Laura de Barra - Gaff Goddess: Simple Tips and Tricks to Help You Run Your Home

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For Shane, the one I dared to dream for

Any references to writing in this book refer to the original printed version. Readers should write on a separate piece of paper in these instances.

utopia (n.)

An imagined place or state of things where everything is so perfect there is complete contentment.

Whats my utopia? Its somewhere where, whether tenant or homeowner, we are all goddesses of our own gaff. Reigning supreme, tools in hand and lipstick game strong, we are independent, knowledgeable, and in Chanel RTW S/S 95 at the weekend and anything by The Row during downtime. How fabulous.

In this utopia, where wine flows liberally, we recognize the importance of our home and her role in our lives. We recognize how much calmer and freer we feel when she is working as she should.

Although were not experts and know when to call one, repairs and replacements are within our capabilities and we tackle them with the confidence of someone who just knows she can. When something happens out of the blue, were able to identify and tackle the issue because were prepared and informed.

We reap the benefits of a well-zoned space. One that is laid out to make performing even our most mundane tasks feel like a breeze, where our favourite moments will be enhanced and are easy to slip into. We have switching-on and switching-off down to a fine art, and the calm it brings pays forward the Zen into our days and nights. We are more time-efficient, satisfied and appreciative of our home as she works to help our day run well. Shes a sanctuary for the bad days and a delight on the good days.

We treat our home like the queen that she is and we tend to her in times of need. We are aware of all her requirements and how we can help her serve us to her full potential. We are prepared, we are poised, we are privy.

While this utopia might not be entirely possible for everyone theres not enough S/S 95 for all of us, after all we can all work towards it. I feel weve forgotten the value of a well-functioning home and how important she is to the way our lives work and run.

What we have, what we buy and how we store it has taken over from lovingly caring for and maintaining our appliances, creating a calm space, and having a set-up that suits our individual routines. I want to revisit the days when things in the home lasted because they were valued and where carrying out repairs ourselves was a must. I want us to be prepared for lifes accidents and emergencies. But I want us to do it with a modern approach, of course some fabulous She-IY.

I hope that reading this book will help to enhance your relationship with your home, to rediscover your space, to make repairs less stressful and your home work for you and your lifestyle. I hope it will make you feel powerful and confident and, above all, like the Gaff Goddess you are.

A home is like anything else of great value you will own in life, be it a car, a boat (shriek), a Prada handbag (double shriek) Correct handling and treatment along with a little love will ensure it lives a much longer life and will need fewer repairs. Im not talking simply about cleaning and tidying, and your homes general appearance here this runs a little deeper. Whether youre a tenant, a homeowner or a landlord, its important to be aware of how and why your home works the way she does.

Once youve got to grips with her condition and any potential niggles, youll be able to anticipate various issues that might crop up in the future. Youll also be able to enhance her safely and confidently if you know her limits. While there will always be surprises beyond your control, the more you know about her, the more youll be able to prevent the preventable easily, efficiently and more cost-effectively. In this chapter well cover getting to know your home, how to check her vitals and learn all about her emergency buttons.

Taking a deeper look into your homes health on the day you move in is a great thing to do, but its also fabulous to do at any time of the year. Think of it as you would a medical check-up for yourself theres never a bad time to have one. In my opinion its essential, even if youre a tenant. Most people think that if an inventory has been carried out, that means the property is in full working order. Actually, inventories only cover the appearance and condition of the rooms, and will rarely give an indication of how the property functions, how the white goods operate, and so on. An inventory clerk will check if a sink is clean, for example, but they wont state whether the drain is fully functional.

At the end of this chapter on youll find a checklist to help you take your homes vitals. Once completed, youll have a go-to page to keep track of any necessary repairs and future decorating tasks you might want to sink your teeth into. If youre renting, its a good opportunity to highlight anything you think your landlord might need to know about, such as a dripping tap or signs of damp. It will give them an opportunity to address the issue before it gets worse. It will also give you a good idea of which jobs you could bundle together for a contractor. Youll be able to see all the electrical work, for example, that you could get a quote for and get done in one appointment. Your list will also become a great go-to excuse to cancel plans. I have to re-silicone my shower is the new Im washing my hair.

When assessing your home, you might find some issues initially cause you great alarm. I, for one, used to shriek internally at the sight of cracks in walls or mould in the bathroom because my brain was trained to see them as disastrous and a sign of huge costs ahead. However, these red flags might not be as serious as they at first appear. Here are a few things Ive learned during my time preparing properties for the rental market, to help you distinguish between issues needing urgent attention, those that are an easy fix, and those that can wait until youre ready to tackle them.