Collaborations

Is Your Home Really Clean? Health Benefits of a Clean Home

03.16.20

A research department at Indian University proved there is a correlation between physical fitness and the cleanliness of a home. That is down to the fact that people who clean their houses often exercise while doing so. This, among other benefits that accrue from keeping your home clean, should give an energy boost and motivate you to learn how to clean smelly drains in your homes.

Image via Pexels by Vecislavas Popa

Benefits of a Clean Home

Fewer occasions of depression and fatigue

Living in a dirty space gives you constant reminders that you need to clean your place. Your eyes are virtually denied the peace of resting on anything clean in the house. When the trash is too much, you will start developing stress and tiredness. Having clutter everywhere also makes life difficult in a way that you cannot locate your essentials quickly. When you cannot find the things you are looking for, you are more likely to be depressed. 

Reduced allergic reactions

Cases of asthma and allergy are more frequent if you are living in a place full of clutter. The presence of dirt and other pests in dirty spaces can trigger allergic reactions. The opposite is true about keeping a spotless home. When everything is clean, there will not be room for dust and pests in the house, therefore reduced cases of asthma and other allergies.

Improved safety

Statistics show that accidental falls and home fires are among the leading causes of deaths inside the home. To keep your family healthier and sound, you need to organize your space neatly and have everything in the right place to avoid tripping and falling. Cleaning spills is also essential and reduces the risk of a fire starting accidentally.

Less spread of germ causing diseases

In many households, people tend to focus on keeping the bathroom and kitchen clean thinking that they are the most germ-ridden areas in the house. That is right. But every part of the house deserves thorough cleaning if you are to seal with germs completely.

Homes that are kept tidy and less damp register fewer cases of infections caused by germs. It is crucial to disinfect counters and containers in the house as well as toys that your children use.

Improved diet and waistline

According to research by Cornell University, it is said that eating is affected by the physical environment. People that live in shabby places tend to have reduced dietary plan or appetite as compared to those that live in clean homes. The same research can be used to explain why it is easy to eat in a clean place than it is to eat in a dirty place. Once the environment is spotless, and everything organized accordingly, you will find it easy to regulate your feeding habits, thereby improving your diet and health in general.

What’s more, a clean home will always have less or no pests at all. That means that diseases are also reduced. Imagine having bedbugs in your bedroom. You would not enjoy your sleep, and once the sleeping cycle is destroyed, you stand to lose on many health benefits brought by having a good sleep. On the other hand, a person that lives in a clean environment enjoys peace of mind and sleeps soundly. 

Final words

There is an adage that cleanliness is next to godliness. Well, there might just be one as well that brings you closer to better health. Nothing beats the comfort of enjoying a clean space. Be it living alone or staying with your family, you need a place that is not a haven for diseases. You should, therefore, live more eco-friendly at home by cleaning your space.

Kamfy Living

DIY IKEA Tarva Dresser Hack

03.10.20

I love a good DIY project and this IKEA Tarva Dresser Hack is so easy and has the most beautiful end result. We put together a custom dresser for my sons nursery (IKEA baby room inspiration) and I wanted to share exactly how we did it and how much it cost. I havn’t done a DIY since the DIY bedside table makeover for our budget friendly bedroom transformation (that post was featured on Apartment Therapy and SMP Living too!) so make sure to check that out as well 🙂

IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal

IKEA Tarva Dresser Hack

The IKEA Tarva dresser costs $224.9 CAD (after tax) and it is definitely the most affordable dresser you are going to find on the market, especially for its size. The other amazing thing about this dresser is that it is made to DIY. It is untreated solid wood, so all you have to do is paint and change the knobs and you get yourself a custom designed piece of furniture.

No one will ever guess it’s an IKEA Tarva dresser hack. In fact, I’ve had several Instagram followers ask me where the dresser in Partaap Singh’s nursery is from. When I tell them it’s from IKEA, they are surprised.

Although this IKEA Tarva dresser hack is quite easy to pull off, the hardest part is definitely building the Tarva dresser. I would suggest looking on Kijiji or Craigslist and see if someone is selling the dresser. That would save you a lot of time and effort. If you do buy a new dresser from IKEA like we did, the first step is to build the dresser. Follow the instructions provided. Just don’t add the knobs because you’ll be adding custom hardware later.

Once the dresser is built, fill in the holes with some spackling paste. I already had some from the DIY food styling boards project so didn’t need to purchase it again.

Next comes the painting step. I wanted to keep the legs of the dresser raw wood, so I first taped off the legs using painters tape. To paint, I used the Behr Matte Interior Paint and Primer in One in the colour Eucalyptus Wreath (Base 7400). With this paint, you only need to do one coat of paint, although, it doesn’t hurt to do two coats. I purchased the smallest can of paint and I still have more than half the paint left over. I decided to not do a top coat since in my DIY bedside table makeover, I didn’t like how it changed the colour.

Once the dresser is dry, remove the painters tape. Now comes time to install this beautiful black hardware for an amazing price at Wayfair. Instead of knobs, I decided to use these black pulls to create a sleek look on the dresser. These come in a pack of 10, although you’ll only need 6 for this IKEA Traver Dresser Hack. I measured the middle of each dresser drawer and placed the pulls in the middle and screwed them in with a screwdriver.

