With a new year comes a fresh start for getting on top of your home organisation solutions and systems. By putting in place effective systems at the beginning of the year ensures you not only start off on the right foot but have a better chance at maintaining them throughout the year as things get busier and busier. Below are our top tips, hacks and areas of the home to streamline your organisation solutions and take things to the next level!

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Ensure Everything Has A Home

The number one rule to keeping an organised and clutter-free home is to ensure every item has a ‘home’. This may require some dedication to set up, but once created, will be a weight off your shoulders. We recommend categorising all like-minded items together and ensuring they are in a zone of the house that makes sense for their purpose. In areas such as wardrobes, playrooms and living rooms where clutter can build up easily, we suggest grabbing some beautiful baskets from stores like Freedom, Adairs or TK Maxx to collate each category. To encourage the entire household to get involved, we recommend adding sticker or swing tag labels to zones, so every member of the family knows where things are to be put back once used.

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The Pantry

The pantry is a highly used space in the home that cops the brunt of every mealtime, snack time and grocery shopping expedition. Here at Homemaker The Valley we have a few simple hacks that will help you transform, maintain and streamline your pantry to avoid an overstuffed and unorganised feel. Firstly, measure the pantry shelves and purchase some baskets or containers for each category you require to help organise. For example, cooking, snacks, drinks or baking, then categorise accordingly. We also love having a ‘backstock’ basket where you can place any overflow items as this allows for easy refills and checking of stock before the grocery shop. We love decanting pantry staples such as cereals, flour, nuts and baking supplies for a streamlined look. When decanting, a great hack is to stick a simple Dymo label on the underside of the container with the expiry date, so you can keep on top of when things are to be used by. Head into Howard’s Storage World this weekend to check out their amazing range of pantry containers to transform your space!

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The Wardrobe

Wardrobes are a space in the home that we suggest having either a seasonal or half-yearly clear out to avoid clutter build up. If there are items in your wardrobe that have not seen the light of day in over 12 months, then we suggest either donating or selling them to create more breathing room. We love using matching, felt hangers for all hanging clothes as they allow for a streamlined look and are perfect for space saving. If you fold your clothes, we suggest using the rolling technique and adding drawer dividers to your drawers to keep things neat and tidy. Lastly, any seasonal items such as swimwear or knitwear can be easily stored in baskets at the top of your wardrobe for a functional and space saving hack.

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Create A Drop-Zone

We all lead such busy lives that our living spaces can become the dumping ground for incoming items that do not have a home and as a result create a cluttered and messy look. Once you have categorised and found a ‘home’ for all your everyday items in your spaces as mentioned above, it is essential to create a ‘drop-zone’ for any incoming items that are new. This can include things like bills, homework, borrowed items, gifts or letters that do not yet have a home. We suggest creating a drop zone that is away from the kitchen and living area in a space such as the entryway, home office or garage. Create a ‘drop zone’ by using either a basket, container or in-tray and labelling it with each member of the family’s name. To ensure clutter doesn’t build up within this space, we recommend setting aside five minutes each week to go through, action and find a home for the items that have been dropped in the last week.

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Add Dates To Your Calendar

Lastly, to ensure your home remains streamlined and organised throughout the year we recommend locking in key dates early for maintaining these spaces. Just like a birthday, anniversary or event, add your ‘home organisation maintenance’ days to your calendar every month or quarter. It could be as simple as a Sunday afternoon every month, or a half day booked in at the start of each season. Home organisation and storage solutions work best when they are properly maintained and kept on top of to ensure your home stays streamlined and organised for you and your family.

Here at Homemaker The Valley we have a wide range of retailers that stock an array of different design styles and we can be spoilt for choice with what to purchase. When designing and decorating your home, it can be tricky to mix furniture pieces in a cohesive and balanced way. On one hand you don’t want the space to feel ‘matchy-matchy’ whilst on the other hand you want to avoid a ‘mismatched’ feel. Today we are sharing with you our top tips for creating a layered look and ensuring your home feels balanced, yet interesting.

Choose Complementing Interior Design Styles

We love blending different design styles to create a personalised and curated look. There are a handful of interior design styles that work really well together and some you should steer clear of. Our favourite styles that we know blend well together are coastal and Hamptons as they contain a similar colour palette, whilst having contrasting shapes and textures. Try heading into stores like One World Collection for all your Hamptons needs and Freedom for the perfect range of coastal furniture. Another great option is to pair mid-century style with industrial as they use similarly rich timber tones and contrasting colours. We recommend avoiding completely opposite design styles such as pairing Hamptons with Industrial or Mid-Century with Provincial.

