I want to thank Victoria Candland for this wonderful guest post on making our homes/interiors a happier place!
A house should be a home, a home you want to come home to after a long day’s work and relax, a home that you want your children to feel safe in, a home where you want to feel peace. This is achieved mainly by the people in the home, as we know. But, the design of the home can add practical and simple touches that boost its atmosphere. Here are a few ideas of how you can change your interior design to facilitate a peaceful mood.
Creating Order
Creating order within your home provides a cost-effective, easy way to instantly introduce a calmer aura. One way to enact this is to make your bed every morning. Even if the rest of the day goes down the drain, you know that you at least made your bed and you can give yourself that quiet victory every time you walk by it. Hey, you could even keep your bedroom door open so others can see. You also get the pleasure of sliding into a crisp, fresh bed every night.
Another easy remedy for a chaotic home is to establish a housekeeping routine. This routine gives you little tasks to do every day so you’re not frantically cleaning for 5 hours before you have guests over for dinner. Give yourself 30 to 40 minutes a day for some cleaning, whether it be vacuuming the stairs, wiping the coffee table, or cleaning the toilets.
Creating order also involves giving everything its own place. Invest in some nice cabinets, drawers, or bookshelves and make a place for all your items in every room. If you have little ones, put all their toys in a bin. Let them help by showing them where the toys go once they’re done playing with them and give them a reward if they clean up after themselves.
In the kitchen, stow all kitchen appliances in your cabinets unless you use them daily. Let’s face it, that pizza stone and that waffle iron won’t be used every day—put them away to de-clutter your cooking space.
Bringing Nature In
Incorporate nature into the design of your rooms. You can use potted asparagus fern or lovely peonies in a vase to add simple touches of the outdoors to your living spaces. Kitchens and bathrooms can feel so utilitarian and cold, so especially try to bring nature into those rooms. You can have potted herbs on your kitchen window sill like rosemary, basil, or lavender. Even the sound of running water from an indoor fountain or on a CD can add a natural element famous for its calming effect.
Using Calming Wall Colors
Many interior designers recommend using darker colors on your walls for a relaxing, comforting atmosphere. Pastel blues and pale greens are known for their soothing quality, but chocolate browns and charcoals can be just as effective. When searching for paint color, look for a less saturated shade with a matte finish. These dark colors are best for bedrooms to help you sleep. For the kitchen, white is best because it suggests cleanliness and purity.
Incorporating Natural Lighting
Using more natural lighting can automatically transform a room from a drab, depressed mood to a light and ethereal one. A great way to bring in more natural light without spending your savings on a new wall of windows is to hang a mirror opposite a window. The mirror then reflects the light into other parts of your room. Mirrors also create an optimal illusion of expanding the room, tricking your eye into thinking it’s larger than it truly is. This is a perfect solution for rooms with limited light and small spaces like a studio basement apartment.
Not only should you carefully place your mirrors, but you should also carefully choose your window treatments. Heavy curtains or blinds are great for sleeping, but when you are awake and the sun is shining, make sure they are completely pulled back. White, sheer curtains are excellent for daytime use if you still want some privacy.
Now that you’ve added mirrors and the right window covers, make sure that there is no furniture blocking the natural light from the windows. Take objects off of window sills and rearrange your room so that big sectional isn’t blocking the beautiful light from the French doors leading to your backyard.
There are so many other ways to use natural light to create a happier haven for your home. Browse the internet for more examples and check out some articles like this one by Wasatch Shutter Design for more inspiration.
These simple design elements will make you and your home happier and will bring that needed peace to your busy life.
