Inside: Consider these design choices that lead to a lower-maintenance home so that you can spend less time cleaning your space.
Owning a home is a wonderful thing – but man, it can be a ton of work.
There’s a seemingly endless to-do list that only ever seems to grow. You’ve got your everyday cleaning, organizing, and decluttering.
Seasonal deep cleans and maintenance. Constant yard work during the warmer months – or if you’re lucky enough to live in a warm place, year-round. Repairs and upgrades.
And that’s only half of it.
If you’re tired of spending so much time on home upkeep, there are some things you can do to make life a little bit easier for yourself.
By taking steps to achieve a lower maintenance home, you can cut down on those evenings and weekends of cleaning and fixing and focus on enjoying the space you’ve created for yourself.
Not sure what you can do to make it happen? Here are some helpful design choices that lead to a lower-maintenance home.
7 Design Choices That Lead to a Lower Maintenance Home
Consider these smart design choices that lead to a lower-maintenance home to save time on the upkeep of your space.
Low Maintenance Home Tip #1: Choose colors and textures wisely.
Decorating and organizing trends come and go. From minimalist to maximalist aesthetics, different decor options fall in and out of style constantly.
Smooth white walls and countertops might help you achieve a bright and airy look in your home, but they’re also going to create a ton of work when it comes to keeping things looking clean.
Light colors show dust and dirt much quicker, and as a result, you’ll need to spend far more time cleaning them than you would if you picked a more forgiving color or texture.
And those inevitable hard-to-remove scratches and scuffs? They’ll be a lot harder to hide.
By opting for darker shades or neutral tones, you can more easily disguise some of those imperfections and buy yourself a little more time when it comes to cleaning up.
And for flooring, opting for a neutral color will keep your floors looking cleaner. Too light or too dark shows more dirt, dust, and hair or fur.
Low Maintenance Home Tip #2: Opt for washable fabrics.
Our homes are filled with fabrics. Rugs, curtains, couch cushions, throw pillows, hand towels – the list goes on. And all of those fabrics eventually have to be cleaned.
Instead of buying rugs that require a trip to a professional cleaner or curtains that have to be hand-washed or spot-cleaned, choose fabrics that can be thrown in the washing machine.
Washable covers for couch cushions and throw pillows can make it exponentially easier to keep your living room looking fresh.
Investing in pieces that you can wash on your own will save you time, money, and energy, and make it easy to keep your space looking fresh.
Low Maintenance Home Tip #3: Use large-format tiles.
Scrubbing tiles and grout can feel like the bane of a homeowner’s existence. Whether you’re dealing with the kitchen floor or backsplash or the shower in your bathroom, tiles manage to act as magnets for dirt, stains, and scum.
And let’s not even talk about how quickly that grout can get discolored – and how impossible it can be to restore it to its original state, even with endless scrubbing.
To minimize the amount of work you’ll need to do to keep those tiles looking fresh, opt for large-format tiles. Using helpful cleaning tools will also make the job easier.
Technically defined as tiles with at least one side longer than 15”, these tiles are trendy, versatile, and can elevate your space while minimizing the effort it takes to clean up.
Low Maintenance Home Tip #4: Pick flat surface stones that are easy to wipe.
On the topic of tiles and decorative stones, pick ones with smooth, flat surfaces for easy wiping.
As interesting as a nice textured tile might look, trying to clean dirt out of every single tiny crevice is a headache – and one you can easily avoid by investing in the right stones.
This applies to outdoor stones, too. If you’re considering a stone footpath or patio, choosing something flat and smooth will save you a ton of time when it’s time to tidy up.
A simple sweep of a countertop is all it’ll take to keep your space looking pristine.
Low Maintenance Home Tip #5: Skip the open shelving.
In recent years, the concept of open shelving has become a popular home design decision. If you’re looking for an open, clean, minimalist aesthetic, it’s not a great way to go – and a terrible thing to have to upkeep.
Open shelves allow zero room for error or mess. Your dishes have to be perfectly stacked, your mugs perfectly aligned. Not only that, but they can create visual clutter as you see every item.
And you’ve got to take it all out and dust those open shelves often since there’s nothing to protect them from the elements.
If you’re looking to save some time and energy around the house, opt for cabinets with doors that close to keep dust at bay and give yourself a little bit of grace.
Low Maintenance Home Tip #6: Keep fabrics out of your dining room.
When you’re eating and drinking, spills and stains are inevitable. Even if you’re the tidiest person on the planet, you can’t escape them – even if only occasionally.
And what about when spills happen? If you opted for upholstered dining chairs or a fancy rug underneath your dining room table, you’re going to have your work cut out for you.
Scrubbing, soaking, steaming – all in hopes that you can restore that fabric back to its original state.
Instead, save yourself the headache and stick to hard chairs that can simply be wiped down. Keep the floor bare – or if you absolutely must include a rug, opt for one that’s washable.
Low Maintenance Home Tip #7: Choose the right landscaping.
If you have a yard, you know just how much it can influence the aesthetic of your home. Investing in the right landscaping can totally transform your outdoor space and boost your curb appeal.
But you’ve got to be smart about your landscaping choices. Flowers might be beautiful, but a lot of them require constant pruning and upkeep to look their best.
A lush, green lawn is attractive – but you’ve got to commit to mowing, watering, fertilizing, and weeding.
If you’re looking for a more low-maintenance approach, consider incorporating native plants into your landscaping.
Do a bit of research to see what thrives in your area without a lot of effort; you might be surprised to see how many options you have. As for the lawn, consider xeriscaping part or all of your grass to cut down dramatically on time spent maintaining your yard.
What design choices have you made that lead to a lower-maintenance home? Leave a comment and let me know what you’ve done!
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