HYD Blog
thoughts on dwelling
While sometimes an area in our home needs a good ol’ fashion overhaul, that doesn’t have to be the answer every time. Often what can help us more is small changes based on what we are already in the habit of doing. As they say, we are creatures of habit—so make them work for you instead of working against them.
Entry way by Meegan Buschor of Mia Interiors
When March rolls in, we move out… outside! It’s that time of year to transition our lives from cozy and cuddled to playing and planting. Spring is just around the corner and we want to come alongside you to help transition your home and life for the changing days ahead. Each week this month we will bring you helpful insights, inspirations, and steps for you to get a kickstart on spring organizing.
Let’s begin with the places in our homes we use every single day! Do you think much about your entry ways? We’re talking about any space that welcomes you and your people into your home. This could be your front hallway, garage entry way or mud room. Whatever you call your “drop your things and kick off your shoes” space… we’ve got some tips for you to get you ready for a new season.
Inspiration from @industrieelchique
PURGE
Begin with a fresh start! As you look at your entry way, consider what clothing, jackets, or shoes may be piling up that you may not need anymore. Perhaps kids have outgrown shoes. Start by pulling everything out and organize them in piles with like objects. Sort through each pile determining what to keep and what could be dropped it off at your local KARM store.
Tessa Hop’s natural tones brings simplicity to this clean entry way.
ORGANIZE
Put away your winter coats (when its finally warm enough!) and your heavy boots in their off season home. Pull out that rain jacket and gardening shoes to replace your winter gear! As you enjoy the simplicity that comes as bulky clothes leave, leave only what you need in this area as it can become cluttered easily. Start with assigning a hook, cabinet, or cubby to each person in your home.
Consider decorative bins or a shoe rack or tray for your remaining shoes to stay tidy. Tyne Martinez of Atlanta, in an article on The Scout Guide recommends “choosing a material that adds interest without detracting from the house’s aesthetic, and opting for a style that reflects the formality of the abode.”
Here are a few links for items much like you see in Tessa’s simple and stylish entry.
Juniper Home’s recent mud room reveal has us drooling!
DECORATE
As always, we want to walk into a beautiful home as well as a functional one… but keep it simple! A small antique table for your keys can add some charm to a small entry way. A welcoming bench brings a warm space for taking off muddy spring boots. Save a hook to show off your favorite hat or basket full of spring flowers! Transition a favorite piece of art or collectible to display in this area to bring some life and warmth.
Unsure where to start when considering donating unused items from your home? Read these past HYD blog posts on donations:
Are you constantly running out of hangers? Is your closet overflowing? It's time to give some thoughtful attention to your closet. We’re sharing some tips, products and ways to get your closet organized.
Fall has finally arrived. Let's hope the weather follows soon! We are devoting the month of September to an often neglected and problem area of our homes. You guessed it... the closets.
What better way to get motivated and organized than joining us in the:
For 4 weeks (every Thursday in the month of September) we will pick a specific closet to focus on in your home. Our blog will feature inspiration and tips to help you conquer your closets one week at a time. We want to see your completed projects each week! Post a photo to Facebook or Instagram (by the Monday after the blog is posted) with the hashtag #HYDFallChallenge . We will pick one random winner each week to receive the prize of a lovely HYD Canvas Tote!
Because your closets need some love every now and then.
Because you will create space in your closets for the things you need and love.
Because you might win a beautiful HYD canvas tote.
Because purging and creating space in your closets will inspire you to declutter other areas.
Because donating and giving back to your community is life giving.
Begin by taking everything out of the closet (or cabinets).
Separate the contents in a way that makes sense to you.
Sort into categories.
Put back the contents that are here to stay.
Fall is approaching; this means brisk mornings, pumpkin flavored everything, UT football games, and the holiday seasons approaching faster than we realize. As the weather transitions seasonally, so does our wardrobe.
Is your closet full to the brim? Do you have clothes you rarely wear that are in mint condition? Would you love to make room for some new pieces? Want to make a little money on the clothes you can part with? What if we told you this was possible while also partnering to make a meaningful impact in 125 lives in our community?
We are so excited to invite you to StateMint | An Upscale Consignment Event. This event was founded by Sarah McAffry, a Knoxville native who realized that Knoxville is full of fashion conscious women and men who need an event like this to buy and sell current fashions.
Thursday, September 29 | 10 am - 8 pm
Friday, September 30 | 10 am - 8 pm
6700 Jubilee Center Way
Knoxville, TN,
37912 United States
Have more questions? Ask away!
Share the event with your friends and follow StateMintStyle on Instagram.
I'm taking the plunge and I'm inviting you to join me.
If you aren't familiar with the concept of a capsule wardrobe, essentially, it is a simplified wardrobe of versatile pieces that you love wearing. In other words, for each season, you pick a certain number of items and wear only those. For the Summer season, I will be picking 37 items (including tops, bottoms, dresses, outerwear, and shoes) and donating, or packing away the rest.