And that is it. Probably one of the easiest IKEA hacks since you don’t need to do anything to prep the dresser before painting. Now, all you need to do is accessorize the dresser and you are ready to enjoy this beautiful piece of furniture to keep your clothes all organized!

I used mine in my sons nursery as his change station for now, but it will easily grow with him as he gets older. Then I added a big black circular mirror in the middle, a change pad and glass vase with cotton stems on the side. I also added these super cool Savor Memory boxes as well.

Now for the total cost for this IKEA Tarva Dresser Hack: $276.3! The dresser cost $224.9, the paint cost $22 and the black hardware was $29.4. To create this beautiful custom dresser that will last you a long time for under $300? I call that a win 🙂

Leave me a comment below if you try this IKEA Tarva Dresser Hack and how you accessorized your dresser. Happy DIY-ing.

IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal
IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal
IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal
IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal
IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal
IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal
IKEA Baby Room Inspiration - Nursery Reveal
Collaborations

Six Ways To Make Your Garden Easier To Manage

03.06.20

There are some people that love to do gardening, where other people might hate it. But whether you love it or loathe it, it’s important to take care of your outdoor space as much as it is to keep maintaining your indoor space. It’s even more important because it’s something that all your guests will see first when it comes to your home. So with that in mind, here are six ways to make your garden easier to manage.


Add In Artificial Grass

Artificial grass is something that a lot of people who don’t have time to tend to their garden like to use. And it’s not something that looks typically fake as there’s been a lot more care and attention that has gone into production of artificial grass in order to make it appear more real than fake. When buying artificial grass, you should look into what type of grass is going to fit the style and look of your outdoor area. Artificial grass needs very little maintenance and you don’t need to worry about mowing the grass because it’s fake, so it will never grow. There’s definitely a lot of benefit from getting artificial grass, and it’s something worth considering if you don’t want too much hassle to the main area of your garden. You might not want to put the artificial grass everywhere, so you can always cover smaller areas that can help with keeping the maintenance on your home to a lower level.  

Keep Pests Out With Fencing

Pests are a part and parcel of the natural world, and there’s always the danger that little creatures might stumble into your home unannounced. Chances are you’ve done something that has enticed them in, or something has changed to their current place of residence to force them to move. This might be due to building works or changes to a nearby area. When it comes to keeping your pests out, fencing is a great way of making sure that you keep them out as best you can. The bigger animals like foxes, for example, are likely to try and get in if you have open bins or bins that are easily knockable. 

Choose The Basics When It Comes To Plants

It’s important not to over complicate your garden when you’ve maybe not got the skills or time that’s needed to plant and tend to certain flowers or plants in general. Think about the basics and do a bit of background research on the best things to get. Certain vegetables, fruits and herbs can be easy to grow, so it doesn’t mean you don’t need to go too basic. Just find the types that are going to take very little attention. It’s always something you can work your way up from if you find it’s something that you want to build on more. A lot of what you grow can be found on the back of the packet in which the seeds came in, so always follow the instructions as best that you can.

Pick Weather-proof Outdoor Furniture

Outdoor furniture is a lovely thing to have in your outdoor space, and the more you can display, the more inviting it will look for your household and guests. However, you can make the mistake of having items of furniture that will easily rust or go worn if the material it’s made out of, isn’t weather-proofed. Try to weather-proof all of your outdoor furniture for easy maintenance because it also means that with most furniture, it will just be a simple case of wiping them down. When storing away furniture, try to have cushions and other soft furnishings that can be stored either in the outdoor furniture itself or in a sheltered area.

Make The Garden Layout Simple

The layout of a garden doesn’t need to be complicated, and instead, it can be made quite simple by the type of textures and colors that you incorporate into the garden itself. If you don’t fancy grass, then you’ve always got things like bark, stones and pebbles that can help create a bit more texture and have something interesting. Try to vary the levels in the shrubs you have and pick out the nice colours when it comes to plants and flowers. Flowers are always nice to pick out because there can be some really colourful ones that can contrast nicely against different features in the garden. Again, it doesn’t need to be complex, but you can inject some personality to your garden in just a few simple ways. With fencing, you could add in some hanging baskets and pop some color in there if you don’t want to fuss about with too many plants and flowers within the garden. It means less planning and having to maintain the weeds. You can also use weed killers to make weeding less of a challenge.

Do Your Research

And lastly, it’s good to utilize the good old internet when it comes to things that you don’t know. There’s so much knowledge and a wealth of information online so that if you get stuck or you’re finding a particular area of gardening hard, you can always rely on these resources. There’s plenty online, and it can help make your gardening a little more successful than what it probably will be. Knowledge is good to have when it comes to something that you’re not very familiar with.

Making your garden easier to manage is something that can help bring a lot of love and attention to it, without so much of the effort that comes with it. Try to make your life a little easier by improving the outdoor space with these tips. Do your research for anything that you’re not familiar with and make the garden layout as simple as possible. Use artificial grass if you’ve got no time for mowing and pick the right furniture that’s going to be weather-proof. The garden layout can be simplified but can still look wonderful with a bit of tender loving care.