Tag Archives: home decor

Get Started On Your Victory Garden

Book Cover of Groundbreaking Food Gardens by Niki JabbourIt’s almost Victoria Day, and you know what that means: it’s (more or less) time to plant your garden outdoors!

COVID-19 has disrupted a lot of markets and nurseries where we might normally purchase our baby/toddler plants from, but we can still get started on our gardens, as I’ve seen a few stores offer either curbside pickup or shipping to your door. I’m going to keep my “your actions are doubly important now in these times” message to a minimum here because I’m sure y’all know already how where you spend your money now (e.g. Amazon v.s. local gardening store) will contribute to what the landscape’s going to look like coming out of emergency measures as far as which stores are still there and which aren’t (not to mention fostering a sense of community by shopping local and supporting people and businesses which missions you believe in). All this with the huge heaping grain of salt, of course, that this is if you have the luxury to consider alternatives. End plug!

While the original “Victory Garden” refers to “vegetable, fruit, and herb gardens planted at private residences and public parks… during World War I and World War II” (Wikipedia), one of the desired effects of these home gardens was to boost morale – something we could probably all use a bit of right now. Not to mention the delicious fruits and vegetables you can grab from your own backyard throughout the summer and perhaps even autumn months after you’ve planted and tended to your garden! So let’s get started with gardening fruits & veggies and greening up our spaces with pet plants (also see Alyssia’s post on home decor)!

Do you relish the idea of growing 24 varieties of chili peppers in your garden? Me too!* Well Niki Jabbour will introduce you to 24 varieties (let’s be real: I know maybe enough varieties to list on one hand before I draw a blank) and walk you through how best to cultivate them in your garden so you can enjoy fiery meals throughout the year (by drying and preserving the fruits of your labour). Check out Groundbreaking Food Gardens** for other food garden designs that’ll have you reaching for your gardening hoe & watering can!

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Home in the Time of Quarantine

Remodelista: The Organized Home - Workman PublishingHow does the design of your home make you feel? If you’re typically someone who is rarely home, maybe spending most of your time there asleep, you may not have ever given it much thought. If you’re a homebody and maximize your time there, you’re probably at least unconsciously aware of the effects interior decorating can have on your psyche. There have been plenty of studies on the effects of beauty and aesthetics on the human mind. So since we’re all stuck looking at our own walls 24 hours a day, now is the perfect time to reconsider how our decorating decisions make us feel.  

Ever since Netflix released a televised version of Marie Kondo’s The Life Changing Magic of Tidying Up, the push towards minimalism has been unavoidable. Remember all the jokes about “sparking joy”? But the value in minimalism goes beyond trendy platitudes. It goes hand in hand with another very trendy buzzword, mindfulness. Put together, these lifestyles are meant to promote mental clarity and reduce stress. Think about how much better you feel being in a freshly cleaned and decluttered space. It’s not a coincidence! Luckily, since this trend blew up, there are tons of e-resources for checkout on Hoopla and Overdrive, from Kondo’s seminal series to The Minimalist HomeFor very hands-on, practical advice, books like Remodelista are packed full of useful tips, from creative storage solutions and one of my favouritesuper simple but surprisingly ignored ideas: hide your cords! It’s incredible how such a small change can make such a big difference in your home. These e-books usually come with the same photos you’d find in the print versions, and honestly sometimes just looking at photos of beautifully organized homes is enough to get inspired (if you have a Pinterest board related to decorating, you know what I mean). Oh, and since books on minimalism are quite popular and tend to be checked out, a reminder: with your VPL card, you can also access Markham and Richmond Hill’s Overdrive library! Between the three, you’re likely to find what you’re looking for. 

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