Period Features

Halving The Housework

A few top tips to streamline the home decks inspired by our old-fashioned book 'Halving the Housework'.

A feather mop is important

Use it on days you don't want to take everything off the dressing table; for the tops of books in a bookcase (dreadful fluff collectors, and a source of shame when a guest takes a volume out for reference); for the edges of shelves and all of the places where dust shows. Always use it for delicate lampshades. Dust lifted with a feathery flick won't hurt them. Do the job with a cloth and you'll simply rub the dust in.

An objective manner

Look at your possessions dispassionately. Then go round the place and do some mental arithmetic. Just total the number of objects, minus the number unnecessary, unbeautiful, unhygenic and unwanted. Try to think as if you were a stranger, seeing your home for the first time. You won't be able, for a number of reasons, to discard everything - sentiment, Aunt Agatha's possible legacy, the landlords certain disapproval, economic pressure, can all militate against a complete and perfect streamlining.

For these and other tips why not check out this book and the others in the series by clicking here.

An Autumn Welcome From Suzy

Here at Period Features we are really getting to grips with autumn. We are thinking bonfires, toasting forks, lanterns, sweet toffee apples and burnt sausages. Even though it has been unseasonably warm, some of us have even been spotted in knitwear – sweating it out in the cellar packing your parcels and getting hot under the collar taking paint to the first floor. Gym subscriptions are not needed.

However as the last sparkler spits its final spark I will be filled with dread and anticipation of what I know is best for my home and family - a pre Christmas de-clutter. I can’t recommend this enough. For the last 10 months I have been tripping over brightly coloured plastic parts stumping my toe on unwanted garden ornaments, getting increasingly frustrated with bulging cupboards and overflowing drawers. Where does this stuff come from? And in that there lies the problem. I am a self confessed hoarder and our ‘stuff’ has a sentimental value and may someday prove useful.

Therefore before you even begin to fantasise about how you might decorate the halls with boughs of holly, take a good look at your possessions. Try to be objective and try to look at your home as a stranger. Remember less is more and with e-bay you have a financial incentive or give to a charity organisation in your area .They can re-use unwanted furniture and household objects and in doing so you have helped someone else and the environment as it hasn’t all ended up in a land fill.

Or get a professional to help - there are plenty out there! Here are just a few: www.cluttercontrol.co.uk, www.clutter.com

Lucie's Off To Pastures New!

Lucie has decided it's time for a change, so Period Features, Leek’s very own department store for period homes, will soon be transferred to its new owners, Jonathan and Suzy Dymock from the Peak District village of Ilam. The shop was opened by Lucie in 2001 and has since gone from strength to strength, having been featured in Eve magazine, The Times, Period Living, The English Home, The Telegraph and many more publications. Lucie now feels that the time has come to concentrate on other business interests and is confident that Period Features will remain in safe hands. In the words of Suzy Dymock, “We are truly delighted to be the new owners of such a wonderful shop – it’s a very exciting time for us. Leek is a lovely town and we feel privileged to be a part of it”.

The shop will be officially opened by Sir Richard FitzHerbert, of the nearby Tissington Estate in Derbyshire, during a grand opening ceremony on Tuesday 10 October at 2.30 pm. Champagne will flow freely at the event and all members of the press and public (including anyone reading this blog!) are most welcome to attend.

Sir Richard FitzHerbert says “I am a board member of East Midlands Tourism and also Chairman of www.visitpeakdistrict.com. The latter promotes not just tourist and other businesses in the National Park but also in the environs and gateways to the Peak District. As such, Leek is an integral gateway to the locations and tourist spots in the National Park and I am thrilled to be involved in launching Suzy and Jonathan Dymock’s new shop in Broad Street, Leek. I wish it the greatest of success.”

Lucie would like to thank everybody for helping to make the shop such a roaring success. She is going to concentrate on Internet-based businesses and will let readers know when her first site is ready. Watch this space!

Win A Fabulous £50 Voucher!

This month, we've got another £50 Period Features voucher to give away. The voucher can either be redeemed online or in our lovely shop on the edge of the Peak District. Just answer one simple question, and after the closing date of 30 November 2006 we will pick one winner at random from all the correct entries received.

To enter, please take a look at our fabulous new guide to the 101 best quirky, independent shops in the UK. You can view it here. Then just answer the following question: what is the name of our fabulous shopping guide? Email the answer to us at competition@periodfeatures.net. Good luck!

The lucky winner of our August/September competition, receiving a £50 Period Features voucher, was Alison Knight. Many thanks to everyone who took the time to enter.

Old-Fashioned Greetings Cards Online!

I found a great resource the other day - a site where you can send as many hand-drawn, animated e-cards as you like for just £7.90 for the whole year. The cards are quirky and whimsical, with plenty of cherubs, roses and more than a touch of the Jane Austen about them. There is a world and an England that still exists, if partly in childhood memory and black and white films. It was a less cynical time when it didn’t matter what car you drove, or even if you owned one. It’s a nostalgic place of cricket on the village green, freshly baked jam tarts, children playing in the street and at four o’clock everything stops for tea. Read more and view some of the sample cards at www.gabrielleizen.com.