theSun Property September 2017

theSun ON FRIDAY

SEPTEMBER 8, 2017

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AVE

you ever experienced

a daywhen suddenly the

cosy ambiance of home

does not seemcomforting

anymore? Once perfect interiors

appear two-bit; cobwebs sitting in

the corners of the ceiling and the

water stains on the sofa andwooden

furniture are all of a sudden staring

at your face; andmind you, the once

attractive and simply soothing

colour theme of home interiors now

looks hideous and has become

almost unbearable.

A home that does not evoke

feelings of warmth, comfort,

contentment and joy obviously

needs serious thought. If the home

is sending you these signals, fret not.

You can restore that once charming

and alluring appeal to interiors with

just a few tweaks here and there.

And the beauty of it is that these

simple solutions can be

accomplished over the weekend.

CLUTTER BE GONE

We’ll start with the basics, which is

decluttering. While some people

can think better creatively in a

messy space, for others it poses a

distraction. Various studies have

shown that clutter steals your

focus, increases stress levels and

contributes to procrastination,

among other negative

consequences.

Declutter the home bit by bit,

room by room. Have boxes or

plastic bags on hand for the stuff

that needs to be thrown out or

packed for recycling. When

starting out in each room, reach in

to hidden spaces including drawers

and shelves settled with dust that

you can’t recall when you last

opened. Empty these and have all

its contents in clear view. Lay down

guidelines on items to keep and

toss out. Some important areas to

work on to regain the lure of home

include:

Kitchen

: leftover or expired

food; kitchen and cooking

utensils or dinnerware sets that

have been a little too well-used;

and expired medications which

should be brought to hospitals

or clinics for disposal and not

dumped into the bin.

Home office

: old and unused

stationery; useless old bills, mail

and paperwork; and unusable

cables and knick-knacks that

can be recycled.

Bedroom

: old or unused

clothing, shoes and jewellery;

old books and magazines that

will never be read again, which

can be donated, recycled or

thrown out.

Living room

: souvenirs from

bygone eras that do not rekindle

a pleasant memory; broken

remote controls; old CDs,

DVDs, cassettes, VCR tapes;

and unused or outdated

decorative pieces that do not

match interior’s theme,

including items you can’t figure

out for the life of you what they

are.

Bathroom

: old and unused

toiletries; excessive or

disorganised supply of toilet

paper rolls and towels; old

toothbrushes and pearly white

products; and expired beauty

products.

THOROUGH CLEANING

Tackling the dust and grime of the

home is another way to make it

sparkle like brand new. Oprah.com

writer Lynn Andriani has a room-

by-room guide that settles the

home in one day – eight hours, to be

exact.

Start in the morning with the

bathroom by vacuuming and then

wiping the walls and ceilings.

Follow by spraying and soaking

shower walls, tubs, floors and sinks

with cleaning agents. While the

solutions are working their magic,

haul up any throw rugs, shower

curtains, window drapery and floor

mats and toss them into the

washing machine. Complete by

rinsing off the cleaning solutions.

Move on to the bedroom, with

vacuuming and then wiping down

the walls and ceilings, followed by

dusting off. Strip the bed of linens

and the windows of

its frills and fancies to be washed.

Open up the windows while

cleaning them, as it also works to

air out the mattress and pillows. If

there are any large area rugs or

wall-to-wall carpeting in the room,

look into hiring a professional to

get these properly steamed and

cleaned.

Next up is the kitchen. Start off

by cleaning out the refrigerator and

freezer. Next, wash its shelves and

compartment trays; and do not

forget to wipe the door seal to

remove any crumbs or debris.

Scrub down the stove, oven and

other cooking appliances to remove

the build-up of grease and stains.

The same goes for counter surfaces

and cabinets – not forgetting knobs

and handles. Amixture of warm

water and dishwashing detergent

should work when scrubbing off

grease. Complete the purge and

cleansing by sweeping, vacuuming

and mopping the floor.

Last stop is the living area. Begin

by cleaning the fans and ceilings.

While using a duster seems natural,

keep dust from flying about by

using an old pillowcase instead;

simply slip the pillowcase over the

fan blade, then wipe the dust off

and into the pillowcase. Move on to

vacuuming and wiping the walls,

cleaning cooled-down lightbulbs

with a damp microfibre cloth,

washing lampshades and lighting

covers. Give all furniture a wipe.

Lastly, vacuum, sweep and mop

under all furniture and furnishing.

ALYSSA J. OON

FRESH COAT OF PAINT

Painting over something is the

cheapest and oldest trick in the

book. There is nothing a fresh coat

of paint cannot cover up, and pretty

much everyone can paint! However,

some planning is required before

you take that brush to the walls.

Start by deciding if youwant to

stay safe and strike out with an

accent wall or go boldwith an entire

room. Then decide which colours

wouldwork. Different colours can

change the entiremood of a space,

so it is important to pick the right

shades and tones, depending on the

room. While shopping for paint,

take home colour cards and tape

them to your wall to visualise how

it will look or use a colour app. Most

paint companies have developed

apps that help consumers visualise

and decide on colours for various

parts of their homes.

Now, paints also come in

different sheens for use in different

areas of the home. Matte paint, for

example, is perfect for low-traffic

areas and hides imperfections. High

traffic andwet areas, on the other

hand, should be paintedwith gloss

or semi-gloss paint, as they are easy

to clean and are reflective, which

help in distributing natural lighting

around the room.

Important note: when painting

interiors, do not skip on primer.

It helps cover imperfections on the

surface and provides a longer-

lasting finish.

RE-ORGANISING LAYOUTS

Sometimes, just a simple nudge of

the couch or reshuffling about of the

furniture can change the entire

image of a room. Especially if a

recent decluttering sessionwas

done, a re-organisation of the room

is in order. If possible, move out all

or most of the furniture in the room

and put themback in, not

necessarily all. It is easier to

visualise and plan a new

arrangement when the roomhas

been cleared of visual obstructions.

Start by bringing in the anchor

pieces, such as the bed or the couch,

or any other large furniture. Once

the bigger items are in place, it is

easier to organise the other smaller

ones around these huge pieces.

If youwant the room to feel

spacious, keep furniture items

roughly three to four inches away

from the walls. This creates the

illusion of the wall being farther

away. For rooms that are often used,

consider the flowof traffic when

planning the arrangement. Paths

should be kept clear of obstacles

andmovement should centre

around anchor pieces, rather than

through them.

Sort your possessions into

similar groups and store these

individual collections of items

together in one area using baskets

or boxes. This method of

organisation ensures that

everything is in its proper place,

further reducing the build-up of

clutter.

Simple works to refresh the

home can be DIY-ed. Avoid heavier

alterations that require the

expertise of professionals, such as

plumbing, electrical and structural

works like installing kitchens, water

features and indoor ponds. While

including plants and greenery could

add a lovely touch to interiors, they

can alsomake or break the entire

look if not precisely selected and

meticulously placed.

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> Simplemakeovers to put appeal back into interiors that have lost its charm

Basic

boosters

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