Don’t Be Afraid Of Mixing Timbers

A common mistake we see when decorating is using matching timber for every piece of furniture within a space. We understand it can be tricky to know which timbers work well together and the easy option is to select the matching set, but there are a few simple tips that ensure you nail the mixed timber look. Our biggest tip when mixing timber colours in your home is to ensure they have the same undertone. This undertone is easy to spot as most timbers either have a yellow, grey, orange, or red undertone. If you stick to the same timber tone throughout your furniture pieces will blend well together and complement each other perfectly. The other key aspect is to ensure you have either half or one third in one timber tone, with the remaining in another timber tone. This ensures that you don’t have any pieces that look like the odd one out. Try selecting your larger furniture pieces in walnut, for example and pairing them with smaller items such as a floor lamp, frames of artwork and side tables in an oak.

Pick Your Statement Pieces

When decorating any room in your home it is important to choose a few statement pieces throughout and pair back on the remainder. When there are too many statement pieces in one room the space can feel overpowering, and the wow factors often gets lost as they try to compete with each other. For example, if you have a large, colourful artwork we recommend keeping the patterns and textures of the remaining items in the room simple. Or if you have chosen a statement bedhead, then opt for subtle tones in your bedlinen and cushions. If you are after a statement piece for your living room or bedroom, then head to stores like Early Settler or Oz Design Furniture.

Ensure There Is Balance

Much like our tips on mixing timbers, it is important to have a balance of similar style furniture when mixing and matching. For example, a space feels more cohesive when there is for example a floor lamp, coffee table and side table in an industrial style and the remaining pieces in a contemporary style. Ensure you don’t have one single piece in a differing style as it will be obvious and look out of place in the room. Freedom does a great job of showcasing different interior design styles within their store. Don’t be afraid to ask the friendly staff for assistance with pairing one furniture piece with another to ensure they work perfectly together.

Colour Palette Cohesion

When mixing a few different furniture styles, it can be calmer and create a more unified look to keep the colour palette quite simple. This allows the shapes and textures of the furniture pieces to be the focal point and allows the eyes to rest and appreciate the styles. Spaces can appear crowded and over stimulating if the furniture shapes are mixed and there are too many colours introduced in one space. Try keeping your furniture neutral and adding subtle pops of colour through cushions, vases and artwork.

If you would like some more assistance with blending furniture styles within your home, then book in for your free styling session with our resident stylist. Eliza can share advice on what would work with your existing pieces and how to create more cohesion within the home.

Who doesn’t love an excuse for a party? Here at Homemaker The Valley we love entertaining and inviting our loved ones into our homes to create memories and eat delicious food. Springtime is one of our favourite times of the year to entertain as the days are getting warmer, the sun is shining, and the air has that beautiful freshness to it in the evenings. Today we are sharing with you our favourite trends for entertaining at home this season and how to incorporate them for your next event!

Host a Cocktail Or Mocktail Afternoon

A cocktail or Mocktail making session is the perfect way to bring in the new season and gather all your loved ones around for a fun filled afternoon. The key to making this fun and interactive is for each person or couple to make a cocktail or mocktail recipe of their choosing. You can even judge them if you want to get competitive! We love Kitchen Warehouse’s range of Mr Consistent products that are perfect for creating a failsafe beverage that is sure to be a crowd pleaser. Have fun with the afternoon by using a variety of gorgeous glassware and cut up different fruits, herbs, and sprigs to be used as garnishes.

Decorate With Bright Colours

Bright colours are making a huge comeback in the interior decorating and design world, so get ready to embrace them in your home too! Entertaining at home can be a great place to experiment with colour and go bold with your decorations, napery, and tableware pieces. We are seeing beautiful ranges of brightly coloured tableware sets with fun lemon motifs, blue and white strips and Italian riviera inspired prints. As your dining table or alfresco settings are usually a nice neutral or timber tone, this creates the perfect backdrop to go bold when decorating. We love using a bright tablecloth or table runner in blue, pink, or green and using a complimenting colour for your placemats and napkins. Have fun with your table centre piece by mixing and matching a variety of brightly coloured vases with greenery to finish off the look. Check out Provincial Home Living and Freedom’s range of beautiful pieces that would be perfect for your next soiree.

Keep Your Food Simple

When entertaining at home it is tempting to go overboard and show off every skill you have when it comes to cooking and baking. This is often met with regret the next day as you find yourself spending majority of the time in the kitchen and are left with a huge clean up at the end. This is why we recommend keeping the food as simple as possible when it comes to Spring entertaining (Save the roasts for Winter or Christmas). A grazing platter is perfect as you can prep the layout and items the morning of the event and simply add your cheeses and meats before guests arrive. We love decorating our grazing platters with sprigs of herbs such as rosemary or a few little flowers hand-picked from the garden. Salads are a great option for food at a Spring get together as you can asks guests to bring their favourite one and it makes it a more collaborative affair. They also pair perfectly with a BBQ and make for a super easy and relaxed vibe for the perfect afternoon in the sunshine.

