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The art of non-dreaded decluttering

January 25th  •  Posted in Lifestyle

Decluttering with Marie Kondo's 'The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up' book

You might remember me (or anyone really) raving about Marie Kondo’s The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up book around this time last year and swearing by the fact that it drastically changed my way of organizing, storing and, in particular, getting rid of things. Well, last year I had a major wardrobe decluttering session I was extremely proud of after reading the book, and felt extremely inspired to see how I’d get on with maintaining my wardrobe a tidy space (which has never really been in it’s entire existence, really).

As with every January, this time of the year I feel very excited about fresh new starts and feel the urge of renewing everything I can see and think of. I was curious to see the results of Marie Kondo’s technique after one entire year, and so started tidying my wardrobe from top to bottom, and… I can now say I have finally discovered the art of non-dreaded decluttering!

The Art of Non-Dreaded Decluttering
January decluttering and the best ever method to fold and store clothes
My beloved tea section after decluttering my bookcase
Decluttering every little corner of the room!

Although I’m not sure how healthy it can be to take everything in Marie Kondo’s book too literally, it’s such an interesting read I can’t help but want to suggest to anyone. I’m especially a big fan of her decluttering method, that helped me get rid of so many things I have accumulated over the years and have never been able to decide what to do with them.

Last year the pile of clothes I was finally getting rid of was 3x the pile of what was going back into my wardrobe. Not only it helped me a whole lot with storing things and finding what I was looking for, but I discovered my wardrobe contained things I didn’t even remember I have bought or I was never able to find before… and I used to tidy my closet twice a year, it’s not to say I’ve never tried!

Not only I didn’t need to tidy my closet in Summer last year, but what’s even better, I was amazed by how quick this year’s wardrobe decluttering and tidying ended up being! I went through all my pieces of clothing and discovered only a very very small pile haven’t been useful this past year, which basically means I have used 90% of my closet during the year and I still love and want to wear every single piece that’s in there!

The Art of Non-Dreaded Decluttering
How my vision of tidying and decluttering has changed drastically

This basically means this January my only tidying task was getting rid of what I have realized I’m not going to use anymore during the year. And then put everything back in there, in order of what I’ll wear and in which season. I also found very inspiring most of Marie Kondo’s techniques of folding and storing clothes, which I’m still sticking to this time!

Half-an-hour later I was already done with my wardrobe and felt so inspired that I decided it was about time to do some serious decluttering in the whole room. I finally have a nicely tidy bookcase, and you know when they say ‘tidy space, tidy mind‘? Well, I don’t know how I was working all these past months when all I could see was a big overcluttered mess right next to me! I was even able to build a little neat tea section (because that makes me happy!) where before there was only space for randomly piling things up between one shelf and another.

Just in case you are curious, I’ve popped a couple more clothes I can’t quite bear the thought of throwing away (because they’re pretty good in conditions) on my Depop page for only a few ££ (everything under £10), just because I believe they should have a second chance and find a new home!

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How about you and your relationship with decluttering and tidying?

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My Achievable New Year’s Resolutions

January 4th  •  Posted in Lifestyle

My Achievable New Year's Resolutions

Well hello there! I hope you’ve had a good start of the year so far!

This being the very first post of 2017, I though I’d stick to the bloggers cliché of writing down some New Year’s resolution and start a chat about a few of the things I’d like to achieve this year.

In the last couple of days I’ve seen everyone coming up with a magic formula on how to set the perfect goals for the year, everyone saying to be very specific and detailed to be able to achieve your goals in 2017. However, as you might remember, I’m not one for setting big overwhelming goals at all, and one thing I’ve learned in the years is that I rather like to set small achievable New Year’s resolutions that motivate myself, showing me how I can do them in a short amount of time and what I realistically need in order to tick them off, instead of loading myself with the weigh of huge unrealistic goals I will probably not be able to tick off my list in 5 years time (like reading *insert any number* of books per month).

Sure, I’d really like to have my own flat by the end of 2017, and buy my own car and make my business amazing and popular, but those kind of things doesn’t really depends on myself and they could come as well as not come. I’ve learned to appreciate where I’ve come so far instead, and give myself a pat on the shoulder for it.

My Achievable New Year's Resolutions
My Achievable New Year's Resolutions

Especially under a personal level, I’ve come to a nice balance during the latest year, and what my achievable New Year’s resolutions actually include is simply continuing with what I’ve built this past year and keep it going!

In particular, I’d like to continue to…

Cultivate my hobbies – 2016 taught me that there’s not enough time in a day to do everything. The thing is that I am passionate to so many things, but with working from home and being my own boss, it can be easy for me to forget about all the things I love doing and work day and night instead. In particular I’ve discovered knitting last year and a few hats later, I’m so passionate about it that I really want to find more time in my days to start new exciting projects! I’m sure this is something that can easily become part of my early morning or nighttime routine…

Eat healthy – I’ve learnt healthy eating is more of a habit than anything else. I’ve started my journey at the beginning of last year and, although it wasn’t easy to start with, as the months went by, I started eating healthy foods on a daily basis almost naturally, without thinking about it too much. I really think, as long as you keep doing it every single day (of course I like me some ice cream every now and then) without feeling it like a severe rule, healthy eating is more of a habit to cultivate and I’d really like to keep going with it.

Be active – This might sound the usual fitness goal, but really I’ve already started this last Summer and all I want to do from now on is keep it up! It’s a tiny bit more challenging to be active in the colder months, but I can’t wait for the new season to get out there for my daily walks, that used to do me and my mind a whole lot of good each time!

Be my best boss – As you know, I’m running my own business since 2015, and last year was the year of settling down, building a portfolio and understanding the direction I wanted to take with it all. I have a lot of plans for 2017 (which you might have already heard of if you’re subscribed to my newsletter), some bigger some smaller, but I also would like to put myself first: I should be kinder to myself, stick to my working hours and avoid feeling overwhelmed because I would like to do it all and I feel like there’s never enough time. I really need to work on that this year…

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That’s it, really! I would also love to hear about YOUR achievable New Year’s resolutions! Let me know! x

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The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year

December 27th  •  Posted in Lifestyle

The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year

Oh hey! Hope y’all have had the loveliest Christmas and Boxing Day! I spent both in bed with a terrible flu, but was spoilt to the very best presents and some heartwarming love, so I won’t complain!

A couple of days before Christmas we took some time to test our Holiday’s table setting with the help of the lovely people at Talking Tables. I couldn’t help but want to share what we come up with as inspiration for your own table settings for  what rests of the Holidays!

The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year
The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year
The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year
The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year
The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year
The Most Wonderful Table Setting Of The Year

All party & table props ℅ Talking Tables

The white and gold modern theme worked out so well that we’re basically all set for New Year’s Eve now! I’m a huge fan of the metallic balloons as well as anything you can hang to the ceiling like those glittery gold star ornaments. But the best part is that, although all the tableware looks incredibly beautiful and realistic, it’s all made of paper or plastic, so you don’t even have to worry about washing it all afterwards! We decided to only go for real glasses though, because toasting is mandatory on New Year’s Eve!

Hopefully, if you were a little stuck for New Year’s Eve table setting and you’re hosting a little something, this was a tiny bit inspiring!

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This post is the last one for 2016, talk you next year! In the meanwhile I’m sending all my best wishes to you and your families for a happy New Year and what rests of the Holidays! x

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