How to create a happier home
Your home should be a place that restores, rejuvenates and replenishes – but so often it is not.
Now more than ever we all need homes that support our wellbeing – so we can seize each day as it comes.
via @matildagoad
Now is the time to find out what a happy home starts with; Find out how to lift your home – and you with it. After all, the spaces we live in make us who we are.
Here are some thoughtful intuitive design hacks that can be the quickest route to a calm mind and a happier home in these unpredictable times.
Number 1: Add some art
A home with thoughtfully curated art isn’t just prettier—it’s also better for you.
Research by a neurobiologist at University College London in 2011 found that people viewing art experience a surge of the feel‑good chemical dopamine, as well as activation in the same part of the brain associated with falling in love. And a 2014 meta‑analysis published in Brain and Cognition found that viewing paintings may support brain functions related to memory, decision‑making and emotional processing.
Most simply, art brings us pleasure and joy, which can have a positive effect on our mental state.
Installing art is a simple way to elevate well‑being and connect you to your home. Art can magnify happiness and encourage new and different experiences. Its presence may have a similar effect to incorporating positive habits into your routine, like meditation or walking outside. The absence of these habits isn’t necessarily damaging—but the addition can hugely improve mood.
Number 2: Add plants
A 2014 study published in the Journal of Experimental Psychology found that people who worked in offices with plants felt better, were more productive, and research repeatedly finds that simply looking at images of nature scenes improved memory.
Something as simple as bringing in fresh flowers or a beautiful plant can enhance the quality of a space. Natural materials such as wood offer a calmer environment while absorbing noise. Softly curved and continuous surfaces, inspired by natural forms, can also instill a sense of peace.
via Domino
Number 3: Embrace Colour
Colour is one of the most effective ways to shift the energy of a space.
Research suggests that the impact colours have on our state of mind is different than the way the body reacts to the light from, say, a computer or phone screen. Different wavelengths of colours affect us differently. Shorter wavelengths, like blue, are more soothing than colours like red or yellow, which are more energizing.
As with plants, colour doesn’t require major updates to a space. Start with wall paint, and if that’s too much of a commitment, try bringing in new hues through accessories. It’s a fun and simple way to work with energy in the home. Bedding, pillows and artwork are a great option, because you can change them out quickly, test different things and see what works.
The change may feel subtle, but the impact can be profound. If you’re having trouble getting out of bed in the morning, maybe the colour scheme is too soothing, and needs a fiery throw to give the space—and you—a boost. Does your attention keep wandering in the home office? Try swapping that abstract wall print for a forest or ocean scene.
Image: @emilydelbellointeriors