Good Riddance 2020. What Covid Taught Me About Living Well.

So, 2020 was a s*#@ show.  Is this news to anyone out there?  I didn’t think so.  As a country we have been anticipating the end of this year for months now and we are finally here!  It’s a new year with new found hope, new found optimism and hopefully, new found civility.  We have collectively spent way too much time talking about what Covid has cost us.  How about we begin the new year by pointing out the things that may have actually made us and our lives a little better. This exercise is not to meant belittle anyone’s on-going experience due to sickness, death or the loss of their livelihood.  But, at the worst of times, finding those moments of gratitude for what has come can be the most cathartic.

Being a designer, my focus is always on my client’s projects.  My job is to make their lives more beautiful and comfortable.  When you suddenly find yourself working from home, with your spouse, kids, pets, maybe even some quarantining relatives, the idea of beauty and comfort takes on a completely new meaning.  The calls we are getting from both existing and new clients are all about comfort and function. 

We are converting rooms into home offices with professional sound and lighting for all those remote meetings.  We are soundproofing rooms for home schooling and building at-home class rooms where each child can have a work station.  We are expanding kitchens, redoing bathrooms, converting guest rooms into home gyms, building home theaters, not to mention, updating design work we have done previously to fit this new mode of casual living (on steroids!).

What all of this design work has taught me is that the idea of HOME is even more important today than it was at the beginning of 2020.  All of those things we thought we could live with or shrug off in our homes are now aching needs for revision.  Before this year many of our clients just threw money at their homes or they came to me with the idea of style being a theme to be executed.  Today, clients have become much more in tune to what makes them happy and what soothes their souls.  Before this past year a home theater was about catching a movie when you had free time.  Many of our client’s home theaters have now become the center of family socializing (after the kitchen).  Movie night is every night, the theater has become a cozy cocoon of tranquility for Covid weary families.  That giant screen does double duty during the day for streaming workouts, yoga and meditation.  Even I never thought that this room meant as a space of pure luxury could become a home’s nucleus of family bonding time.

This new found need in our homes extends throughout the house. This shift is nowhere more evident than in the kitchen.  Long the center of family life in general, the kitchen has now become a true delight for newly proclaimed bakers and chefs.  I am truly amazed at the joy in the voices and the stories that I am hearing about experimenting in the kitchen alone and with family.  The sharing of food and the experience of serving and eating together is one of the most basic elements of family life and living well.  Now we just need to find storage space for all the new pots and pans and gadgets required for culinary experimentation.

As I mentioned earlier, this need for our home’s to be everything to us extends throughout the house. At Foley & Stinnette we are receiving daily calls for everything from full renovations to new bed linens.  The need is great!  I already see people scrambling to get the last of this or that.  This is where I beg you to stop and take a breath.  Let me help you address those needs and desires. Making your house into a home and now an office, school room, gym, yoga studio and gourmet test kitchen can be daunting in ordinary times.  Let’s start with a list of rooms and ideas where you can make some big changes now that will carry you into this new year and beyond.  Each of these room is broken down into three categories of Easy, Some Effort and Professional Help.

The Kitchen

Easy:  Why not try a new faucet? It will change the look of your kitchen and you will be surprised how it will upgrade how you use your kitchen.

Some Effort:  One of my favorite things to give a kitchen a fast facelift is to change the backsplash.  This work can be done in one day!  My suggestion is to avoid the big box stores and find your local tile source. They are going to have a huge selection and they can likely recommend a socially-distancing contractor.

Professional Help:  With all the time you are now spending standing in the kitchen, this may the time to change out that floor that might be making your legs ache and your feet tired.  Stone has been popular for many years but, it is tuff on the legs.  Talk to any professional chef and they will tell you that what they stand on makes a huge difference in how they cook. Comfort is everything!  Wood is softer and easier on the legs and back but, you can still do hard surfaces that can be more forgiving, like porcelain tiles or planks.

The Home Office

Easy:  If you are doing more and more video calls, invest in a broadcast quality microphone. They are affordable and easy to find from home by computer.  It will make you appear more polished and professional in those meetings.

Some Effort:  Along with that new higher quality sound, try adding some professional quality lighting to your room.  I have standing lights with diffusers that are fully adjustable and can be found online.  It’s like having a professional photography studio in your home.  Just like adding the mic, it’s all about being polished and professional.

Professional Help:  Your background is so very important when doing video meetings.  What is behind you when you are on camera?  Is it distracting? Is it inappropriate in any way? Or is it so bland that viewers zone out?  Paint, wallpaper, art, book shelves, natural lighting, etc.  The right design can help you sell your ideas.  The easiest tip I can share is to not have a mirror behind you reflecting the other side of the room and the back of your head.

The Family Room/Den.

Easy:  Now is the perfect time to upgrade those throw pillows and throw blankets.  With the amount of time we are spending at home, don’t you deserve the best?  If your pillows are just fine (thank you), consider replacing or upgrading the fill inside to make them more luxurious and comfortable.

Some Effort:  This is the time to upgrade that TV.  With blockbuster movies premiers now streaming from their release date, you and your family deserve the best possible picture and sound.  And all of the components can be delivered to your doorstep (probably at no cost).

Professional Help:  Redecorating is daunting in normal times but, this is the one room where the effort will change your lives today and long into the future.   Maybe different seating arrangements or a better quality of upholstery are needed due to the time and use of the room.  My job is not just to show our clients pretty things.  We are here to help you understand and navigate all of the new-found issues of living life at home.

Where you start doesn’t matter. Beginning to recognize your needs and understanding what makes you happy and comfortable in your home is the greatest gift we have been given in 2020.  My wish for us all is that we enjoy our homes more, stay home more and share our homes and lives with those we love.  Happy 2021 everyone…it can only get better.

Live Well,

Dann Foley

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www.foleystinnette.com