Changes that our heart desires, or living in a re-decorated space.
We are all influenced by our childhood experiences. My family lived in a two-room apartment in a panel building, in one of so-called “sleeping quarters” of the city. When I was born, the house already was decorated, and this was what I came across many years later, as a professional.
Our apartment didn’t have any significant changes, but still, every half a year, the space turned to be different. You may think my family had some secret connections with furniture suppliers, so we could throw away chairs and couches through a window on a 4th floor, as Italians… But the truth is, when my mother started a seasonal cleaning, and every corner of every room was polished, she changed the arrangement of furniture; and armchairs, tables, sofas and cases were placed in a different way. With new, unusual angles and in all possible combinations. I believe, this is the part of my background that transformed into love for mobile spaces. This principle easily brings new fresh energy, and I’m not talking only about design now. It’s bigger than that, and can help any person get space for positive changes in life, and look at old problems from a new, unusual angle – and find best solutions.
As we see from the example above, no need to spend a lot to change a living space. Sometimes it’s enough just to put a bed in a new place, throw away an annoying table, repaint a shelf and replace a bulky grandpa’s closet with a lightweight drawer. For it, you’ll need no more than half of a day, and this time will be filled with joy and fun.
The process of getting rid of useless things is a very important matter, so I return to it once again. Once my friend advised me to watch a Japanese movie, called “Let’s clean up your life” and I looked at this boring weekly routine from a new, brighter perspective. The whole philosophy of throwing away things we don’t need and don’t love is simple, logical and surprising at the same time. I’m talking about everything in the house, from dishes and clothes to furniture and equipment. How many chipped cups, scratchy old sweaters, shaky shelves can be found in any house. And every little thing takes space not on only physical and spatial level, but on the energetic level as well. I’m not going to go deeper into esoteric matters… but anyway, such a serious cleaning of the space around inevitably brings us changes in life. And I proved it by my own experience.
But if your heart desires much bigger changes, than just cleaning or furniture rearrangement, then it’s time to think about the repairs. And as we know, repairs in an old apartment are much more different than in a new building. First, in the new apartment, electricity chains and other systems are adapted to the interior. In an old house, you can only find out what is there only when you take away all the finishes, and only then you can measure the costs. It’s always a big mystery. Second, you should have a clear idea of your budget and time limits. This is necessary to avoid living in a house with a half-finished bath or without kitchen furniture (speaking about dramas with suppliers). Third, and one of the most important questions, is where to live during the repairs. Renting a flat, staying with the relatives, going to the southern seas – anything is possible. This can result in extra costs, but still, your mental health costs more, and fresh plaster is not the best topping for your morning coffee.
What can assist with regulations for points 1 and 2, and help get back home faster? It sounds trivial from a designer, but only a well-planned project and a good team of workers under responsible supervision of a foreman. You can see yourself that the costs for a project will be smaller than renting a flat for additional half a year (or a year) if repairs and furniture supplies fail to meet your deadlines.
So go forward, to the changes in your home and in your life. To cozy, comfortable and beautiful, exciting and inspiring places!
P.S. While writing the text, I looked around and decided that my room also needs some rearrangements. It runs in the family, I guess. And it is my wish to you now.