CLEAR YOUR SPACE + CLEAR YOUR MIND

Have you ever heard someone say, your space is a direct reflection of your mind? When your mind is cluttered with so much stuff, things to remember, scattered, things tend to be everywhere? Have you noticed? If you have not noticed, then I invite you to take a moment and really observe be present a look around yourself.

Is there a lot of stuff everywhere? Can you never keep anything neat? 

I thought so, we all do it and it is my mission to help you become really mindful of your space, both inside and out. They correlate believe it or not and it is a mirror of your internal mind. It happens to me all the time, things start off really clean and tidy and then... BOOM, the tidal wave that is my mind trying to keep up with everything happening is lost in a state of samples, paperwork, computer gadgets I hate, mail, bills, things to remember to pay, pens, paints, and butter paper.

I do have specific goals this year but mostly I have specific words that I want to work towards being. One of them is flowing and I mean it in every sense of the word as I tend to be a little of a control freak from time to time, it pops up and makes my life and work a lot harder. So with letting go of the sense of perfection I introduce the idea of flow into my life, I want a good flow especially when it comes to my work space and mind. 

The thing is, how do we get there when everything seems to be taking over and you almost feel like you're drowning below it all?

+ Firstly, begin to mindful, take a step back and observe it all for what it is. Whatever room it may be, even if it is your mind. Just stop. 

+ Make categories for your mess. 

" THINGS TO KEEP" " IMPORTANT" " BILLS" and begin sorting. If you have not looked at that article you were ment to read since last December, bin it, it's gone. Be ruthless, you will not believe how liberating it will be.

+ When trying to get rid of things, think about and ask yourself these questions: 

 "DOES THIS HAVE PURPOSE?" " "DOES THIS SERVE ME OR HELP ME?"  " WILL I NEED IT IN A YEAR? " You will know the answer and then just BIN IT! But remember always be sustainable, so make sure all paper and recyclables go straight into the recycling.

+ Have task areas in your work area. This tip applies only to your study and work area, however we can think about it in terms of other spaces too. Areas of your home are dedicated to specific tasks and functions so really try not to mix the zones. It makes the mind and activity a lot more clearer and defined.

+ Do this at least every two months to stay on top of things. You can do it! 


Image sourced from Pinterest. 

STUDIO SPACE PT 1

I don't just love designing residential spaces because being a good designer is really about being able to apply your knowledge to any given brief and thinking outside the floor plan. It is really important when designing spaces to understand what you need from a practicality point of view vs what you would love it to be like. More likely than not you will be able to create a happy medium between the two and have an end result that is better than you ever could have imagined. I have actually been meaning to blog about this amazing fashion labels office space for sometime and finally today is the day. This is going to be a HUGE post because I have so much to say so it is going to be in two parts.

To all you lovely women out there who are in the corporate world or just love the elegance and sometimes quirkiness that is Cue Clothing will appreciate this post. 

Where you work often becomes pretty much your second home, it is where you spend majority of your time during the week, so really it doesn't make any sense to me that an office environment or studio space would be boring, dull, not be inspiring and comfortable. Work despite what you do, seriously despite what you do, even if it is to a certain degree, needs to be inspiring and motivating. If you don't have that and don't have good people working with you, how the hell do you keep moral up? I have been fortunate enough to work in really good environments and it just really cements the fact that comfortable and inspiring spaces are a must when it comes to work. 

An office space or studio allows you I believe to express the personality and identity that is your brand. It can be done in the most unique ways as well and does not really have to be in one specific way. It can be carried through the entire design, concept and scheme. Zoning, good work space & lighting is imperative especially if you are a creative studio. Zoning allows you to create different sections in your space dedicated to specific tasks or parts of your business. Keeping inspired & motived through good imagery, colour and lighting is also really important, but more about that tomorrow. 

I love Cue and I also am in love with their office space. It is very unique and would be such a great space to work in. The interiors is by Geyer a strategic Interior Design firm that specialises in developing unique working environments and enhancing activity based workplaces. In 2011 they designed the HQ for Cue Clothing and it is amazing. It is the perfect combo of bringing the inspiring brand alive in a workplace. It also shows how zoning allows for different activities to take place in the one environment and the importance of colour and inspiring desks that are filled with natural light. 

Lounging area where brain storming and critiquing of designs
can occur. 

Large work benches and desks makes for great design and
spaces for cutting patterns and samples

This is an amazing light installation designed by
Jonathan Jones. 

Front of house, dark, moody and elegant. It is very innovative
as well which I feel reflects Cue's fashion forward mission and style.
How great is the polished concrete? 

Design studios, part of the office but also creates areas for
privacy and quite. I love the use of opaque glass boxes that is
used to define the enclosed studio space from the rest of the office. 

Inside Design studio spaces. Neutral tones and great task lighting
creates a comfortable and inspiring environment to enhance creativity. 

Great open individual offices and desks. Great use of bring the interior
and exterior together with natural light to keep spaces light and motivating.
Also with lots of storage.

Stay tuned for Part 2 tomorrow where I will be talking about how to inspire yourself to create a studio space or office space that is full of personality and practicality with colour, organisation, lighting and zoning. 

All images in this post are sourced from this article about the design. 

You can find out more about Geyer by clicking here. 

Happy Wednesday, 

JDZ x