HORIZONTAL SURFACES DRIVE ME UP THE WALL!


Did this picture give you JOY when you saw it? Well, my topic today is all about sparking JOY in the way you see things in your home. 

Today I was challenged to look around my home and count the number of horizontal surfaces I currently had. Guess how many I found? 

  • 11 in my master bedroom
  • 6 in the kitchen
  • 12 in the living room
  • 3 in my small bedroom. 

Yes, we live in a 2BHK apartment and these are my horizontal surfaces. 

A horizontal surface is any surface you can sit on or keep something on. Here are some classic examples:
  • Chairs
  • Tables
  • Tops of cupboards and refrigerators
  • Sofa
  • Window sills
  • Ironing board
  • Bed
Look around your home and discover your own. Look at each of them carefully and see if they make you frown with displeasure. If they do, they are cluttered.

Here are some of my horizontal surfaces. Which ones inspire and which one irritate? 







The ideal option, of course, is to have nothing at all on the horizontal surfaces. But that is just not practical, yes? 




So I started watching videos and reading up articles to give me some ideas.

Here are some which I found interesting from the practical point of view as well as the aesthetic point of view.

1)  COREL YOUR ITEMS 
This means you 'contain' the various items into one container - a tray or a basket. The container should look pretty but not create visual loudness if you know what I mean. A wicker basket, a wooden tray, neutral monochromatic colour.




2) APPLY THE RULE OF THREE
On any given surface, restrict the number of items to just three. Corel them if you can for added benefit.


3) REMOVE LABELS
Labels are loud as they are meant to attract so you buy the product. Once in your home, however, they lose their purpose and now bother you. So, decant into clear containers and throw away the packages or better still, peel off the labels if possible and reuse the container.


4) ROTATE ITEMS
If you have lots to display but get fed up dusting them, they are not going to spark joy anymore. A simple trick is to use the rule of three and keep the rest in a box. Rotate them once every three months.  (Fridge magnets come to mind as I write this even though you don't find them on horizontal surfaces.)

5) VERTICAL STORAGE
If the number of items are just too many and they all need to be out there on your horizontal surface, then opt for a sleek vertical organiser that either sits on the surface or is attached to a wall closest to it. That way you have only one item to move around as you clean.


6) HIDE THE HIDEOUS
Often we buy stuff but we have no power over colour scheme. So you'll find a mish mash of colours on any one horizontal surface. Too many different colours clash and create visual clutter. How to solve this problem? Easy! Put them all neatly into one bin that is of the colour which coordinates with the surface and the room its in. I do like white as it goes with everything but if you don't want to use white, try a shade lighter/ darker than your wall paint.

7) CREATE DROP STATIONS
Assign one horizontal surface in each room that is your drop zone. Keep a basket for larger items and a tray for smaller ones. If only one surface is used in this way, all other surfaces can be left bare or you can decorate with just one large item. I mean it, one is enough to make a statement.  

8) DECLUTTER EXTRA FURNITURE 
Sometimes, we hang onto pieces that are handed down to us or ones we have had for too long. We find ways to repurpose them which is not bad in itself but... If you have collected several pieces and feel that they are way too many, bless someone else with them and reduce your visual clutter.

9) FIND A HOME FOR EXTRAS
If you really look around your home, you WILL FIND a place to tuck the extras that are causing visual clutter. If not, declutter your storage places and make a place for ONLY what you really enjoy looking at and using.




I hope you found this helpful. Do share in comments if you have any other ideas I could use to make my home spark joy wherever I look. 

Do share the article with others who you think might benefit. TIA. 

Till the next one, then. Shalom Shanti. 

Toys corelled in a pretty box

Charging wires corelled. 



 

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