Jane Antonovich Designs
  • Home
  • About
  • Gallery
    • Bedrooms
    • Bathrooms
    • Living and Family Rooms
    • Kitchen and Dining
    • Home Offices
    • Front Doors, Entryways and Exteriors
    • Man Caves
    • Meditation Rooms
    • Organizing and Functional Spaces
    • Commercial
    • Feng Shui Video Tours
  • SERVICES
  • Blog
  • FREE Classes
  • Speaking Services
  • Contact Me

Weekly Design Bites

FREE DESIGN ESSENTIALS KIT >>

Who's In Charge?

1/30/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture











There’s often an internal scuffle that happens when you decide to cope with the chaos in your space. Brains! Emotions! Bodies! Heart and Spirit! They all have something to say in the matter, and they all have their place. But in the end, who’s in charge?



Ahhhh, the Brain!
Your (really smart and skillful) brain starts to give you a list of reasons to keep things. The list almost always goes something like this:

  • I paid my hard-earned money for that!

  • I only wore it a few times.

  • It is still useful, look...I can cut tin cans with it!

  • It is very expensive, a designer item.

  • I’ve held on to it for this long (like it’s a contest)...

And it’s not that we want to override our brains, they are there for a reason, LOTS of very good reasons, like keeping our bank accounts straight and getting us to work on time!


Or, Are Your Emotions Running the Show? If your emotions are front and center then you may be very sentimental about certain items in your space, especially heirlooms, gifts, or things you’ve held onto for a very long time already. Or you may feel “overwhelmed” and stuck. Be aware that emotions like to take center stage and they often show up with DRAMA and FLAIR!

Where Does the Clutter Live in Your Body? Is your office giving you a headache...tax time is coming up! Or does going into the chaotic basement or attic give you a backache or a stomachache? If you experience discomfort anywhere in your body when you think of your junk, or piles, or STUFF, release it into the world instead of carrying it (along with the accompanying aches and pains) into your future. 
It’s. Just. Not. Worth. It.

How’s Your Personal Energy Account? I have a theory that we are all given a certain amount of energy to “spend” each day. And if every day you spend some of it in frustration or distress or pain over your stuff, wouldn’t you LOVE to have that energy back to spend however you please? What would you spend yours on? More giggles? More mischief? More winking at strangers, perhaps? 

What Does Your Heart Want? Most of us are not used to slowing down enough to check in with our deepest desires. As our brains, emotions and bodies are giving us constant information, sometimes we forget to integrate all that information and ask…”What makes my spirit soar?” (I’m pretty sure it’s not 10 hammers scattered all over the garage or 200 back issue magazines in dusty piles.) If you take a deep breath and really sink into this deeper place, the decisions will be easier, you will be able to release items into the world with love so that YOU can live the life you truly want. I know it’s easier said than done, start slow, be gentle with yourself and practice.


You know the truth by how it feels...in your heart.


Contact me if you need support in your journey to SIMPLIFY. I would love to help you sort things out so that you can live a life you love!

Until next week!

XOXO

Jane

PHOTO CREDIT: canstock.com

0 Comments

And My Guitar Came Out of the Closet!

1/22/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
In a HUGE departure from the norm this weekend, we had friends over for dinner. The kind of friends who bring musical instruments and chocolate for dessert…We had a wonderful time eating, talking, playing music and singing.

It got me thinking...because when they left I felt so FULL, so SATISFIED and HAPPY!

And, I have guitar of my own, my husband and I both like to sing but we don’t (unless it’s day #3 on a hiking trip)…WHY?????

And we don’t go dancing very often either! (Swing Dance lessons already on the calendar for Feb.)

Of course, it made me think, what else are ALL OF US ignoring that could sustain us in ways we’ve forgotten?

Friends of mine just started a new Friday night GIRLS ONLY “thing” with wonderful food and conversation (Hi Jackie, Sally, Jamie...be there next week!). They are intentionally bringing their women friends together to infuse their home with more energy, love and laughter...to connect + raise the vibration of their home. Really! That’s what they said!

What are other simple things such as those that “feed” us in our daily lives?

