is rearranging and reorganizing what you do keep – especially those big furniture pieces where who-knows-what could be hiding underneath them.

Just by cleaning surfaces, opening up window shades, refreshing light bulbs throughout the house, and even changing photos in your picture frames, there’s so much opportunity to refresh you space with what you already have.

As an interior designer, I get a lot of questions about the best furniture layouts for certain types of rooms and sizes, and while there is definitely an art to optimizing each space to function at its highest level in a beautiful way, you don’t have to be a licensed designer to optimize the energy in a room in a way that brings you peace and happiness.

I believe that the power of practices such as Feng Shui can be tremendous if you’re looking to quickly freshen up a space without necessarily having to buy anything. I’ve taken a few courses taught by professionals and am about to start another, and I can’t wait to continue to learn, and take that knowledge to apply to my everyday life and work.

So, if you’re looking to boost the energy in your household, get things moving to maintain the wellbeing of yourself and your house, and maybe get a new perspective along the way, maybe take a look into Feng Shui and the professionals who have trained in the art. Then, rearrange, reorganize, and repeat to find what works best for you and your family’s household energy.

I have so many books, and with my daughter having been an English major in college, it’s easy to say our bookshelves are loaded up in our household. If you’re looking for a way to show off your book collection without it looking cluttered or chaotic with different colored spines and typography, you have a few options! Turning the books around or adding a new cover to them can bring new life to your books, making your collection more streamlined and tidier. Just find some scrapbook or kraft paper, cut around the dimensions of your book, and fold to fit. You can leave the spines blank or write in book titles using the same style of handwriting to achieve a more cohesive look.

I feel the easiest way to freshen up any space is with new fragrances – and you don’t have to buy candles to do that. There are so many natural ways to incorporate new smells into your home, and all you have to do is rummage through your pantry a little bit. My personal favorite recipe is adding citrus, cinnamon, cloves, and a bay leaf to boiling water. The result is this rich, warm, fragrant, beautiful smell that is perfect for any season – and when a home smells better, it looks better, right? If you prefer candles, here's a few we love, too.

 

A great way to change up a space’s energy is to actually change the objects in it - and accessories can be an easy, budget-friendly way to do that! From a new lamp, to new bookends, to a decorative storage box to catch the clutter, auditing your current accessories and swapping out a few can bring new energy to any end table. 

Every so often, after special occasions or new yearbook photos or finding an old album in the attic, we’ll change out every photograph in every picture frame around the house. It’s always such a joy to revisit old memories or reminisce on new ones, all while giving new life and freshening up the frames these photographs live in! This is also a great way to see if it’s time to replace older frames with new ones that match your current style.

And, for those favorite photographs, create a gallery wall! With a few frames and a measuring tape, you can easily create a beautiful display that is both art and homage to the things, and people, you care for most.