10 Things the Untidy Know to be True
Are you more messy than meticulous at home? Then you’re sure to recognise these essential truths about untidiness
Spend a few moments gazing at the lovely rooms on Houzz and you could be forgiven for imagining that everyone lives in a spotlessly tidy home. Everyone except you, that is. Of course, this isn’t true. Most of us are too busy with work and family to keep our homes looking photoshoot ready, while some of us simply have untidy genes.
Whether you’re a messy pup by nature or circumstance, the following truths about untidiness may well strike a chord with you. And who says that rooms ordered to perfection are to everyone’s taste anyway? As some of these homes show, a looser approach to interior design can look gorgeous, too.
Whether you’re a messy pup by nature or circumstance, the following truths about untidiness may well strike a chord with you. And who says that rooms ordered to perfection are to everyone’s taste anyway? As some of these homes show, a looser approach to interior design can look gorgeous, too.
Pristine homes don’t put people at ease
Immaculately tidy homes with pristine surfaces and everything positioned just so can make visitors feel uneasy. Can you put a glass down on the table? Should you take your shoes off in the hall? Are you messing up the house just by breathing in it?
In contrast, a moderately untidy room, or a space that’s full of personal pieces and interest, like this gorgeous home, will communicate a relaxed vibe and encourage visitors to feel at home.
Explore more of this inviting Victorian flat
Immaculately tidy homes with pristine surfaces and everything positioned just so can make visitors feel uneasy. Can you put a glass down on the table? Should you take your shoes off in the hall? Are you messing up the house just by breathing in it?
In contrast, a moderately untidy room, or a space that’s full of personal pieces and interest, like this gorgeous home, will communicate a relaxed vibe and encourage visitors to feel at home.
Explore more of this inviting Victorian flat
It’s not our fault!
Untidy peeps may appreciate a beautiful, tidy space like this minimal living room, but might then say that it’s not their fault their own home is topsy-turvy. They can’t help being untidy! Their messy tendencies are a product of their upbringing, history and habits. So leave them alone, OK?
Want to be a teensy bit tidier? See ways to organise your rubbish and recycling
Untidy peeps may appreciate a beautiful, tidy space like this minimal living room, but might then say that it’s not their fault their own home is topsy-turvy. They can’t help being untidy! Their messy tendencies are a product of their upbringing, history and habits. So leave them alone, OK?
Want to be a teensy bit tidier? See ways to organise your rubbish and recycling
Being untidy doesn’t mean being grubby
An untidy home is not the same as a dirty home – untidy people understand this. You can live in a hygienically clean, lovingly cared for home that is simultaneously untidy. Messiness is not the same as muckiness!
An untidy home is not the same as a dirty home – untidy people understand this. You can live in a hygienically clean, lovingly cared for home that is simultaneously untidy. Messiness is not the same as muckiness!
Having things out isn’t the same as being untidy
Sometimes, people who simply own lots of stuff and like to have it all out are labelled untidy. This is unfair. Being surrounded by your possessions doesn’t mean your home is messy. See how beautifully ordered these alcove shelves are. They’re bursting with bits, and are pleasantly full, but not actually untidy.
Discover more wonderfully eclectic living rooms like this one.
Sometimes, people who simply own lots of stuff and like to have it all out are labelled untidy. This is unfair. Being surrounded by your possessions doesn’t mean your home is messy. See how beautifully ordered these alcove shelves are. They’re bursting with bits, and are pleasantly full, but not actually untidy.
Discover more wonderfully eclectic living rooms like this one.
Messy people are more creative
Sure, some creative types need a silent white box to work in, but untidy people know that on the whole, untidiness is a sign of creativity. If a tidy house reflects a tidy mind, then an untidy home suggests a mind whirring with ideas, too preoccupied with genius inventions to declutter or hang up wet towels…
Sure, some creative types need a silent white box to work in, but untidy people know that on the whole, untidiness is a sign of creativity. If a tidy house reflects a tidy mind, then an untidy home suggests a mind whirring with ideas, too preoccupied with genius inventions to declutter or hang up wet towels…
Tidiness is just a matter of priority
Untidy people have rights, too! Don’t slam an untidy person and assume their messy ways hint at some sort of degenerate character. Being untidy is just a reflection of how an individual prioritises tidying. Nothing more.
Untidy people have rights, too! Don’t slam an untidy person and assume their messy ways hint at some sort of degenerate character. Being untidy is just a reflection of how an individual prioritises tidying. Nothing more.
What does tidy actually mean?
How do you define tidy, anyway? One person’s version of tidy is another’s vision of chaos. This is because everyone has a different tidiness threshold. Crossing that threshold means you move from seeing a space as slightly untidy to reading it as a horrific mess, but the amount of mess that provokes each person to make this transition will vary.
How do you define tidy, anyway? One person’s version of tidy is another’s vision of chaos. This is because everyone has a different tidiness threshold. Crossing that threshold means you move from seeing a space as slightly untidy to reading it as a horrific mess, but the amount of mess that provokes each person to make this transition will vary.
Walls are blank canvases
On a blank canvas you can explore ideas, tape up photos, move images around and take untidiness in a truly creative direction, and walls are perfect for this.
Who needs neatly framed prints arranged in a row? Untidy people celebrate the chance to enjoy a messy display.
On a blank canvas you can explore ideas, tape up photos, move images around and take untidiness in a truly creative direction, and walls are perfect for this.
Who needs neatly framed prints arranged in a row? Untidy people celebrate the chance to enjoy a messy display.
Storage with solid doors works
What happens behind closed cupboard doors, stays behind closed cupboard doors. Which is great news for untidy people. They understand the value of a door.
Forget open shelves or glass insets, we’re talking a solid piece of timber between you and your stuff. Stuff that, thanks to that door, you can happily toss inside willy-nilly. Storage like this is the friend of an untidy person, and can help them almost pass as tidy. Behind those doors all sorts of chaos is just waiting to spill out, but so long as they remain shut, the illusion of order prevails.
What do you do when no one’s around? Check out these Houzzers’ confessions
TELL US…
Would you class yourself as untidy? Tell us more in the Comments below.
What happens behind closed cupboard doors, stays behind closed cupboard doors. Which is great news for untidy people. They understand the value of a door.
Forget open shelves or glass insets, we’re talking a solid piece of timber between you and your stuff. Stuff that, thanks to that door, you can happily toss inside willy-nilly. Storage like this is the friend of an untidy person, and can help them almost pass as tidy. Behind those doors all sorts of chaos is just waiting to spill out, but so long as they remain shut, the illusion of order prevails.
What do you do when no one’s around? Check out these Houzzers’ confessions
TELL US…
Would you class yourself as untidy? Tell us more in the Comments below.
Forget neatly arranging books on a shelf or lining shoes up in the hallway – who has the time? Untidy people realise that life’s too short to obsess over displays or minutely control every detail of their home. It’s far better to let the tidiness brakes off and live in a home designed to be enjoyed… And doesn’t this colourful reading nook look inviting?