This is my partial list...for me, some of them overlap, and I’m sure you could add a few:

Good food, Connecting with Nature, Family, and Friends, Purpose/Work, Fun (including singing and dance but that’s me!), Physical activity, Knowledge, Spirituality, Beauty, AND...

HOME, of course!

Shelter is a basic human need. I imagine the caveman days...and that cave dwellers cared about their homes, swept out the bones and bits of debris, made beautiful rock sculptures, put wildflowers on the table, drew on the walls to tell stories, make art. (If there are any Anthropologists out there who have resources for this, I’d be interested, my cursory search turned up nothing, so I surmised. :))

So, if our homes are to REALLY nourish us, reflect with me on a few essential ideas:

Become Aware: Just like I had a “moment” this weekend when I realized that playing and singing music could really fill me up in a way I had forgotten about, there are ways in which your home can feed your own personal energy, too. Do you feel in harmony with your home or does it drag you down? Do you smile as you’re driving home because of the joy and sustenance you know you’ll find waiting for you there? Or do you put your blinders on when you get home, because certain areas of your home make you feel anxious, depressed or tense?

Remove Stagnant Energy: One of the most powerful ways to lift the energy of your home is to remove all of the stagnant energy. Take away to a donation center anything that no longer serves you, anything that does not immediately lift your energy when you think of it or hold it in your hands. Anything broken or way beyond its expiration date also gets the boot. This includes all categories: books, papers, clothes, kitchen items, craft supplies, tubs and boxes and shelves in the basement, attic or garage. And remember to consider the STUFF in your storage locker (YOU might not have one, but I’ll bet you know someone who does!)

Make it Sparkle: Once you have eliminated the stuff that drags you down, consider ADDING elements to your space for even more vitality. Here are a few suggestions:

  • Change the color of the walls or even just the ceiling, creating an enhancement in the vibration of your space.

  • Consider the messages your artwork conveys (future blogpost:)). For example: What is that bustling city scene in your bedroom saying...is it hard to relax, or sleep?

  • Sprinkle a little whimsy to make you smile...a meditating frog on the shelf under the TV or kissing parakeets in the guest room.
Call me if you need a fresh perspective on your space. (608-235-9023) I LOVE to help people get that sustenance and nourishment  they’re craving from their home. What if your home filled you up every single time you walked in the door? Imagine the satisfaction, the joy!

XOXO

Jane

PS: If you enjoy the blog, please share with your friends, we LOVE watching our family grow!

0 Comments

9 Things You Can Just Get Rid of NOW!

1/16/2015

4 Comments

 
Picture
  1. ALL 8-Track tapes, Beta tapes and (if you’re really brave), Cassette and VHS tapes.  Check out the AWESOME service at  www.greendisk.com. All you have to do is box up these and any other items from the list on their site, print off the shipping label, and mail them off! They are affordable, reputable and dispose of everything in the most eco-friendly way possible. I have happily used their services many times.

  2. EXTRA coffee mugs, you know, the ones you don’t EVER use!!!! They are gobbling up space in your kitchen. Out they go to charm someone else.

  3. ALL of your Product Manuals. Often they collect in drawers or WAY BACK in the file cabinet wedging in and causing major annoyance.  If you need advice about an appliance or gadget you have purchased, go to the website! All product websites have their instruction manuals on a separate tab and most bigger companies have live support. Or check out www.productmanuals.com . They also have a HUGE selection of manuals as resources.

  4. Any tubs or boxes of college, high school, (middle school???) papers, report cards, and notebooks. Maaaaaybe you’ll save a handful of them (your Senior Project, Master’s Thesis?), as special mementos, but the rest? Gotta go!

  5. Cords and chargers that are obsolete...send them with the 8-Tracks in the www.greendisk.com box. With the short life of electronics, I often find a drawer or even large tub (or two...) of unused cords in the homes of my clients. Client quote:  “If those cords (tangle of dozens in an attic box) aren’t attached to something, we must not need them!”

  6. The DRESS, JEANS, (fill in the blank) in your closet that are too tight. Just get rid of them!

  7. Magazines! (and their sexy sisters: catalogues) If they are not the current month, they’re out! No, there is no rule that says you can’t recycle them until you read them :)!!! Just think of the joyful, happy people at the retirement community, day care center, or library when you deliver your HUGE stacks to their door.

