Our homes have been so much more than homes in 2020. We’ve worked from them, exercised in them and stood outside them and clapped the NHS. We’ve put our children’s drawings of rainbows in our windows and shared doorstep drinks with our neighbours. We’ve cleared out cupboards, painted walls and grown our own vegetables. In this series of blogs, we celebrate some of the ways our homes have helped us through the year – even if it wasn’t quite the year we were planning.

My sanctuary became a catwalk

During lockdown, one of the dozens of things I promised myself I would do was de-clutter. More specifically, tackle the deep abyss that was my wardrobe.

Thus I focused my attention on one key but temporarily abandoned corner of my home where clothes of all colours for all occasions were hanging idle for want of somewhere to wear them.

Many will be familiar with the pre-pandemic routine of waking up late, rushing round, slapping on make-up while inhaling a cup of coffee and finally rummaging through endless outfits to decide which would be suitable for the day ahead. Those were the good times but also the sole reason why my wardrobe was one giant wheel of fabric.

I set to work and in the process discovered many lost and forgotten pieces – so I set myself a lockdown challenge: to give every item of clothing I owned at least one outing. 

My home, which had already become my sanctuary, also became a catwalk. Every trip to the supermarket, to the park, to the doorstep on a Thursday evening to clap for the NHS, even Zoom quizes, deserved the perfect ensemble. It wasn’t even midday and I had already been through seven quick changes. So many opportunities to experiment and, I am afraid, to browse the internet for yet more. 

For behind closed doors and a computer screen, one ‘look’ has inevitably prevailed. Leggings, hoodie and fuzzy socks have become my fashion staple and my wardrobe is now bursting with an excess of lovely new loungewear. Not exactly textbook decluttering then, but perfect for an evening on the sofa. AN, London

Further information

This series of blogs is inspired by Savills new advertising campaign, To Every Home That's Been So Much More Than A Home – Thank You and Merry Christmas. Over the next few weeks a selection of guest bloggers will reveal just how much their homes have meant to them this year.