Organizing Your Home
Text By Nancy Johnston
Do you ever get tired of having to run up and down the stairs all the time to keep getting things that you need? Does it take you longer than it should to do just about everything because nothing is where it should be? If you answered yes to either of these questions then perhaps a little organization can help. Not only can it make your life more efficient by saving you a lot of time, it can save a lot of wear and tear on the legs! Now if organizing your home seems like a daunting task, don’t worry, it doesn’t have to be. With some preplanning and a “room at a time” approach, you can turn chaos into convenience in no time at all.
It’s quite easy to get started: just pick a room, take a cardboard box, and better yet, take two. Enter the room and take a good look around. Is clutter obstructing your view? Then that’s the place to start. Put all clutter such as unused items (things you have that you know you’re never going to use) into one box. It’s amazing how removing all the things you don’t use can free up space for things you actually use. If you can’t quite bring yourself to throw the stuff away, have a garage sale or donate it to charity.
Now take another look around. Gather up all the items that are not in the room where they are normally used/needed and put them in the second box for redistribution throughout the house. Go through each item in each room this way and when you are down to the essential items, designate a specific place for those items in the room. Redistribute the contents of the second box to their new convenient locations. From now on always put each item in its place when not in use so you know exactly where it is when you need it. This will save you the time and frustration of endless searching. Now that you have gotten rid of what you don’t need and have relocated the things that weren’t in the right room to begin with, it’s time to organize everything you have left.
Okay, so what to do with the two hundred pairs of shoes and matching purses that make closing the closet doors difficult? Simple. Compartmentalize! First go through all your shoes and purses and get rid of the ones you’ll always love but will never use again. Do the same with your clothes. Once you’ve done that you can see how much space you actually have to work with. Does everything fit better now or do you need to clean things up further by adding shelving and door fitted shoetrees. These days shelving comes in every possible size for every conceivable use so there is a shelving solution that will fit your particular needs. Check out one of the multitude of manufacturers if you need shelving in any room.
If kitchen size or cupboard space is a problem, you will really need to be organized to have things run smoothly. Again, go through everything item by item and decide if it is worth the space that it is occupying. Is there a better spot for it? Do you even use it? Hanging things whenever you can, such as pots and utensils, wine racks, cups and even spices will free up space. Try to use ceiling and wall space as well as counters and cupboards.
So you’ve filled every nook and cranny and you still need more storage space? Consider hiring a carpenter who can help you find some extra space hidden behind the walls, where recessed shelving or recessed receptacles can be easily constructed. Curved or angled walls, recessed fireplaces or cabinetry and space under staircases are all prime locations for conversion to storage or display areas.
Once you get everything rearranged remember the adage for keeping it that way, “A place for everything and everything in its place.”
Current Trends in Furniture
Text by Alison Macpherson
Although furniture trends don’t change as quickly as other fashions, there’s definitely a trend in what’s popular these days. Consistency among the offerings at major retail stores, boutique furniture shops and hand-crafted pieces could be defined as a trend toward simplicity and comfort.
If furniture designers have accurately predicted the desires of buyers, what you want is a clean look, uncluttered space and an environment that helps you feel more relaxed at home. Leather, hardwood and simple lines are in and overstuffed pastels and chunky tables are long gone. Much of what’s in the marketplace these days is streamlined with a focus on texture and natural earth tones. That doesn’t mean boring beige. Think oceans, fall leaves, evergreens, granite and sunshine. Room by room, there are some specific pieces that are helping to define this trend.
In the living room, the style in sofas and chairs leans toward straight lines and lower backs giving a sleek look. Even sectionals and recliners are slimming down, allowing a bit more open space in your room. Tables that are on the smaller side with defined legs, simple handles on drawers or no visible hardware tie in nicely, leaving the focus on accessories. A few pieces of eye-catching art, a textured area rug and plush colorful pillows are finishing touches that add visual interest and a welcoming feel.
In today’s den or family room, ottomans have made a comeback for all new reasons. They’re larger than the 70’s flip top vinyl version, which allows many uses other than propping up your feet and storing magazines. It might be the most appreciated piece of furniture in your home if you use it for plopping down your laptop, as the perfect spot for a snack tray, a comfy place to play a board game and extra seating for entertaining.
Contemporary bedroom styles are showing the popularity of platform beds that are lower in height than your traditional box spring and mattress setup, encouraging spaciousness in your bedroom. With or without a headboard, they’re very chic and follow the trend toward simple lines in furniture. Models that accommodate a traditional mattress are available or you can choose the newer foam mattress option. Plush it up with layers of interesting, textured linens, a thick down duvet and the best pillows you can afford.
Formal dining rooms are decreasing in popularity and designers are providing smaller, more casual options for this space that encourages more frequent use. Dress it down with a counter height table and stools that will lend a pub style feel to your dining area. These sets are available now in durable materials in rich, dark colors that look great with funky place mats and retro cutlery.
The popularity of telecommuting and home based business brings us a helpful trend in furniture for the full-fledged home office. Newer options for computer workstations go beyond cheap laminates from a cash and carry store. Quality wood furnishings that blend with the rest of your home are more widely available in furniture stores and craftspeople are picking up on this trend as well, with current designs to choose from if you want hand crafted quality for your workspace.
For those wanting their computer workstation tucked into the corner of a family room or bedroom, an armoire designed to hold your computer and accessories is a popular choice. They’re not as intrusive as a traditional desk and leave your room looking less cluttered just by closing up the armoire.
