10 Spring/Summer Home Updates

*Items gifted c/o Sainsbury’s Home and listed at bottom of post.

There are two times of the year when I get extra giddy about home decor: in autumn, to make it nest-worthy in time for Christmas. Then spring; a time to declutter, organise and refresh.

I love our home. It’s lived-in (a tad messy), cosy, filled with music, warmth, and each other (including our joyful and muddy golden retriever, Polly). But once in a while it does need a refresh to wake it up a little. It’s been a long winter after all.

With the help of my friends at Sainsbury’s Home, here are some simple spring/summer home updates, including no-spend solutions too.

1|Start small and focus on styling an area of your home instead of a whole room (which can be a tad overwhelming). Look at ways to update and style a sofa, your bed, shelving, a bedside table or create a cosy reading corner. Pinterest is your friend for this.

2|Update decor with new textiles featuring uplifting colours and patterns. I chose the colour block and diamond cushion from the Helsinki range to update our sofa. For the bed, a Yellow Stripe Throw and Geo Printed Bed Linen. P.S Other textiles you could update are tea towels, linens and bathroom towels. Yellow is my go-to hue come spring but if it’s not to your taste, try a fresh shade of green.

3|Create a new spring playlist that everyone can enjoy in the home. We use our Bluetooth speaker daily that plays music from our smart phones. Music sparks memories…

4| Savour the imperfections of your home: the scattered toys (if you have kids, or dogs in our case), the dirty socks outside of the washing basket or the never ending DIY to-do list. Those messy parts of your home are made up of people and memories, and how fortunate are we to have a home to update?

5|Greenery. A home can never have enough. Add plants to the walls, floors and surfaces. They immediately make a room look and feel calmer, fresh and bright. Look out for faux ones too if you’re not particularly adept at caring for plants, there’s lots of non-naff faux plant choices nowadays.

6|Use a letter board to display funny or seasonal messages. Or Kate Bush lyrics on repeat…

7| Save on space and use multipurpose storage furniture like this basket storage table. I love the Scandinavian design and use it to store magazines, but as if by magic it also doubles up as a handy side table too.

8|Always have a full cake tin for you, your family and your guests. If it’s homemade, that’s peachy (cos your home will smell like a bakery). But don’t feel the pressure to bake. Some of my favourite home memories are raiding the parents cake/biscuit tin, and most were shop bought.

Homewares featured: Colour Block Cushion, Diamond cushion, Yellow Stripe Throw, Geo Printed Bed Linen, Weave Basket, Letter Board, Helsinki Embossed mug, Round Tray, Notebook, Wire Storage Side Table, Ceramic Candle, Amber & Patchouli Candle & Plant Pot c/o Sainsbury’s Home | Bear Cushion from Julia Ogden | White shelving from Argos | Lamp from Made.com (old)

9. Scent is another important factor for me. Our home smells of a mix of laundry, the countryside and wet dog, and that’s just the way I like it. I do like to use scented candles all year round though, mixing up the scents dependent on the season.

10. Buy yourself a new mug. Make a brew, step outside and breathe in the spring air for 5 minutes. Or simply open a window/or stand in the doorway.

Disclosure: gifted items in this blog post marked c/o.