LAWN LOOKING PATCHY OR DRY? LONG,
INFREQUENTWATERING–JUSTHALF
ANHOURAWEEK–CANTRANSFORM
ITINTOANOASISH G ADVICE
182 | AUSTRALIAN HOUSE & GARDEN
ORM
AN OASIS OF GREEN.CHOOSE THE RIGHT WHITE
A fresh coat of white paint is guaranteed to
make your interior feel lighter, brighter and
fresher. Just be sure to get the undertone right,
says Karen Aston, principal designer at Karen
Aston Design. “Generally, a cool white has a
blue or green undertone and a warm white
has a red or yellow undertone.” Look to match
the undertone in your white paint with the
undertones of other elements in the room,
such as flooring and upholstery. “Timber
flooring with a honey-yellow or red undertone,
for example, will need to be paired with a
warm-white paint,” she says.9
CLEAN THE FIREPLACE
AND CHIMNEY
“This is dirty work, so wear old clothes,
eye protection, a mask and sturdy gloves,”
says Kiddle. “Lay plastic drop sheets at the
opening of your wood-burning fireplace to
capture ash and soot. Sweep out debris with
a long-handled chimney brush onto the drop
sheet. Lay a second drop sheet over mess
and dispose of it. Vacuum floors and open
windows to air the room.”WASH THE PAVERS
Cleaning pavers is simple and makes a world
of difference to your outdoor areas. “Use a
concrete-cleaning solution that’s designed
to remove mould and mildew. Mix it with
the appropriate amount of water and add
it to a spray pump,” says Kiddle. “Wet pavers
and spray with the cleaning solution. Follow up
with a pressure wash.” #7
RESTORE YOUR
KITCHEN STORAGE
Setting aside a couple of hours to sort
through your pantry will help all your kitchen
activities run more efficiently, says Etty
Matalon, chief organiser at professional
organising firm Dot Org. “Remove everything
from the pantry and wipe shelves with a damp
cloth. Dispose of items past their use-by date
and wipe down everything else before
returning it all to the shelves.
“Reorganise your pantry by grouping like
items together, such as tea, coffee and sugar
in one section and breakfast cereals in another,”
she says. Regularly used items should be
stored in easily accessible spots, with less
frequently used ones at the upper and lower
reaches of the pantry. If you have deep shelves,
consider adding a couple of lazy susans or
smart canisters to keep everything organised.REJUVENATE A PATCHY LAWN
“Aerate grassed areas with a lawn-spike aerator
or a pitchfork,” says Cameron. Top-dress it with
1cm of river sand or a top-dressing soil mix,
then apply organic lawn fertiliser. “If your lawn
is on an irrigation system, adjust it to half an
hour per week – long and infrequent watering
is the way to go,” she adds.
6
CLEAR GUTTERS
AND DOWNPIPES
“Wear robust gardening gloves and use trestles
and planks to access the roof – they’re safer
than a ladder,” says Glenn Kiddle, Hire a
Hubby franchisee in Brisbane. “Remove debris
from gutters, dropping it to the ground for
disposal. Run a hose along gutters to clear out
any remains,” he says. “Clean downpipes by
hosing from top to bottom. If you encounter
a blockage, increase the hose pressure.” Photograph by James Knowler/bauersyndication.com.au.