This lockdown has forced many of us to stay at home. Spending a lot of time at home inside may suddenly inspire you to redecorate your interiors. Often boredom infiltrates your life more if you keep seeing the same surroundings. Given most of us are spending a lot of time at home now than before, we tend to get bored easily. Hence, in the lack of social contact, sprucing up your home with some non-extravagant home décor tips might help to stay motivated and happy.

Spruce up the Living Room

I feel the living room speaks a lot about the character of the family or a person. Especially in this lockdown if you and your family spend a lot of time in Netflix binge-watching, playing board games, telling stories to each other over coffee, then maybe it is time to rearrange the living room from how it usually looks. If binge-watching is the theme of the week, then rearrange the furniture in a way that every spot is the best seat to watch the TV. But if you are more boardgames kind of people then, position the sofa set/chairs such as the coffee table is the focal point in the room.

Pro tip: Comfort is what everyone is looking for now. Hence pulling up some soft blankets or cozy bedsheets from other rooms will amp up the living room’s game night or movie night demeanor.

Spruce up your work space

Utilize that desk or the coffee table that you once purchased from a furniture sale fair or online indulge shopping (we all have done that and never used them). It is time to convert that indulge buy of the coffee table/ a convertible dining table to your office desk. The realization has already dawned on me that sitting in the living room amidst my family going about their day or the television in the background wasn’t going to work. Hence, converting a small cozy corner of my bedroom into my workspace helped me a lot. Bring in that desk and makeshift any of your room to your likable and comfortable workspace. 

Spruce up your windows

Windows have become the eye to the outside world now for us more than ever. Why not make it a comfy perch? If you don’t currently have a window seat, consider pulling an upholstered bench under the window or reposition a comfortable chair. You can remodel your window as well by changing curtains (new or shuffle between other rooms), as well as consider making a curtain tie-back out of a bright (or contrast colour to your curtain fabric) scrap fabric or ribbon that you currently have.

Spruce up your shelves

Any room that needs a quick refresh – removing everything from the shelves, dusting them off, starting with the top and working way down – helps and gives your mind time to think for the remodel. Place everything back but with a new arrangement – may shuffle things around as well – between rooms. This mini move can change the whole look and atmosphere of the rooms.

Spruce up your mood and explore the magic of multipurpose

If you currently stay in smaller spaces, multifunctional usage is the need of the hour. Try using your old carpet in your balcony for an outdoor sit-down picnic or create a cozy reading space with some blankets and cushions in a corner to accentuate your bedroom decor. The significance of mood lightening and bringing inner peace has been quite the topic during this lockdown. To refresh your mind and instigate happy feelings, try using the scented candles you have always kept as décor but never used. You can also try to shop a few things online like vases, decorative objects, or art that helps you feel happy and content.

Don’t let the COVID-19 lockdown dampen your spirits. Spruce up your life a bit by sprucing up your humble abode.

• Manali Debroy