Home is where I’ve always felt the most comfortable – perhaps that’s my little introverted self manifesting but there’s something wonderful about coming home and leaving the stress of the day at the door. For me, home is a calm space, a cozy space where I am my most authentic self. I am very thankful for the blessing I call home.
I think everyone deserves (and needs!) a space where they can feel relaxed, at peace and happy. A calm space where you can plop down at the end of a busy, frenzied day and just breathe a sigh of relief and relaxation. If this isn’t how you feel when you come home – these tips are for you. It is so easy to create a calm space at home, I did it and you can too!
I have 8 tips (+ one bonus tip!) to help you create a space in your home that is calming, cozy and a place to relax:
TIP #1 – START SMALL
There’s no need to make your entire home a calming space all at once, the overwhelm of overhauling your whole home at once will just make you less likely to start making yourself a calm space. Even for me, there are really only a few places of my home I consider my clear, calm spaces – the little corner nook of my living room couch where I spend hours crocheting, the corner of my bedroom where I read or my office space where I like to write or do other creative work.
Start small and pick one space of your home for now, try a space that…
- You already use to relax in, or
- You associate with happy and calm feelings, or
- You never, ever use – start fresh and make an unused space into your new calm space!
TIP #2 – CLEAR THE CLUTTER
This is an extremely popular tip, I see again and again, and for good reason! Clutter is the enemy of calm – there’s a popular quote from Chuck Palahniuk I think of often,
“The more things you own, the more they own you.”
– Chuck Palahniuk
The more things that pile up in your home that you don’t necessarily use or find beautiful – your home transitions from a living space to a storage space. Our homes were meant for us to live free – do the activities and spend the time with people we love most. Allowing clutter to build up reduces our free time because we’re busy managing stuff – organizing, sorting, moving items from here to there, it never ends unless you ditch it for good!
Make more free space (and free time!) for yourself and clear out any clutter from your calm space.
TIP #3 – DON’T USE AND USE COLOUR
I’m sure you read the tip and were confused – allow me to explain: I LOVE colour, it makes me happy. But, lots of loud, bold colour usually has the opposite effect to calm and serene. Even if colour makes you smile (like me!), it can be harsh to look at for long periods of time or can feel stressful and claustrophobic when many colours are competing or there’s lots for your eyes to look at. You want to be calm and relaxed, not buzzing around looking at everything.
Start with your space by not using colour – make the basics of your room (like the wall colour) or space mainly neutral coloured. Before you get up in arms about the ‘all white’ trend – there are lots of fun neutral colours other than white! You can try beige, grey or even the pastel version of your favourite colours. Keep the basic colour of your room soft, light and consistent for a calm, serene energy.
NOW, add the punch of colour! As much as neutrals are calming, I need a bit of fun too. Add colour back into your space in clusters so it doesn’t become overpowering. Add a colourful vase with a nice plant or some fun wall art in your favourite colour. It will keep your space calm, but still fun and still you!
TIP #4 – MAKE IT COZY
One of the easiest ways to calm yourself and relax is to get comfortable. Make sure your space is extra comfy by adding cozy elements.
Add comfortable furniture with somewhere you can kick back and raise your feet up – a chair with an ottoman, a chaise lounge, or even a comfy nook with a mountain of pillows on the floor.
Add other cozy elements like a warm and fluffy blanket or a lamp that emits a warm coloured glow. Anything that makes you feel embraced by a warm hug on a cold day – that’s cozy!
TIP #5 – CLEANSE THE NEGATIVITY
Sometimes it can be hard to relax – many of lead busy lives with big stressors and it can be hard to turn off the noise in our brains of the stress. This is especially difficult if we have things in our calm space that continually remind us of these stresses.
Consciously remove anything with bad memories attached or that remind you of your stresses to make it a bit easier for you to relax when you come into your calm space. For example, don’t have work materials (binders, laptops, phones, etc) in your space or get rid of ‘sentimental’ items that remind you of memories that don’t make you happy.
TIP #6 – BRING NATURE IN
Research shows there are many physiological benefits, including relaxation and stress recovery, to simply viewing nature (even simply as photos!). Benefits are strongest when exposed to the real thing so bring some natural elements into your calming space. Try adding any of the following:
- Flowers or house plants – even the faux (fake!) kind can spruce up the relaxation benefits of your space + they’re easy to take care of.
- Wooden elements – add wooden candle holders (with candles for extra cozy factor), wooden decor or wooden picture frames.
- Nature inspired wall art – try wooden framed photos of your favourite nature spaces!
TIP #7 – CONSIDER YOUR SENSES
There is interesting research that shows a strong like between scents and our emotions or memories. I’m sure its happened to you before – you smell something and you’re instantly reminded of some distant memory you haven’t thought of in ages! Scent has power to evoke certain memories or emotions so put this to use in your clear calm space.
Choose a scent you know makes you relaxed or a scent you associate with a very happy and positive memory and use it in your space! Diffuse essential oils or burn candles in your chosen scent.
TIP #8 – AVOID TECHNOLOGY
Nothing crushes my zen quite like the ‘beep – beep’ of an incoming work email or call. Protect your calm space and implement a no technology policy. No phones, tvs, laptops, etc! If you feel drawn to check your notifications – take a last look before entering your space and then give yourself time to take a break. Your phone will still be there after you’ve taken some time for yourself.
I do have some exceptions because I sometimes like to read on my tablet – I will allow this in my space BUT I don’t link it to anything work related or I use it in airplane mode. Try this out if you have the need for some tech in your space.
BONUS TIP #9 – MAKE IT YOURS
An easy way to make any space feel better for you – a place that evokes calm, relaxation and happiness is to emulate places you already love! Think of any place in the world that makes you feel comfortable and at ease and try to bring a little bit of it into your space.
If you had the time of your life on your latest trip to Italy – include some framed photos of your time there. If you love the walking trail near your home – collect some wildflowers to display in a vase. If you miss your childhood home – display some of the items you had in your room when you lived there.
Add a little bit of your favourite places to your new calm space and it just might become a new favourite place too!
I hope you can try out some of these tips and bring a little peace and calm right to your very own home! Share with a friend or let me know some other ways you create a calm space for yourself in the comments.