The overall concept of using simple, contemporary furniture is to create balance between all elements in the room. Within this trend, there’s great potential to design your own unique look because understated main pieces allow more visual interest in the wall color and texture, accent tables, lamps, accessories and artwork that unify the space.
The real bonus of a trend toward simplicity in furniture designs is how affordable it will be to change the look of your room later on with different colors and accessories and without having to buy new big-ticket furniture. Quality never goes out of style, so buy the best you can, knowing that the flexibility of today’s simple designs will allow you to enjoy your furniture for years to come.
Canvas Storage Shelters
Text by P. Gerbrandt
It’s pretty hard to beat a barn raising when it comes to the efficiency of traditional barn construction, but canvas and laminate rafters for “bio-tech” shelters offer an alternative that can be put up in just a couple of days.
In one case, a customer and his helper were able to get a canvas-covered structure up in just one day. Ease of erecting these durable storage facilities is probably the biggest factor in their favour. The canvas shelters provide storage for farm machinery and hay, or offer shelter for recreational vehicles of all kinds. A “bio-tech” shelter can also serve as an uninsulated garage.
Heavy-duty canvas, available in a variety of colours, is amazingly strong and stands up well to Manitoba’s varying weather conditions. The canvas withstands wind, heat and cold, and snow and rain slide right off. Reasonable care should be taken not to put undue stress on the canvas, and to avoid puncturing or slashing it. Under normal conditions, and with a minimum of maintenance, these canvas structures can serve for years.
The hidden strength of these buildings is in the carefully crafted laminated arch rafters. Once the 3/4” segments are laminated, they are put into a jig and formed into the desired shape. At first, the rafters were made primarily for barns and Quonsets but now these rafters form the skeleton for the increasingly popular canvas structures.
The spans for canvas shelters range from 20 to 46 feet wide. The length of the shelters is determined only by the customer’s needs or budget constraints. The cost of these canvas shelters may be considerable less than that of a storage shelter made with conventional materials. Standard 12 oz. tarpaulin canvas, are available in white, red, black, green and blue.
To prepare the site for the canvas structures, 6” x 6” posts are sunk into the ground, extending 4’ above the surface. The rafters are fastened to the posts. A few weeks after the canvas is put in place, it may need to be tightened.
As temporary shelters go, they provide excellent value. There’s still time to put up a shelter for your boat, RV, or for the hay bales or machinery that need to be protected from snow, rain, wind and sun. It’s hard to top the benefits of a canvas shelter.
Organizing Your Home Organizing Your Life
To organize your home is not just about things looking neat. It’s also about having more time to do the things you want to do, to know where everything is and have peace of mind that what you need is placed where you need to find it.
And we all have a place in our home that needs work, whether it’s simply a junk drawer in the kitchen, the “spare” bedroom that has become a catch-all for anything that you don’t know what to do with or an entire house where things are left out because there isn’t room or a place to put them.
So with the New Year approaching, wouldn’t it feel great to finally get in control of what you have and to get rid of what you don’t need? Therefore, all that remains is what is really and truly important to you and you can see and/or find everything – finally!
But you don’t have to try and figure out how to do it alone. If you could have, you probably would have by now. So that’s why bringing in an expert such as the owner of For Space Sake, Pauline Boisselle can really transform your space – and your life.
Pauline and her staff have been helping people be clutter free and organized since 1989 and say, “If we can help you sleep an extra 10 minutes a day because everything is in its place: then we have done our job!”
They can help you improve your closets, kitchen, bath, laundry, garage, living room, den, basement and even mudroom! You can do everything from improve your “under the sink” storage to installing bike racks in the garage.
Going to the store is inspiring as the bright white space is inviting and organized – everything you want your space to be. And you can decide, depending upon your budget and your level of commitment, whether you want to just put a few shelves in your existing closet to help make a little room or go in and redo the whole thing!
For Space Sake offers a complimentary in-home consultation, so that you can show the area that you want to work on and a consultant can show you options of different ways to approach the space. The great thing about this is that it doesn’t cost you anything and you are getting fresh eyes on a problem that you haven’t been able to solve on your own. You’d be amazed at how a few small changes can really reinvent a space and how much difference it will make in your home and in your life.
Investing in making those few small changes will save you time and energy in the long run. No longer will you spend your morning rushing around looking for your things or evenings on your knees, trying to get at something unreachable at the back of the cupboard underneath the sink.
You can live an organized and efficient life. Just call For Space Sake and they can show you how.
Text by Stephanie Dickison
Photography by Fred Elcheshen
Small Space Secrets
Text by Alison Macpherson
If your living space makes a car trunk look spacious, have no fear – help is here!
The secrets to a small space involve the principles of height. It means use your vertical space to best advantage. Dividing a room into four vertical sections can help. High level is for long term storage, eye level is for simplicity to make your space look uncluttered, hand level is for organized, functional space and low level is for easy access storage.
Look for high spots to add an extra shelf or tuck away storage bins. In the top of closets and above kitchen cupboards are two places to check. At eye level, let there be some open space combined with simple decorative things you really love to look at.
Keep your surfaces like countertops, tables and desks as clutter free as possible. Clean horizontal lines give a feeling of spaciousness.
Use low spaces under the couch and under the bed for storage. A small pedestal table draped with a floor length tablecloth is a good hiding spot too.
