We are in the busy December holidays now, and many of us are involved in the hustle and bustle of the season. There’s not a lot of extra time to stop and think about your future needs, in between friends and family, shopping, even decorating.
For a few reasons, now is actually a great time to consider what you want to do with your home and furniture needs in the coming year. If you take a few moments now, you’ll be ready for what you want to do in the spring.
 This article was originally written for my 2012-2013 position at lifestyle and furniture retailer Haiku Designs. Go check them out here, they are great folks. |
From a shopping point of view, it’s a great time to think about what you want in your home. All of the manufacturers and stores are putting everything they have out for sale right now, in the hopes that you’ll see them. Even things that don’t usually get advertised, or are off-season, are shown as much as possible. That gives you the best opportunity to find everything that’s available, especially unique items. Then you can define your room and home plans, and be able to really see the possibilities.
During the holiday season, many people will decorate their homes. People can spend a lot of time getting the interior of their homes into the holiday spirit, and moving things around for decorations like trees. To make all of that work can mean removing a lot of the normal furniture and accessories in a room, and then having to put it all back again in January.
If you take a few moments though, either at the beginning or end, you have a great opportunity to evaluate a room or even your whole home. Before you add your decorations, or at the end before you’ve brought back your normal furniture, it’s a great time to really look at a room. Take measurements, consider changes like wall color, flooring, or furniture, and in an overall sense just decide what you like or don’t like about a room.
You don’t have to act right then, but certainly take some notes or even photos so that you can start your planning. Then, in the spring, you can look over those notes again. Do you paint the walls, based on the photos? Do you swap out that old lounge chair and tables for new ones? By planning ahead, you’ll have a good idea what you want, without having to remove everything again.
The holidays also bring family and friends over, either for an evening gathering or even to stay overnight. It can be a great time, albeit often stressful, and you might not have much time to think about your future needs.
However, having a lot of extra people in your home can quickly show you the things that need to be improved. For future planning, it’s much like any project that you’d work on, in that you need to evaluate how things went after the fact.
It’s best to record those things that didn’t quite work out, and to get them down quickly. Maybe you didn’t have enough sheets or bedding to go around for overnight guests. Maybe your old table wasn’t quite big enough for your guests. Maybe your coffee pot has a big crack in it, but still more or less works.
By recording these things now, especially things that you really do need to change, it’ll be far easier to plan for in the spring. Keep a small notebook or even just a sheet of paper with your observations. Many smartphones and mobile devices can even take short audio notes. You don’t need an enormous amount of detail, just something short that you can reference when you need it.
The holidays are a busy time, but it’s also a good chance to really evaluate what you need in your home. Considering those ideas now will save you a lot of work and frustration later on, when you are ready to implement your plans. Squeeze in a little time now, for a big payoff later.
