What should you do while you’re stuck at home? You may have already gone through the stages: home workouts, baking sprees, catching up on your favorite TV shows – even yard work. But how about those long-overdue home projects? Here is a list of easy projects that can be completed indoors:
Rearranging for a fresh look: Try a new furniture layout, restyle your bookshelves, or move the wall furnishings around the room. Curbed suggests, “It’s easy to get in a rut with the same ol’ furniture setup, but what if you tried something new? Move the couch to a different wall, adjust where your armchair sits, or mix things up by swapping rugs from one room to another. Even switching a lamp from a side table to another spot in your house could brighten up a space in new ways.”
Cleaning projects: Although these are not everyone’s favorite, they are beneficial. Cleaning the house, especially sometimes forgotten areas, can be beneficial to your health as you’re spending more time indoors. Clean your vents and baseboards, under the beds or dressers, clean out the bathroom drawers, or clean those pesky kitchen appliances.
“Heating and vent covers accumulate dust over time, and cleaning them can help reduce allergens in your home and increase the efficiency of your air conditioning or heating unit. Vacuum the vents with a dusting brush attachment or wipe with a dry microfiber cloth – avoid using water or other cleaning products, because they can smear the dust.”
Organize the closets: Even the most organized person may still find clothes or shoes that they no longer wear hiding away in their closet. Is there a better time than now to sift through your closets and find the items that you no longer need? As well, by donating these items, you may be helping someone who was hit harder during this pandemic.
“Start by taking everything out of the closet, purging what’s no longer used, and cleaning the interior. If it’s a clothes closet, sort your clothes by category and be sure to hang delicate items and stack thicker things like denim. Put your most-used items at the front, while seasonal or rarely used pieces can go up higher or in the back.”
Decorate or redecorate your walls: Your walls can hold the most visual presentations in your home; maybe they need some sprucing up? Straighten your wall hangings, touch up your paint, change the colors of your walls, or put empty frames to use – these are some of the little tasks you could tackle. Is there a picture you’ve been meaning to print and hang? Now is the time!
“Photo projects require a ton of time and energy to complete, which means they sometimes never make it off of your to-do list. Go through the house and add photos to any frames you’re not using; alternatively, you could also swap out older photos for new ones.”
Finally, tackle the kitchen: We spend much of our time in the kitchen either eating or cooking, it’s easy for this room to become discombobulated. A difference can be made just by moisturizing your wooden or bamboo cutting boards, taking an inventory of your essential items, or cleaning your small kitchen appliances.
“Most of us probably clean out the refrigerator and wipe down the stove on a regular basis, but small appliances are often neglected. Hand-wash all of the removable parts of your coffee maker and run a few brewing cycles with distilled water. Empty out your toaster oven or toaster trap door and then shake the appliance over the sink to remove loose crumbs. Deep-clean your Instant Pot by wiping down the inner cooking chamber with a damp dishcloth; washing the silicone sealing ring in hot, soapy water; and running a cycle of water, distilled white vinegar, and a few lemon peels to remove odors.”
Of course, there are many areas of your home, and you know what’s best or most needed at this time. Put on some music, grab the family, and get to work!