Organizing - Organizing Ideas

New Year resolutions for your home

By
Yuki Hayashi
Photography by
Pottery Barn

Give your home some TLC with 10 resolutions that you can accomplish right now.

5 "I resolve to repaint at least one room in the house."
Advertisement
  • Changing up your wall colour is an easy and inexpensive way to update the decor of your home.

6 "I promise to start packing my own lunch for at least the month of January."

  • Commit for one month and it may just become a new habit.
  • You’ll save money. Lots of it!
  • It’s healthier. From-home meals usually have less fat, sodium and calories than convenience foods or restaurant meals.

7 "I resolve to implement a no-shoes-in-the-house rule, especially if I have kids."
  • Studies have shown lead and other hazardous materials can be tracked into homes on shoes. Not good for your interior air quality – or floor surfaces that kids play on!
  • Sand and other debris can cause the finish on your floors to degrade faster, necessitating costly refinishing -- or replacement.

8 "I'm going to develop a green thumb with indoor plants."
  • Indoor plants filter volatile organic compounds (VOCs) like benzene, formaldehyde and trichloroethylene from indoor air. NASA, in fact, has used them to purify the air in its space station. Their top picks? The Areca, lady and bamboo palm trees, rubber plant and dracena.

9 "I’ll test my Co2 detector, smoke detectors and fire extinguisher, or install them if I haven’t already done so."
  • It's an easy way to protect your family.
  • Also protects your biggest investment – your home – from damage, and avoids the insurance-premium increases that can result.

10 "I vow to spring-clean my cleaning cupboard by getting rid of cleaners I don’t use –  and buying dedicated cleaners for everything I need to protect."
  • Protect your furniture investments. Why streak-up pricy Philippe Starck chairs with an all-purpose spray cleaner? Use a dedicated acrylic cleaner.
  • Avoid costly damage to expensive home electronics. Ammonia-based window cleaner can wreck your tech gear and TV screens.

Read more in Organizing and Organizing Ideas

Follow Style At Home Online

Facebook Activity

Contests

Latest Contests

more contests