- formstudiosintl
5 Simple Ways to Make Your Interiors Work for Your Well-being!
Updated: Jan 25, 2022
Surrounding yourself with healthy friendships, getting enough sleep, mastering stress, and practicing mindfulness, all add up to longevity and enhanced well-being. Creating healthy functioning environments for your home is no different. Interior designing for health and wellness aims to create spaces that positively impacts our physical, emotional, mental, and social well-being. Research evidence has shown correlations between our health and factors such as adequate daylight, views to nature, acoustics, indoor air quality, ergonomics, colours, and much more. The links b.tween our environments and our well-being are nothing new, but applying it to our home environment is beginning to gather great momentum. Here are 5 easy tips you can use to help make your space work for your overall well-being.
MINIMALISE AND DECLUTTER
Minimalising and de-cluttering supports your psychological health by removing the unnecessary to create beautiful spaces that focus on a life of intent and well-being. It’s no secret that clutter causes anxiety and can make people less happy in their home. And now that we’re trying to live, work, play, and exercise in our homes, clutter can present a real barrier to a functional space. By removing items that don’t serve a purpose, you’ll find it easier to focus on more meaningful activities. Start with a clean slate to create the perfect backdrop for your home and wellness.
USE COLOUR PSYCHOLOGY
Colour psychology is a theory of how each colour affects a person’s mood, cognitive functions, creativity, and productivity. When a person is surrounded by calming hues such as blue or green, they feel relaxed; whereas, if a person is surrounded by loud vibrant tones such as red, maroon, or orange, they feel energetic and passionate. Similarly, neutral colours such as white or gray provides a serene environment that allows your favourite possessions to take centre stage. Your home should be your sanctuary, so it’s important to understand the emotional impact colours have on you.
INVITE NATURE
Before the pandemic, we spent a staggering amount of time indoors. Studies show that as much of 90% of our time is spent inside. At the peak of the pandemic, this statistic rose even more. This is a concerning statistic when you consider the fact that our health and well-being is inherently tied to nature and time spent outdoors. Bringing natural elements indoors can help create the missing connection to nature and improve our overall well-being. Designs and interiors that highlight views, incorporate natural light, include greenery, and features natural materials, can help counterbalance the lack of nature in our everyday lives.
FINDING THE RIGHT LIGHTING
It’s no secret that natural sunlight is an essential element for both physical and mental health. The purpose of lighting goes well beyond just illuminating the darkness. Lighting affects our biological pattern, and natural light helps regulate our circadian rhythms which can affect everything from our mood, energy, productivity levels, and our sleep patterns. If your space has limited access to natural light, using artificial light to mimic the natural passage of time can help energise your home or any space during the day, it can also help you wind down at night.
AROMATHERPY
Sight, taste, touch, sound, and smell; all five senses work together to give us a picture of our environment. Our sense of smell is often neglected when we think about the way we respond to our surroundings, yet scents can have a strong influence on the mood or ambience of a space, which can affect the way we feel and function within it. Essential oils have a unique property that directly works on the physical body and on the mind. For those who are now using their homes for multiple purposes; a place to work, exercise, socialise, and relax all at once - switching from invigorating citrus or peppermint based scents in the morning, to a calming scent like lavender in the evening can provide differentiation in a space.
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In the end, the things that transform a space into a home are the personal touches, and that’s true for improving the wellness aspects as well. Find what small things make you happy and calm when you experience them, and then fill your home with them. For me, it’s natural wood tones, therapeutic candles, and sounds that mimic nature.