Ideas for a minimalist and clutter-free home this festive season

Limit yourself to two or three materials, to achieve a clean, minimalist look. (Photo Credit: Ksaraah - Taliesyn © Harshan Thomson)

The festive season is around the corner, and everybody is gearing up to celebrate. Naturally, one of the priorities on everyone's to-do lists now is to de-clutter the home and organise everything around them.

Indeed, de-cluttering and minimalist design are the way to go. But before you begin, a thumb rule: to go minimalism, prioritise function without compromising on aesthetics.

Here’s how to de-clutter, and stay true to the ‘less is more’ ideology, especially if you live in city apartment of 1,200-2,000 square feet:

1. De-cluttering is key

While de-cluttering, cover all items in your home—clothing, furniture, books, and décor and all miscellaneous objects. Approach the process room-wise. Consider the function and durability of each object, ridding rooms and storage spaces of unnecessary and unused items. This will ensure that the spaces can be optimised for better/other functions.

2. Organize with minimalism in mind

Start by focusing on the things that are absolutely essential. Invest in simple storage and organisation tools that can be found across physical and e-stores. These are typically priced between Rs550-2,000, and are available in the form of bins, acrylic boxes, collapsible drawer systems, etc. Try and focus on increasing hidden storage. You can also opt for storage containers in the same colour as your décor to help them blend in with the furniture.

3. Materials matter

The trick to making spaces seem pared-down and larger is by incorporating a material scheme comprising as few materials as possible.

To achieve a minimalist-style home, consider uniform flooring across the house and go in for lighter colours to achieve a sense of continuity. These could be in the form of vitrified tiles, natural stone, concrete, or engineered wood floors. Allow the walls and ceiling to be painted in light neutral hues to create brighter indoors. Furniture, too, should be designed in a palette of just two-three materials.

4. Selecting furniture and décor

Minimalism should be an inside-out approach when it comes to homes. Once you have zeroed on the items that need to be disposed of, imagine the empty spaces as blank canvases on which select pieces can be introduced.

Consciously opt for modern, clean-lined pieces of furniture and light/pastel colours. This gives an illusion of larger spaces.

5. Edit your home

Bear in mind that a simple design is not a one-time, festive-season thing. It is something that needs to be sustained throughout the year. Keep changing smaller pieces of furniture and decorative objects to create renewed layouts.

Storage bins, acrylic boxes, and collapsible drawer systems are inexpensive and easily available.

Minimalist guide to home de-cluttering and organizing

- Organise one space at a time.

- Get creative with the space and objects you already own instead of purchasing new furniture, items of décor, etc.

- Versatility is essential; introduce furniture pieces that are multi-purpose and can double up as storage spaces.

- Replace bulky furniture with light and sleeker furniture options.

- Introduce fewer decorative elements. Allow blank walls to be a part of the design scheme to maintain a sense of balance.