Host A Cuisine Specific Soirée

Here at Homemaker The Valley we love a themed party as it allows us any excuse to go all out with decorations, food and even an outfit! When planning your next soirée, we recommend starting by choosing a fun cuisine such as Italian, Mexican, or Greek and creating the event around this. As the days and nights are warming up, be sure to choose some fresh starters and salads and keep your mains and desserts quite light. When creating your tablescape we suggest avoiding a cliché look and instead drawing inspiration from the colours typical of these countries and creating an ‘atmosphere’ instead. For example, if you are hosting a Greek themed lunch, we love a blue and white striped linen tablecloth with either a bougainvillaea vine (thorns removed) or lemons and greenery lining the centre of the table. For a rustic Italian affair, be sure to use some terracotta ramekin dishes, natural timber serving boards and olive branches when decorating your tablescape. Our retailers have so many options for home decorating pieces that would be perfect for your next gathering. We recommend heading into stores such as Kitchen Warehouse, Provincial Home Living and TK Maxx for a great range on offer.

The Provincial design style has always been a popular style to decorate with throughout the years, but in today’s post we are sharing how you can modernise this classic way of decorating. When taking this classic design style and adapting it to a modern interior, there are certain elements that stay focal and others that are take a backseat. Today we are sharing with you a brief history on the design style and how you can incorporate this beautiful and classic way of decorating into your modern interior today.

The History

The Provincial design style started in the late 17th and early 18th century in the south of France as local makers began imitating pieces coming out of Paris and adapting them in their own way. The style grew in popularity hugely after World War I as people wanted to incorporate an elevated, yet earthy and rustic feel to their homes. The style can sometimes be referred to as ‘French Country’ due to its history and roots stemming from the area of France where it began. The design style blends both an elegant and sophisticated look with handmade and rustic pieces to create an overall ‘homely’ feel.

The Key Elements

Like any design style, there are certain key elements that are essential when creating and executing the look. With a Provincial design style, it is important to have a mixture of natural wooden materials to create an earthy and artisanal feel. Rustic and imperfect timbers are preferred in furniture pieces such as dining tables and coffee tables, the arms and legs of chairs, lighting, and decorative accessories. Our gorgeous retailers Provincial Home Living and James Lane do some beautiful furniture pieces that suit this design style perfectly so be sure to head in store to check them out. Another key element is ornate detailing that can be seen in Provincial style furniture pieces and more specifically the cabriole leg where the upper leg curves out before curving in at the bottom. Feature flooring is also a huge element of this interior design style with timber floors in a chevron or herringbone lay being the most popular.

The Colour palette

As the Provincial design style began in the French countryside the use of natural colours and tones are evident throughout. The overall colour palette includes warm tones of beige, brown, linen and flax, blended together to create an inviting and relaxed feel. The colour palette allows for the rustic timbers to do the talking and gives focus to craftsmanship and statement elements of the furniture pieces. Colour is added in subtle ways in shades of powder blue, sage green, or warm terracotta through the use of decorative accessories and soft furnishings. Contrast can be created through accent elements of charcoal and black in items such as the leg of a chair, the base of a lamp or the frame of an artwork. When choosing your metals, we recommend opting for a more rustic feel with tarnished gold or bronze accents in doorknobs, mirror frames and candlestick holders.

A Modern Take

The Provincial design style is a classic and traditional look, but we can take key elements from this and incorporate them seamlessly with a contemporary interior to create an overall stylised look. When creating a modern provincial design style it is important to keep the colour palette as close to traditional as possible; think warm neutral tones with pops of subtle, washed out colour. The furniture and decorative accessories are where you can have fun with blending two styles together. We love the look of a rustic farmhouse table paired with a more modern style dining chair and simple contemporary rug. Try pairing a table from Provincial Home Living with modern dining chairs from Nick Scali or Domayne. We also love using a rustic timber console table paired with a sleek round mirror and beautiful large table lamp to create a statement in your entryway. The key to making the Provincial design style blend with the contemporary style is to keep a simple colour palette and ensure you include natural, rustic timbers and ornate detailing with sleek, yet simple modern pieces.

If you’d like some help creating a modern provincial look in your home, you can click here to book in for your complimentary styling session with our resident stylist, Eliza. Just click the link about or head to the ‘styling inspiration’ menu on our website to find a time that works for you!