A home can really act like a sanctuary in your life. It can pick you up when you are down and give your a needed space to recharge. But it can also have the opposite effect if you are not doing it in the correct way. A messy and unstructured home can lead you to feel overwhelmed. It is therefore key that you get your home right if you want your home to support your mental health.
It does not matter if you have a large or a small budget. Live in a one bedroom or in a large house. All homes will have the same basic rules for when it comes to making a home into a sanctuary. It should be a place that you love spending time in.
To make it easier for you to achieve this, we have collected some of the most important factors to tick off to make your home into a place to thrive and relax.
1. Reduce and organize
The first decorating tip and perhaps the most important one, is to get your home clutter free. Start with the place in your home that is key for you to relax, it can be a bedroom or your living room. Start with removing all decorative items in the area. Everything on tables and in drawers. Review what you need and what you do not need. Organize all the items and put it back in drawers or storage areas. Keep the items on show to a minimum.
This minimalistic way of decorating is very common in a Scandinavian home. Having fewer items on show makes the room feel more relaxing and calm. It is easier to keep the home clean and reduces the stress level since there are less items to draw your attention.
2. Pay attention to colors
Colors are known to have a massive effect to how you feel. It can make you relax, increase your energy or give you a headache. This makes it really key to get right when decorating your home to improve your mental health. A good start to get the colors right, is to minimize the amount of colors you are bringing into the space. Start with neutral and earthy tones. This is the easiest way to make your color scheme calming. Focus on colors you find in nature, like browns, greys and greens. Nature is known to have a calming effect on humans.
3. Bring in memories that matters
The next step is to bring in decorations that are connected to memories you really appreciate and makes you smile. This can be a wedding photo, photo of family, your pet or your friends. But it can also be a ticket from a concert or an experience you loved. Items like a book or a decoration that reminds you of a happy time in your life is also a great idea to decorate with.
Make sure that you put your photos or memorabilia in quality frames so you feel like you are honouring that memory in the best possible way. Also try to let the decorations “breathe” with reducing the amount of items placed in the same area. You do not need to add all your memories at once. You can always rotate them to let your mind remember different things at different times. Also try to keep the decorations on theme with the colors in your space.
Check out Zara Home for affordable picture frames
4. Fabrics and textures
An easy trick to make a home into a sanctuary, is to add fabrics and textures. Make sure to always have throws and blankets available. Adding more pillows are also a good idea. Try to mix up the fabrics on the pillows to create more depth. Seek out quality fabrics if you have a budget that has room for it. Avoid pillow with a lot of colors or text. The fabrics should blend with the surroundings, not stand out.
Rugs and curtains are also examples of fabrics and textures that can make an impact to your home. If you are adding curtains, make sure that the daylight is still coming in. Daylight is one of the best ways to cope with mental health.
5. Ambient lighting
Another great way to make your home into a sanctuary, is to add lighting that creates a relaxing atmosphere to your room. Focus on lights that lowers your pulse. Try to avoid celling light and other types of sharp light and replace them with calm table lighting or fairy lights. Candle light is the ultimate mood creator when it comes to lighting. So try to stock up on candles that you can light on a dark night to boost your mood and mental health.
6. Flowers and plants
Flowers is one of those things that will always make you smile and lift your mood. Bringing flowers and plants into your home has been proven to be good for your wellbeing and should not be underestimated. It does not need to be fresh flowers, it can also be plants or even branches from your local forest or garden. You can create a garland from what you find in nature. It’s only your imagination that is stopping you. There are no rules. Bring in what makes you smile.
7. Be your own hostess
If you want your home to become your sanctuary, then why not decorate it like you are welcoming yourself home every day as the best hostess ever. Create a bar cart with your favorite drink waiting for you when you enter your home. Why not have a small Nespresso machine with your favorite cookies in a glass jar next to it? Pick out mugs that makes you happy and put a smile on your face.
Being your own hostess when you come home to your own home is a brilliant way to make a home feel warm and welcoming. Making it into a place where you can take care of yourself.
8. Self care box
Another great way to make your home into a sanctuary is to have a self care box. A place where you can take off your rings and jewellery when the day is over. Where you have your hand creams and lip balms. A self care box can be a decorative box in your living room or on your vanity. It is the items that makes you feel good within minutes.
Try to focus on quality items when creating a self care box. Make also sure that the box has a lid and that the content is not visible. Make it blend with the decor that is surrounding it. Only you should know that the box is a self care box.
Here is an example from Audo Copenhagen of a Self care box
These were our favorite decor tips to boost your mood and mental health while spending time in your home. It all about creating a space where you can breathe and recharge to become your best self.
Other blog posts you will love:
How to decorate a rental to make it feel like your own home
21 Easy Home Projects you can Finish over a Weekend
How to create a cozy Scandinavian reading nook
Pin it on Pinterest to save it later:
