Downsize With Style

Downsizing, de-cluttering, selling your family home, moving to a smaller space – the entire process can be very stressful. Therefore, it is important to look after your health and wellbeing when starting your downsizing journey.

In this podcast, I talk with Susan Kath, a Nutritionist and Wellness coach. She is very passionate about food and growing vegetables and herbs and helping people age well with the right diet. She is on a mission to clear the confusion that exists about what we should eat and what we should avoid eating in order to stay healthy.

If you feel it is time to draw a line and make a difference to how you feel, this podcast is for you!

Show Notes:

Food Switch App available on iTunes

The post DWS 55: Eating and Ageing Well appeared first on Bettina Deda.

Do you have difficulties to let go of things because you might need them someday?

Well, you are not alone. "Someday" is the our biggest enemy of most people, as it prevents us from focussing on the things that are important to us right now. In this podcast, I share a little exercise from The Minimalists - one of my favourite blogs - to help you become aware of the danger that lies in this illusion.

You will also find out how de-cluttering by categories will help you sort out your things that you believe you might need some day.

The post DWS 54: Decluttering by Categories appeared first on Bettina Deda.

In episode 53 I share three essential steps to make most out of a spare bedroom.

Often, spare bedrooms are not very spacious in the first place. You might also find built-in wardrobes or large windows that take away wall space and make it even more difficult to work out the best room layout.

Tune in to this podcast to learn how to avoid costly mistakes when furnishing your spare room in a smaller home.

If you find our podcast valuable, please leave us a rating on iTunes to help promote the show.

To get an automatic notification of new episodes, please subscribe here.

The post DWS 53: Multi-Purpose Rooms appeared first on Bettina Deda.

Do you want to know How to Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life?

Tune in to episode 52 of the Downsize with Style podcast with leadership coach and author Victoria Rose. Her book is a celebration of smart, single women over 60 and the many roles they play over their lifetime. It is based on a five-part formula ‘From NOW to WOW’, and you’ll learn how you can live a happier life in your retirement years.

We chat about courage, confidence, stepping out of your comfort zone, choosing to be happy, why procrastination per se is not a bad thing, and much more.

Enjoy!

Show Notes

How to Make the Rest of Your Life the Best of Your Life by Victoria Rose

The post DWS 52: From NOW to WOW appeared first on Bettina Deda.

You turned 50 and now what? How are you going to navigate the next stage of your life or career? What are you passionate about? What is important to you?

In this episode, I speak with Joanna Maxwell about her new workshop Journey Without Maps, tools to spark your creativity, methods to sort out your stuff and concentrate on the essentials only.

So, if you are contemplating how to spend your time after downsizing, this podcast is for you.

Show Notes:

Essentialism by Greg McKeown

The post DWS 51: Navigate Your Life appeared first on Bettina Deda.

A while ago, I came across an article in The Retiree Magazine from psychologist Fiona Robards, author of the book What Makes You Happy. The article summarised a chapter of her book where she suggests that the easiest way to feel happy and confident is to dress as though you already feel it. Fake it until you make it!

You choose how you feel! If you radiate happiness or confidence, people will mirror this and respond to you as though you are happy and confident, your self-image will be reinforced and the outcome is positive for everyone. Keeping yourself well groomed and looked after is a great confidence-booster.

Especially, when you are downsizing and starting a new chapter of your life, a little style makeover can be the right thing to do. This week, I am talking to Jane Liddelow from Style Makeover HQ how to de-clutter your wardrobe and find out what suits you best.

If you are stuck wearing the same things every day, and if you have a wardrobe full of stuff but never know what to wear, this podcast is for you.

Show Notes:

What Makes You Happy by Fiona Robards

The post DWS 50: Personal Style Makeover appeared first on Bettina Deda.

In this podcast, I speak with Lisa McAdams, a personal trainer and transformational couch specialising in helping women, who went through a divorce or are in the process of divorcing. Lisa's motto is Life by Design, not by default.

A divorce is often a reason to downsize your home. The family home is going to be sold, and the owners will go their own way. Depending on the situation of the individual, this can be overwhelming, scary, frustrating.

Tune in to this episode to hear Lisa's story, why looking after yourself is important to improve your lifestyle, and how you can embrace the future and the opportunities that come with downsizing after a divorce.

Show Notes:

Minimalist Mantras

Living with Less Facebook Competition in partnership with Howard's Storage World

The post DWS 49: Downsizing after Divorce appeared first on Bettina Deda.

I have been working on a downsizing campaign with Howard's Storage World over the past six months.

In this podcast, I speak with Cathy Player about the two downsizing case studies published in the July catalogue, storage concepts for apartment living and how to participiate in the Downsize With Style Facebook competition. The first prize is a one-hour free consultation with me including a signed copy of my book. Additionally, there will be four more books up for grabs.

If you have any questions or challenges in regards to downsizing or would like to share your downsizing story on this show, please email bettina[at]bdcolourdesign.net.au.

Show Notes:

Living with Less Makeover in Manly - the video

Downsizing case study Tami and Philip - the article

Carol's Kitchen Makeover

Carol's Downsizing Journey - Preparing to Move

Downsize with Style Facebook Competition

The post DWS 48: Living With Less appeared first on Bettina Deda.

In episode 47 of the Downsize with Style podcast, I chat with interior designer Babette Hayes about love in the home and how to create a happy home - no matter how big or small it is.

We cover a broad range of topics such as colour, storage, space planning, decorating essentials, art placement, de-cluttering, and prioritising what to keep.

If you could leave a rating on iTunes to help promote the podcast, that would make my day!

To get an automatic notification of new episodes, please download a podcast app to your mobile device and search Downsize With Style on iTunes. Then subscribe to the podcast. You will realise that downsizing has never sounded so easy!

Enjoy!

The post DWS 47: Love Your Home appeared first on Bettina Deda.

Apartment living is becoming more and more popular. A Tsunami of articles has flooded the media landscape about minimum sizes, affordability, and the importance of good design in smaller spaces.

Life in Windowless Box: The Vertical Slums of Melbourne is the title of an article by Ralph Horne and Megan Nethercote, RMIT University, stating that, on a national level, 40 per cent of new dwellings are now apartments or units, and building approvals outnumber those for houses. Melbourne and Brisbane are the most extreme cases, but these trends are national; and they are fundamentally reshaping the future of urban Australia. In Melbourne, for example, the inner city is being flooded with 1-2 bedroom micro-apartments set in increasingly tall towers with more than 30 storeys. Almost half are under 50 square metres – not much bigger than a generous double garage.

In Sydney – according to The Courier Mail, Brisbane – a one-bedroom apartment the size of a main bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and only three metres wide sold for $965,000.

The fact that each state in Australia has its own legislation does not make it easier for people to find their way through this jungle of information that is available online and offline.

If you are living or investing in an apartment, this podcast is for you. I am talking with Nikki Jovicic, founder of the online community LookUpStrata. Her site is a treasure chest of useful strata information including fact sheets, blog articles, events, and strata news.

Show Notes

Life in Windowless Box: The Vertical Slums of Melbourne

Apartments the Size of a Broom Cupboard are the Next Big Thing

Are we Falling Short on Good Apartment Design?

Sliding walls, tiny apartments and how to solve the housing shortage

Making apartments better will make them pricier: architect

Affordable housing crisis: ideas are needed to keep workers in Sydney

Solo home buyers tipped to soar

State government needs to be ready because downsizing home means going to town for seniors

Heartbreak high-rise: divorce is growing influence in new-unit sales

The post DWS 46: Strata Information Library appeared first on Bettina Deda.