Two focuses of my blog are Home/Living Discussions and Home/Property Discussions. When you own a home, something you will think about at some point is creating more space. That could involved some sort of renovation but it could also involve maximizing what you already have. The following contributed post is entitled, Three Unexpected Ways to Create Space In Your Home.
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Photo by Marta Longas from Pexels
There are lots of interior-design tricks you can use to create the feeling of space in your home. What many people need, however, is actual space. With that in mind, here are three unexpected ways to create space in your home.
Learn to food shop effectively
Effective food shopping basically means ensuring that every food item you buy is completely used. There are two parts to making this happen.
Firstly, you need to buy foods which you are actually going to eat. It’s fine if you want to try out new foods from time to time and it’s fine if you decide you don’t like them. You should, however, make a point of buying new foods in small quantities even if they’re on offer.
Secondly, you need to be practical about the quantities of food you buy. Buying in bulk isn’t necessarily more economical at all. Even if it is, it may not be economical enough to justify the space bulk purchases take up.
Make it a goal to use up any food you already have. Then make a commitment to buying mindfully. At the very least, this should mean your kitchen cabinets are comfortably full rather than crammed full. It may free up space in your kitchen you can use to store items that are currently in other parts of your home.
Create a home inventory
This is basically a twist on decluttering. Choose an area of your home and go through all the storage locations one at a time. As you do, ask yourself if you would be willing to pay to put the items in a storage container. If the answer is “no”, then move it on unless you have a compelling reason to keep it for now.
If you do keep an item, then take a note of what it is, where it is, and by) when it should be used. Then commit to “using it or losing it”. As a part of this, make sure you check your home inventory before you buy anything new.
This exercise may sound like a lot of hard work, and it can be. It can, however, also be a lot of fun. You may well discover items you never knew you had. It can also help to give you a clearer idea of what sort of insurance cover you need.
Downgrade your technology
Modern homes tend to be full of technology and it can end up taking over a space unless you actively keep it under control. One of the keys to controlling your technology is to be clear about whether or not its usefulness justifies its cost and space.
As a rule of thumb, multifunctional items like phones and tablets can almost always be justified. Single-use items, however, can only be justified if you really want or need the higher level of functionality they usually offer. Even then, you should think carefully.
For example, if you’re a coffee-lover then you might well get regular use out of a barista-standard coffee machine. You could, however, do the same job using a few affordable and compact tools. It would take a bit more effort but could save a lot of space.
