4 New Year's Resolutions for Your Home

Ahhh, 2018 will soon be upon us. This is when you’ll sit down and draw up a list of everything you are definitely-for-sure-100-percent going to accomplish in order to become a more accomplished person, like finally becoming a dedicated yogi or growing award-winning parsley in the backyard. That’s great, we applaud you for committing to your hobbies or health! But what about your home?

If you are an apartment dweller, renter or homeowner, there are probably some projects you can pick up that will make your home cleaner, updated or just plain safer. We’ve put together some common New Year’s home resolutions with suggestions on achieving and then maintaining these changes through the next year. Bonus: these resolutions also make good inside DIY projects until it warms up enough to work outdoors.

This is probably the most common home resolution and for good reason. We’re on the tail end of the season of gift-giving and major shopping sales, so you’ve probably doubled the amount of “stuff” taking up space in the house. Time to use the three ‘E’s’: enlist, evaluate, edit.

• Enlist everyone in the de-cluttering; reserve a Saturday for the whole family to divide up the house and clean out every room.
• Evaluate toys, books, tools, appliances, clothes and various knick-knacks taking up space. What are you still using daily or weekly? What can be donated and what can be tossed?
• Edit these items and get them out of the house!

The next step is probably more difficult: keeping the house clutter-free and organized after your deep clean. We’ve written before about storage solutions for New Year’s resolutions so we’ll try not to repeat ourselves too much here. Needless to say, chests, cabinets, ottomans and other pieces of furniture that can store belongings while adding style to your home are a great way to keep the house clean. Stick to a cleaning schedule in order to make picking up after yourself a habit. You can also resolve to do a deep clean and de-clutter three or four times a year, that way you won’t have to put it off until the end of the year.

Is your couch starting to sag and fade? Have you been putting off replacing your uncomfortable mattress? Is your bookcase one knick-knack away from collapsing?

The first step is to draw up a budget. Hopefully this was part of your resolutions anyway! If you are only replacing one piece then decide how much you can afford to spend for it. If there are several items you plan to replace, consider spreading it out so that you can work the purchases into a monthly or even quarterly budget.

Next, decide what piece is the most important to you. If the quality of your beauty rest is dropping, it’s time to start researching new mattresses. Determine what size you’re looking for and what style of mattress would best suit your sleep needs. We have an entire section of Hm, etc. called Sleep Better! which is dedicated to helping you research new mattresses.

The beginning of a new year is also a great time to start transitioning your style if you want to switch up the interior design of your home. You don’t have to toss out an entire room of furniture to start fresh, instead work piece by piece. If you plan to transition your living room, you can start small by changing out wall décor, ottomans and other accent furniture and even change the paint color. Depending on your budget, you can then move on to replacing the sofas and sectionals.

‘Tis the season for inside DIY projects! Now is a good time of year to get a jump start on the home maintenance projects that get pushed aside during the year such as repairs and energy-saving adjustments.

According to the Department of Energy, an energy-efficient heating system alone is not enough to have a significant impact on utility bills and reduce your carbon footprint. They recommend using the “whole-house approach” and offer excellent advice for making small changes in almost every room. These include insulating your water heater and pipes and using a power strip for electric devices and turning it off when not in use. During this season of cold weather and furnace use, these are some easy adjustments to make that may help you save money while still keeping you warm.

Another good indoor project is to freshen up a room by re-painting it. This is a fairly easy way to change the style and feel of a room without changing out every piece of furniture. Choose a new color from Pantone’s list of the colors for 2017 or do some online research into what you want. Do you want the room to feel bigger or brighter? Are you trying to make it warm and cozy?

Now can also be a good time to clean patio furniture. You can clean, repaint or put a new coating on your furniture to make sure it’s in top condition when spring rolls back around. This will also allow you to evaluate your outdoor furniture to see what may need to be replaced in a few months.

Pick a weekend or two and get to work!

So you have an extra room or space that has just been languishing as a storage room. Maybe you had high hopes when you first moved into your home to turn that extra bedroom into a home theater or perhaps you need a home office and the only space is in the basement. Whatever your situation, use your space wisely to create a brand new addition to your home.

Home theaters are becoming easier to integrate into your house now that Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, HBO GO and other subscription services give you access to unlimited television and movies. This can also be a good way to spend time with family and friends indoors. Again, start by creating a budget then evaluate your space.

If you have a large room going unused you can bring in the ultimate component of a home theater space: home theater seating. Nothing says a cozy night in watching movies better than a big leather recliner with cup holders or a sectional that fits the entire family (and the dog!). Store the TV, gaming console, games and movies in a new entertainment center that will also add fresh style to the room.

Carving out a dedicated home office may work wonders for your productivity- much better than camping out at the dining room table every day! If you have an unused space in the basement or spare room where you can fit a desk and office chair, you’re already halfway there! If there is not enough space for a filing cabinet or bookcase, choose a desk with plenty of storage options for filing papers.