Small space, small projects, big impact

Tags

Apartment door, change table, Creativity, painting projects, refinish dresser, Small Spaces

Sometimes I have been hesitant to do to much in our small space for fear of overwhelming the space, however so far any changes I have made have really added to the space! Though all my walls are still white I’ve added a few touches of paint to other surfaces.

The door to our little condo is simply a flat panel door that was painted white (of course!) rather than go to a whole lot of work and try to add wood trim to give it depth and make it match the rest of the interior doors, I simply took a small can of black paint and some painting tape and only left a square of white showing. Here is how it turned out!

The second project I did was simply add a little paint to an old (1800’s) dresser my parents had sitting in their basement. It is going to be used as a change table for the new baby as well as store basically everything of his. I simply applied 2 coats of turquoise paint then took some sand paper to it. I have a little bit of a fox theme going so I added brass fox hardware from Anthropologie.com This is how it turned out!

Julene

Stretching Your Wardrobe

Tags

Clothes, Creativity, Fashion, Minimalism

How many times have you opened your closet, full of clothes, and thought “I have nothing to wear!” When trying to live with fewer clothes, this is a thought that has the potential to make you think that you can’t be fashionable as you are forced to stick with the basics. I hope to offer a little hope as often even with just the basics, the options are many if only you think creatively and use accessories to trick everyone into thinking you have on a completely different outfit when really it is only slightly different.

Below are 6 basic wardrobe pieces and 3 accessories worn in many different ways. These pictures are to illustrate how with a little creativity and the right basic pieces, your wardrobe can literally expand right before your eyes. You may think of even more options than I have!

1) dark jeans (by Guess)
2) black skirt (from Aritzia)
3) black dress (by BCBG, Max Azria)
4) black blazer (by Calvin Klein)
5) stripped 3/4 sleeve shirt (from Club Monaco)
6) lace tank top (from Aritzia)

1) brown skinny leather belt (from The Gap)
2) brown leather wrap around belt (by Stephanel)
3) silk and sequinned faux collar (by Stephanel)

A special thank you to my little sister for being such a fabulous model!

Julene

Beauty of style and harmony and grace and good rhythm depend on simplicity

~ Plato

Making Room in My Mind

Tags

Creativity, Mental Health

One of the most monumental and positive ways in which simplifying has opened up room in my life has been by way of my mental health.  Simplifying meant getting rid of the extra physical stuff that used to use up so much of my time, energy and money so that I can think clearly.  With no (or very little) visual clutter to stress the eyes and reorganize, no TV to distract me and a much less intense shopping or cleaning schedule to maintain, I have been freed financially to spend less hours per week in wage labour enabling me to now focus on my mental health.  Several times a month, I see a counselor who is helping me to understand and think through my personality, fears, desires, spirituality and life in general.  This has been one of the most rewarding experiences.

It is through this focus on my inner self that I am coming to understand my own self and come to terms with and embrace who I really am even if that means finding my way in the world in a way that doesn’t match up with the dominant and culturally accepted way of going through life here in North America.  Embracing my creative, non-linear and highly sensory personality has given me a new lens through which to view life, one that doesn’t necessarily follow the paths we are prepared for through the primary, secondary and post-secondary school systems…and that is ok.  What a liberating way to live, that allows me in faith to be like the wind, to embrace my free-flowing spirit which when put in a box and squashed only leads to depression , anxiety and general unhappiness. I have so much more to offer my husband, family, friends, and the world when I understand my self.

While I am only beginning this journey and so don’t have it all sorted, I am looking forward to seeing what creative outpourings come out of living with a healthier mind that accepts who I am and where I am going.  And so it is with an as of yet hesitant but hopeful heart that I write from a mind that is slowly being cleared of the clutter; from a mind that I now have room in my life to make healthy and happy.

-Julene

“Every child is an artist, the problem is staying an artist when you grow up.” – Pablo Picasso

(…)mental health… is not a destination but a process.  It’s about how you drive, not where you’re going.  The therapist is like a driving instructor, not a chauffeur.”  ―  Noam Shpancer,The Good Psychologist: A Novel

Think Outside the Closet

Tags

Creativity, Small Spaces

I believe that one can live simply, minimally and still entertain friends, have hobbies and live in a beautiful space.  To do this however, creative storage solutions are a necessity in order to create functional and visually appealing spaces.  In my last post I promised a few small space storage solutions, so here are a couple of examples from my own home to get your creative juices flowing.

Closets are sometimes a rarity in small spaces, especially if your space was built at a time when people had less stuff, therefore less need for space to store stuff.  I live in such a place and so decided to reserve my one and only (long and narrow) closet for things that I wanted out of sight.  I decided there were other things beside clothes that should use up that prime real estate.  Our closet became a broom and bike closet which took care of the functional items I wanted to keep but didn’t have a place to store (after all, small spaces especially have to be clean and getting rid of my bicycle was not an option!)  This left the problem of where to actually put our clothes.  Our bed has built-in drawers on either side so those took care of folded items.  For hanging items, I used galvanized plumbing pipe from our local hardware store to create an “open concept” closet in the bedroom. (See picture)  It is highly functional, only cost about $40, doesn’t take up floor space and looks great!

 

Tip: Using wood hangers (vintage or otherwise) to hang all your clothes is a great way to preserve the shape of your clothes and I think it makes your clothes look nicer on the hanger!  Makes you feel like you are shopping at a boutique every time you get dressed!

While I am no Van Gogh, I love to express myself creatively so I needed a good way to store art supplies.  I downsized to the ones I thought that in reality I would actually use and then put them all in a vintage suitcase that I wanted to have out as a “decorative” item.  In the end then, I successfully stored my hobby supplies, found a reason to keep a decorative item and placed it so it could be used as a side table in a pinch.  (See picture)  Now that is small space storage that works for me!

There are a myriad of ways to be creative with storage so I simply share these two examples to show that you don’t have to rely on closets, basements and “storage rooms” in order to house the things you wish to keep in your life.  Of course the less you have the easier it is to store, however at the end of the day a pencil is still needed to draw, so making room for those activities that give you life is important!

Have some clever ideas that might help out others searching for small space storage solutions, or have a small space storage issue you could use some help with?  Feel free to leave a comment!  I’d love to hear how you make your small (or not so small) space work for you or give you some ideas if your space doesn’t seem to be working so well for you!

-Julene