  8. Business cards! Buy the CamCard app on your phone for $0.99  You. Will. Be. Amazed.​
  9.  Junk Mail.  All of it.
My guess is that if you are plagued by any of the above, your **stuff** does not match your gleaming, gorgeous self. And, possibly there’s WAY more than what’s on that list lurking in your basement, closets, attic, and garage. Why carry around that baggage? Why even live with it for one second longer? Your home and work spaces DO matter, they have a HUGE effect on the way you live your life.

Here’s your challenge:

Step away from the computer...time yourself, and go do one of the 9 items on the above list. And then, check in with us in the comments below. What did you do? How long did it take? AND...how do you feel?

Love,

XOXO

Jane




Photo Credit: csp10164960
4 Comments

What To Do With The GIFT (that I don’t really want)?

1/7/2015

0 Comments

 
Picture
I hear this question from almost every client I work with! Even though the well-intentioned gift  does NOT meet the criteria for the “KEEP” pile, the narrative goes something like this… “My Aunt Millie gave it to me!” “It was a gift from Grandmama!” “I can’t get rid of it, even though I hate it, my mom gave it to me!” (You get the idea…)

People have serious guilt about letting go of items that were gifts. And it’s not just at the holidays! It’s a whole category of “stuff” that stays in your space for the wrong reasons!

I am ALL for keeping gifts that make you exquisitely happy, and cause joy to flow from your pores. But any other gift? If you’re keeping it because of guilt?  It’s got to go! Really!!!

My further thoughts :) on the subject…

The FIRST GIFT is the choosing. If you are inspired at the time of buying a gift for someone else then the first gift has been given. If it lights you up to purchase a gift, then by all means, DO IT!

The SECOND GIFT is the giving. The moment you send or deliver the gift, the second gift has been given. You’re really sending your love with the extra dollop of something tangible to represent it. YAY!

The THIRD GIFT is the receiving. “My (relative, friend, S.O., husband) thought so much of me that s/he gave me a gift! How lovely, I can feel the love, the intention, the spirit of the gift!” Receiving the love and intention is the third gift.

THEN...when the gift is in your hands, IT IS YOURS!

And, it is completely up to you what you decide to do with it.

IF, and only if, you shiver with delight when you hold whatever has been given to you...then it’s a keeper.

IF it falls into the other category, filled with reasons, rationalizations, and guilt, then you must send it out into the world WITH LOTS OF LOVE for someone else to adore.

Remember! The three gifts (choosing, giving and receiving) have already transpired!!!!!

It is OK for you to return, give, or donate that which does not serve you!

And I know this is not easy, I had a client last summer who had had her 60th birthday party months before...When I went to her house, the dozen or so gag gifts were in a pile on her living room floor, in front of the couch. She was really challenged with what to do about the situation. Well, you can imagine how it went...she was not wanting to keep them, but felt very obligated. We talked, deciding that really, they could go, the fun was over (long over) the party had happened, the laughs had been had, the memories were happy(!!!) and the actual physical gifts were NOT NECESSARY to keep!

So, if you’re hanging onto any “dud” gifts, please consider your own energy, health and happiness when deciding what to keep!

You are not a gift warehouse, and you do not have to save every gift that has been bestowed upon you!

And, I get it, it’s not always easy!

Give me a call if I can help support you to enjoy more space, more energy, and some elbow room for expansion.


Photo Credit: alphaspirit

0 Comments
    Picture

    Jane Antonovich
    ​Author


    Archives

    December 2022
    November 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    November 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014

    Categories

    All
    Art
    Basement
    Closet
    Design
    Editing
    Gallery
    Makeover
    Master Closet
    Organize
    Sporting Equipment
    Stuff

    RSS Feed

Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
Picture
  • Home
  • About
  • Gallery
    • Bedrooms
    • Bathrooms
    • Living and Family Rooms
    • Kitchen and Dining
    • Home Offices
    • Front Doors, Entryways and Exteriors
    • Man Caves
    • Meditation Rooms
    • Organizing and Functional Spaces
    • Commercial
    • Feng Shui Video Tours
  • SERVICES
  • Blog
  • FREE Classes
  • Speaking Services
  • Contact Me