5 ways to give your home the feel good factor
Coming home and walking through the front door after a long day, should make you feel happy, satisfied, and good to be home. But not all homes give us this feel good factor.
We’ve all heard of de-cluttering and Marie Kondo has taken the world by storm, but here are some lesser known tips and changes that will add the feel good factor to your home interiors.
1. Bring in more curves
Research shows that when we’re surrounded by big, angular objects, our primal fear of sharp objects steps in (imagine navigating a dark cave lined with pointy rocks).
If our interiors are made up of pieces that are predominantly straight lined and lacking curves, the room can feel uninviting, and not somewhere we want to curl up with a good book.
Conversely, a living space with the softness of curves counter balancing the straight lines , will feel much more homely and welcoming.
Adding more circular elements to your living space (pots, candles, mirrors), and softer curved items such as a round pouf or cushions with curved patterns - make a significant difference to how inviting, and less rigid a space feels.
2. Warm up your walls
The shades you paint your walls can have incredible effects on your mood. The trend for all white interiors is changing more towards using colour and neutrals in deeper tones. But choosing colours make you feel good, and that all go well together, can be a challenge.
Try choosing 3 or 4 colours that sit well alongside some of your favourite and most loved items. A neutral and 1 or 2 feature colours that really resonate with you.
What’s one colour you LOVE that you could use to paint even just a small office, or hallway?
3. Make it personal
You’ll feel more grounded at home if surrounded by your most beloved memories.
A bare living space with no personal mementos is soulless and can really impact on our deeper sense of well being. A few personal photos, pieces of art that mean something to you or make you feel a certain way, books that you love to fill the shelves… no matter what it is, make sure that your design includes special pieces and knickknacks that speak to who you are.
Try collecting up some of your favourite things and display them in a way that gives them pride of place - somewhere you can enjoy them daily.
4. Bring nature indoors
Adding greenery to a space adds a nice feel good energy, and can make a space feel more alive. Not only does it add an additional layer of visual interest, but plants and living things within our homes make us feel better. The positive effects of plants include providing more oxygen, and reducing airborne dust and carbon dioxide levels.
We’re not all born gardeners, but there are some house plants that are very easy to care for. Here’s a good article on stuff that suggests some of the more hardy varieties, that prove difficult to kill.
Fresh flowers also make a space feel nice. I have a gorgeous antique rose that I cut and display all around the house when it’s in bloom. It’s beautiful and I love how it looks. Do you have anything in your garden that could be displayed indoors like this?
Could you get creative and see what else in your garden would work well displayed indoors? It doesn’t have to be flowers. Ferns and other greenery can also make a real impact.
5. Change how you think about your home
Thinking about your abode as a crash pad won’t do much to improve the way that you feel when you get there.
You can inspire a real change in attitude by simply considering your house, your home. No matter what state it’s in now, start to shift the way you refer to and think about your place. It’s not a place to crash — it’s where you rest and refresh. It’s not a place to prep lunches for the work week — it’s a dining room where you can serve friends.
Some of the above tips might help you change the way you see your home, too. And, by the end of your quest to feel happier at home, your space will probably feel a bit more homely. Altogether, that should help you change the way you see it — and the way you feel when you’re there.
Live life beautifully.