Simplify
The quickest, no-cost way to get summer's fresh, clean look is to stow away a few items until the fall (as you do with your winter clothes).
- Pack up accessories best suited to colder months, including throws, candlesticks, stacks of books, etc.
- Roll up your area rugs and leave your floors bare.
- Take down heavy draperies. While you're at it, you might want to take them to the dry cleaners. That way, they're prepped and ready to pack away till September.
Just as you switch your footwear for summer, you may want to consider exchanging a few home furnishings for more summer-suited options. For example, once you've packed away your area rugs and heavy curtains, you can:
- Decorate with cheap and cheerful cotton rugs or runners.
- Where privacy is required, hang inexpensive-yet-in-vogue bamboo blinds.
- For fun, in place of your usual kitchen curtains, hang two colourful tea towels or large napkins as café curtains using picture wire and hooks. (If your kitchen windows require full-length curtains, try two tablecloths.)
Summer's lighter mood calls for more of a homespun (and, in some cases, humorous) approach.
- Add a splash of summer colour with throw cushions in the living room, kitchen or bedroom. Think pink, blue, orange or lime. (If your décor won't work with these popsicle shades, opt for all white or off-white.) The easiest, most economical method: Make them yourself. Options include recovering existing pillows with tea towels, napkins (second-hand, monogrammed, white linen models are ideal for the bedroom) or towels (a clever, absorbent option for outdoors, too).
- Take the casual approach to decorating. Fill mason jars or pitchers with wild flowers. Fill a large bowl with fruit and use that as an (edible) accessory.
- Let the outdoors in. Bring a garden bistro chair or table, a wicker chair, or an urn or planter box inside for a change.
