Ed’s Letter: Naomi Larkin feels it’s time to clear the clutter.
Idespair at clutter creep. Items finding their way to places they shouldn’t. Forms from my daughter’s school, socks (always just one, never a pair), pens, pegs, shopping bags, magazines, laundry… Random things that just seem to gather, defiantly, in corners and on surfaces that really should be clear.
These things often end up there because they don’t require immediate attention, but they will soon so they can’t just be binned or filed. This mess is insidious and it’s coming between me and my happy home. It’s also about to change. We’re hurtling towards the end of the year and that means longer days, lazy lunches, casual dinners and spontaneous drinks with family and friends and I want my house to be match fit. Clutter will cramp my style.
I’m taking my lead from the homeowners in this issue because they’ve all carefully curated their spaces to match their lifestyles. Foodie and magazine editor Sarah Tuck decided to “buy a house for the life that I wanted, not the life that I had” and the result is a clean-lined and stylish villa located in Auckland’s Ponsonby close to friends and work (page 84). When a home on Russell’s foreshore came up for sale Menna Salisbury snapped it up (page 50). She revamped some areas and reconfigured a TV room to become a formal dining area because she loves to hold dinner parties. She’s never been happier. Our Home of the Month – Brenda Young’s art-filled Wellington apartment – is a lesson in how a space can be full and yet there is room to breathe because everything has its place and only treasured items live here (page 30).
I was filled with admiration reading about Moira Howard’s gardening odyssey (page 106). From battling three years of nor’westers so strong they left her “spread-eagled on a mat of mulch crying for help” to hauling rocks, she transformed a windswept Kaikōura hillside into a garden that is not only beautiful but grows more than enough vegetables to feed the family. If your urban base doesn’t allow for something as dramatic then take inspiration from our two courtyard gardens that show small can still be mighty (page 114).
So while I’m tackling my corners in preparation for the silly season ahead, you can become known as the host with the most thanks to this month’s Special Feature (page 145), which has plenty of tips and ideas on summer entertaining. Have fun.
Naomi Larkin