Your Comprehensive Guide to a Home Refresh
Let harmony and order reign this spring by embracing a little seasonal reset at home
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Your Comprehensive Guide to a Home Refresh
Let harmony and order reign this spring by embracing a little seasonal reset at home
By: Charlotte OlbyWith warmer temperatures on the horizon, and, dare we say it, sunshine starting to stream through (a gentle reminder to get the window cleaner in), it's never too late to embark on a spring clean, getting your home refreshed and ready for brighter days. We could all benefit from some exhaustive spring cleaning tips - from an all-mighty decluttering to new linens and most importantly: fresh scents to nod to nature’s reawakening. Here’s how to let every room of your home sing this season...
Start with a Spring Clean
D.S. & Durga I Don't Know What Eau de Parfum 50ml, £155
‘Tis the season for a little housekeeping. Start by taking stock - donating or rehoming items that no longer serve a purpose to reduce clutter and reorganise wardrobes, cupboards and even the fridge with stylish storage. Aside from the typical top-to-bottom hoover, dust and tidy consider tackling your spring refresh on a room-by-room basis to get a sense for what each space needs.
If you’re up to the challenge, perhaps that means a DIY project like wallpaper or reupholstery to really bring a room to life again. Or, it can really be as simple as lending a new season shine to your pots and pans (ketchup works well to dissolve tarnish), appliances (use a bowl of lemon and vinegar to tackle the microwave) and silverware (buff over a mix of three parts baking soda with one part water).
Make a lasting impact with your usual cleaning routine by adding some drops of cologne or perfume to warm water, and mop the hard floors of your home before guests arrive. The scent will have even more staying power than they do. Go further with a fragrance enhancer with ‘no real notes’ that works to simply underline any fragrant material with an, with, um, ‘I don’t know what’, but it works.
Read more: transform your living room into a sanctuary
Scent the Space
Liberty Hera Scented Candle 300g, £52
Shake off the last of the winter and welcome in the sunnier climes with scent. After all, flowers aren’t the only way to add blooms to your home, so why not try a new candle too? Smell is the strongest of the human senses, so scientifically speaking, utilising fragrance in the right way can help to make every room of your home as inviting as possible.
Finding a signature scent for your home is just as important as the one you wear everyday. Scent is intrinsically linked to memory, just catch the subtlest hint of a fragrance you recognise and it will immediately conjure up the memory of a specific place. Think about the hallway as the room to set the tone and choose to welcome guests with an inviting, calm fragrance and move throughout the house with scents to cocoon in the living room, uplift in the office and blanket with a fresh breeze in the bathroom. Top tip: make your fragrance multitask harder by spraying your radiators before you heat them up. The gradual warmth will diffuse your chosen scent and make it linger longer.
Liberate Your Linens
Loewe Home Fragrance 150ml, £92
Wave goodbye to grey winter days and swap neutrals for brights to bring the sunshine indoors. This means tackling your soft furnishings room-by-room. Simply throwing on some fresh Liberty sheets or adding new towels to the bathroom can help make a space feel renewed. Unlaundered linens can make even the cleanest rooms feel undone so make sure to put all your fabric pieces through the wash including bed linens, curtains, throws and cushion covers.
While your bedding should be washed fortnightly – if not weekly – your fluffier sleeping accessories like pillows and duvets should be thrown into your washing machine at least twice a year. Re-enact your own turndown service with a set of new sheets and go the extra mile by ensuring you have upgraded any lumpy mattresses or lack of lighting on your nightstand.
Entertaining guests? Spritz down table linens and napkins with your signature scent to allow a subtle air of familiarity to settle between the seats. For any expectant overnight guests, consider enlivening your bedrooms with scented candles, fresh soaps and add lavender water to your iron and pass over bedding once on the bed for that crisp hotel feel.
Read more: wake up happy in your dream bedroom dream bedroom
A Taste of Spring
Diptyque Odour Removing Scented Candle 190g, £56
Before we dive straight into al-fresco entertaining, try segueing slowly by brightening up the indoors first. Think fresh ceramics, blossoming linens and glassware that shines to bring the promise of longer days to the table. While a simple hack is to employ glassware that evokes a feeling of golden hour, like these these Amber Goblets by Maison Balzac, don’t forget to pay some attention to your existing wares. If your glassware is looking a tad cloudy, simply treat your stock to a bath in white vinegar and buff with some baking soda on any tough stains. To prevent future build-up of product, may we suggest handwashing as the right course of action.
Tablescapes should be dedicated to vibrancy and set with lustre that lingers in the air. To do so, focus on ambient light and subtle scents. A candle that neutralises unpleasant odours is as important for your dinner party as the fish you’re serving for the main course, for obvious reasons. Went a little too hard on the festive entertainment? Tackle any nasty stains on your linens with lemon juice (best for tomato and curry stains), diluted dish soap (best for greasy marks) or spot clean with bleach on your whites and leave out in the sun.
Read more: lay the table the Liberty way