The enduring appeal of the campervan
Better living in small spaces – that’s what we’re all about here on the Box Room blog. So, with the summer heat on high and the urge to escape running riot in offices across the capital, Em Kuntze explores better holidaying in small vans – the humble campervan, to be precise.
15 ways to take back your London lunch hour
In a place as big as London it’s easy to get caught up in the daily hustle and bustle of work life and miss all of the magic happening around us. Even the idea of getting out and seeing it all can be sufficiently daunting and enough to send you sloping off for a restorative nap to recover.
On your bike: the best of London cycling
So apparently there’s a formula for how many bicycles you need in your life. According to those wise folks over at velominati.com, the golden ratio is N + 1, where N equals the number of bikes you already own or, “S - 1, where s is the number of bikes owned that would result in separation from you partner.”
On the record: vinyl storage for all collections
What is it about vinyl? It’s a curious thing when you think about it: the cassette and minidisc are all but defunct, CDs seem that way headed, but vinyl… vinyl appears to be the form that technology just can’t improve upon.
Making the most of a tiny, shared kitchen
We might all dream of having a huge family-sized kitchen with an island in the middle and enough space to host a really fantastic dinner party, but most of us living in London have to make do with something much smaller, and have to do so while sharing. As sharers ourselves, here are a few tips to really make the most of a tiny, shared kitchen.
Home office solutions for small spaces
A report out last week revealed that 21% of Londoners are now freelancers and another, from the Office for National Statistics last year, reported that 13.9% of people in work were based at home. Given what we know about the housing situation in London, it’s pretty safe to assume that a lot of that workforce are likely to be working cheek-by-jowl - at least some of the time - with flatmates, partners and the distractions that come with these things.
Box it up! 20 subscription boxes to brighten your days
At Boxman we like to think that the best things come in boxes delivered to your door. Fast fading are the days of sending and receiving letters, so for many of us getting something through the letter box, other than something really dull like a bill or an insurance reminder, is a real treat. Enter the subscription box. They’re nothing new, of course (who remembers those book and CD subscriptions of the ’90s?) but just recently we’ve noticed such a phenomenal assortment of interesting and unique offerings, that we felt compelled to share them with you all.
How NOT to do Father’s Day: an alternative gift guide
It’s Father’s Day on June 19 and if this is proving particularly tricky this year, or if the father in question is particularly well stocked in socks, whisky or the Beatles back catalogue, your friendly team at Boxman have some good, not-actual present ideas for you.
In defence of stuff: family heirlooms and hand me downs
The recent fervour for the zero-waste lifestyle is infectious. There’s something rather liberating about doing away with stuff and, in cleansing our homes of extraneous possessions, perhaps clearing our souls of emotional baggage as well. While we’re very much in favour of a good spring clean and a tidy up, we’re also of the opinion that keeping things you love is a worthy aspiration as well. Sometimes it’s all about incorporating family hand-me-downs into the mix.
Gardens for apartment dwellers: exploring indoor gardening
‘Gardens,’ said Rudyard Kipling, ‘are not made by singing “Oh, how beautiful!” and sitting in the shade’. We’ve no doubt this is true: we are British after all, and if we believe what’s said about us, we are the nation of gardeners.
Make Do and Mend: making longevity fashionable again
In the past twelve months, I’ve gone through the knees of three pairs of jeans. I couldn’t bring myself to throw them away, so I stored them in what should probably now be referred to as ‘Denim Silo One’. One afternoon, feeling particularly miserly and not relishing the prospect of shopping for yet another pair, I broke out the needle and thread and mended them. Several months later, they’re still entirely serviceable and, dare I say it, even a little bit awesome.
Home staging (when all the home’s a stage)
It would seem that the process of getting your house looking nice for sale now has a catchy buzz phrase. Yes indeed, ‘home staging’ is big business now – we’ve spoken about it many times on The Box Room before, most notably with Sarah Beeny – but we’re always up for learning new vocabulary, and we’ve always go room for more declutter chatter.