Finding Light during Lockdown: The Most Popular Ways to Occupy your Home in 2020

To say it’s been an interesting year would really underplay the unforeseen (and entirely abnormal) reality that’s taken residence in 2020. If someone had told the team at Vavoom back in January that we’d be working from home in our Kip&Co duvet sets, we’d have laughed and said: “We wish!”

Now, months down the track, we feel slightly differently. 

Cabin fever aside, it’s not all bad news. More time in one space has encouraged us to look inwards. We’ve had to grapple with the toughest of questions. Like who we are, why our homes look (and feel) like they were styled 20 years ago, and a fair few more...

Mirror, mirror on the wall: who’s banana bread is the fairest of them all? 

Don’t act like you haven’t posed the question. We have proof! One of the most beloved pieces during lockdown has been the Bjorn Oval Mirror in Brass and in Black. It’s a versatile and minimal design that enhances any and all spaces in which it is integrated; both hallways and bedrooms alike. 

So it wasn’t the Bjorn to offer you validation? In that case, it was definitely the Flynn Leaner Mirror in 90 x 180cm. To apartment dwellers, you’ve made an excellent choice. We have no doubt you appreciated the illusory effect of abundant space and ample light. The real question is: did you stand this wooden mirror against the ground? Or hang it on the wall for a complete view of the best baker in town? 

Is this work-from-home “essential” tax deductible? 

Here’s another question you may have asked yourself (or your accountant) in the depths of lockdown. We’ll break the bad news. There’s still no such thing as coffee tax. Unfortunately, you can’t claim back your Hug Me Stoneware Mug Set, but guess what? You can cuddle that Mediterranean cup on rainy afternoons, and on morning Zoom calls too.

There are so many ways to describe your Bondi Lime & Coconut Reed Diffuser. Refreshing, zesty, calming. Tax deductible is just not one of them. We know that you’re more productive with the scent of your last Bondi-to-Bronte walk. Or the energy of Byron, courtesy of Sarah Brooke’s Byron Wall Art. But accountants are less forgiving. They just don’t value the Crawling Snail (Gold) like a valid pet, much the way we do. They’ll commend you for saving pennies, but they won’t stop to awe at your new Pig Money Box. No matter how adorable and chic your resin piggy is. It’s just the unfortunate truth. 

Do artificial flowers count as Vitamin D?

Would you prefer the real answer, or the one we’re telling ourselves during lockdown? The truth is, having more time at home doesn’t make you any more responsible or time-savvy (and that’s a fact). This (along with restricted outdoor time) is why many of us are investing in uplifting moments of nature … that just don’t end. Ever. 

The Fern Staghorn Hanging Bush will keep on hanging. The Protea King (Pink) looks as if it's newly bloomed every single day. It’s not Vitamin D. It’s not extra outdoor time. But it is the kind of positive energy we need within our homes right now!

Those that are daring enough to go natural have potted their prized possessions in the Moxy Velvet Pot Holder. In case the “adulting” streak doesn’t last, these potters conveniently double as storage containers too. 

Does it count as ordering in if I eat dinner at the bar?

It’s the final question we’ve had to confront during this at-home period. If we eat at the bar, is the commitment really as impermanent as it feels? For your sake, and for ours, we won’t answer that. We’ll just tell you that your new Yve Y Design Timber Stool looks absolutely modish: it’d have anyone convinced you’re eating gourmet pizza, not box-delivered.  

As for families pulling out the Aria Bar Stool II in Oak? We commend you for conversing with fellow residents in the kitchen. You could easily opt for a seat at the dining table, but you continue to choose the Aria. To invest in its weathered finish and in relationships that can feel the same. 

At times, we have felt like the Aria: a little bit weathered and finished. But as you’ve found light in Vavoom, we have too, in your endless support of our collection. From our family to yours, stay safe. Stay well. And stay sane, however that looks to you!