Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Adjusting Your Home to Reflect the Seasons

The transition from Winter to Spring is always miraculous to me.  Despite Spring’s faithfulness year after year, there’s always a small part of me that is convinced the cold is going to stay with us forever.  Even with the gloom and rain outside today, I can see glimmers of hope that Spring is just around the corner…and let me just say I can’t wait.  There’s something exciting about every new season, and in our home we’ve always added special touches to welcome the coming time of year.  Every few months my Mom sweeps through the house like she’s Mother Nature, herself- adding harvest colored leaves to floral arrangements or evergreen branches to centerpieces.  These little touches have always added so much life to our house, and they’re so simple it’s almost silly not to try them.  Here are some ideas to consider if  you’re looking to welcome Spring in your home:

Tis’ the Season for Fresh Flowers



Don’t wait for your significant other to fill your house with flowers, seize the day and treat yourself to a fresh arrangement!  If you’re looking for a classic Spring medley choose flowers like Daffodils, Tulips, Dogwood, Hyacinths, Lilac, and Peonies.  If you’re not confident in your ability to arrange flowers, you can even sign up for a Flower of the Month club and enjoy large, seasonal arrangements delivered straight to your doorstep.

Think Light



Spring is the time to lighten up the colors and fabrics in your home.  No need to buy  a new sofa, but if you have throw pillows or blankets in heavy fabrics, try replacing them temporarily with linens, sheerer textures or even removing them altogether.  There’s no need to go crazy with pastels (in fact, please don’t), but don’t be afraid to incorporate lighter colored accessories like picture frames and vases.  You may not use these items year round, but you will be able to store them and use them for a long time to come.  

Switch up your Scents



No more pumpkin, spiced apple, evergreen or fireside sprays.  Pick up some cotton smelling candles, or a lavender air freshener.  Anything that brings to mind the word “fresh” should do the trick.  Gifts that Give, an organization that donates part of each sale to charity, has a fantastic assortment of candles like Washed Cotton, Blueberry Basil and Green Gardens for about $25.

Make some room
They call it Spring cleaning for a reason!  The sooner you can force yourself to suffer through the necessary organizing and de-cluttering, the more time you’ll be able to enjoy the fruits of your labor.  Plus if you wait until it gets too nice out, you’ll have to fight against even more distractions, so make a plan to deep clean right away.  Martha Stewart has an excellent Spring Cleaning checklist that may help, check it out before you get started.

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