Pandemic Nesting? Is this now officially ‘a thing’?

Definition of 'nesting'

nesting in British English

(ˈnɛstɪŋ  )

NOUN the tendency to arrange one's immediate surroundings to create a place where one feels secure, comfortable, or in control

Collins English Dictionary. Copyright © HarperCollins Publishers

I don’t suppose most of you have really noticed, what with everything that’s been going on, but I have definitely seen and heard evidence of a new nesting craze sweeping our nation. I visited my local DIY store on a weekday and it was manic (it wasn’t even pensioner discount Wednesday), everyone that rings in for a request on the radio seems to be painting their kitchen and my furniture on Ebay has all snapped up in super quick time.

I for one remember being heavily pregnant and saying, ‘I don’t see the point of nesting its all going to get messed up anyway, then the next day frantically sorting through the kitchen crap drawer (yes we all have one) and piling the car full of anything that didn’t fit nicely into a cupboard and dumping it at the nearest charity shop. Then painting the utility room, hallway and lounge whilst trying to control my erratic breathing and generally freaking out about how my life was about to turn upside down.

There’s no doubt that sorting, clearing and organising our homes gives us a sense of control and ultimately calm, something that many of us are craving right now.

For others it may be that they’ve just started working from home and they’ve looked around and thought, ‘hmmm I didn’t mind my home in the mornings and when I got home in the evening but now I have to stare at these 4 walls for potentially months I’m not happy with the state of this place AT ALL!! ARGHHH!!’ Cue speedy exit to the local DIY store to buy random paint colours they think will probably work and start slapping it on the walls. They think, ‘I’ve got no time to buy testers, I need this done NOW before the shops shut down, the world runs out of paint and the schools close down and we’ve got to look after the kids for the next 6 months’. Hyperventilating into a paper bag, breaking out into Hives.

If this sounds familiar….stop, count to 10 and put down the paint brush!

More than ever we now need our homes to be our sanctuary, a place where we feel safe and happy with our families. Our homes will need to work hard as multi-functional spaces with places for home working, teaching, playing, baking and relaxing. We feel trepidation of how we are going to handle these changes and how our homes are going to cope. So take comfort in the fact that you are most definitely not alone, this is normal behaviour in an unpredictable climate but before you panic buy the paint for goodness sake buy some testers first!

If you need help with choosing the right colours for your home then I’m here to help. Luckily FaceTime, Zoom and other video conferencing tools let me get to know you and your home without actually having to enter your home and with major paint suppliers and home decor companies delivering to your door you can take your time and make changes that you wont regret.