I have a closet and a dresser full of clothes that don't often get worn. I gravitate towards a handful of clothes that are my favorites. I love clothes but I hate my tendency to try on 85 different outfits only to go back to those favorite pieces that make me feel awesome. In an effort to practice what I preach when it comes to an organized and decluttered life style, I am committing to a capsule wardrobe plan for my summer.
One of my 2 closets currently
Why am I doing this?
1. I want to buy less but buy better quality.
2. I want my mornings to be more simplified
3. I'm interested to see whether I get bored wearing the same items in various combinations or whether it's freeing to have less to choose from.
4.My closet space is limited and not designed well. I want to be able to see clearly what I have and currently I have too many clothes for my space.
So, over the course of the next week I"ll be narrowing down my wardrobe and will report back in 2 weeks to let you know what items I chose for my Summer Capsule and how it's all going.
For more information about what a capsule wardrobe is, check out this description. Want to know how to build one? Here is a guide.
Another beautiful East Tennessee day with birds chirping and pops of color everywhere!
Let's finish out the month of March with a couple more simple tasks to help you enjoy the rest of Spring.
Image: JollyEdition
Spring is filled with wedding and baby showers, birthday parties and the like. Take a moment to check your paper pile and your inbox to find all the RSVPs and give yourself just 15-20 little minutes to knock them all out and make sure to add the events you plan to attend to your calendar now!
image: Martha Stewart
Nothing is better for sleeping than a fresh, clean set of sheets. Make it easier on yourself to grab that clean set by matching all your sheet sets and placing them inside the coordinating pillow case. While you're at it, discard any unmatched or stained pieces you no longer need.
Now that the weather is getting nicer we have been finding it hard to stay motivated to be inside all day. Often organizing can be time consuming but we have come up with a few more ways to declutter in quick spurts so you don't waste your day away. I often find that the kitchen is the easiest part of the house to purge. Offices are hard because of the surplus of paper, closets are hard due to the volume of items that get crammed in so they aren't seen, kitchens, however, are really easy to purge in a timely manner.
image:designsponge
1. Take a quick scan through all of your kitchen cabinets and drawers and remove anything that you haven't used in the past year. We all have those random items that someone gave us, or we found in the car etc that somehow end up in our cabinets and never come out. We all have duplicates and half working items as well. Now is the time. You have our permission to give away the mismatched plastic cups, the chipped mugs, and the really unfortunate serving platter from your great aunt. When you have room in your kitchen cabinets to clearly see the things you love, you will be more likely to use them.
We have found this article to be helpful when we feel like we need permission to purge.
image: goodhousekeeping.com
2. Purge your fridge. Maybe it's just me but I always seem to accrue salad dressings and condiments and promptly forget about them. Take 5 minutes to check the expiration dates on items in your fridge that you typically don't think about. While your at it, a quick scan of your pantry can't hurt either. Pay attention to canned and bottled items that we tell ourselves "last forever". I promise they don't.
Source Unknown
“Do a little something today that your future self will thank you for.”
It's week two in our Spring Cleaning campaign. The warm weather is creeping in, daffodils & crocus are popping up and step-by-step you're moving to more order and peace in your home.
Last week we focused on ordering our bathroom closet & tidying up our email inbox. Keeping it simple and achievable, this week we move to our bedroom closet and the kitchen.
1. Donate or consign all your fancy dresses you bought for that one occasion and said, "I'll wear that again" and never did. Repeat Boutique in West Knoxville is a great option if you choose to consign. If you choose to donate, you may have a friend that comes to mind that might love to get your fancy dress or any of the local thrift shops would gladly welcome your donation.
2. Take everything out from under your kitchen sink, clean the cabinet and put back only what you use regularly. No tricks here. Just keep it simple.
Source Unknown
“That’s what decluttering is: taking time to decide what’s important enough to remain in your life. It’s not about getting rid of everything, or emptying your life completely. It’s about figuring out what matters to you. And then getting rid of what doesn’t.”
For the month of March our blog entries will be centered around Spring Cleaning. Rather than overwhelming you with long detailed lists of things to do each week, we will give you two quick ideas to break up your work into manageable weekly to-do’s. We want to keep it simple and to the point while giving you helpful tips to stay motivated.
1. Take a trash bag to your bathroom and fill it with anything you don’t use or anything that has expired. For items that haven’t expired but you don’t use, think about donating to a homeless shelter (The Volunteer Ministry Center or KARM) or giving them to a friend. Let yourself off the hook and don’t guilt yourself into keeping a bottle of face wash that you hate just because you used it once and didn’t like the result. In the future, look for small bottles when trying out a new product or do some online research and read customer ratings before buying.
2. Go through your email and open up any email that you didn’t sign up for or always delete before reading and unsubscribe yourself. One less piece of junk mail clogging up your brain and your inbox. * https://unroll.me/ makes it easier to unsubscribe from multiple emails at a time
