Improve Happiness & Well-Being with Design
3/05/2021At John Elliott Interiors, we love creating interior designs that make you feel more at home, more inspired, and more like yourself. Design plays a very important role in our lives! Beyond showing off our personal style, it also sets the stage for our daily lives and how we function. It would be hard to stay active and be your happiest if you're surrounded by clutter, improper lighting, and stale air. As the best interior designers at the Lake of the Ozarks, we have the expertise to help address all of these issues and create the space of your dreams! Keep reading to learn all about how to boost mood and happiness with your interior design.
Let There Be Light!
First thing in the morning, open all the curtains and let the sun shine in! Sunlight has been shown to help boost your mood and feel happier by increasing the levels of serotonin in your brain. Letting the sunshine into your home can instantly help improve the overall look and feel of the house. If you need to have the curtains shut for privacy, then use a lighter, thinner curtain that still blocks peering eyes, but also lets in some of the natural light. Don't forget to keep your windows clean as well! Dusty, dingy windows may be blocking sunlight from coming into your home.
For the lights inside your home, order light bulbs that imitate natural light. Harsh lighting can have a negative effect on your mood. And, if the lighting is too low, then it could put a strain on your eyes and even cause feelings of sadness and depression.
Feel Like New
If your home is starting to feel bland and stale, or if you are noticing that your creativity has recently taken a nose dive, it might be time to switch it up! Getting stuck in a rut can start to feel like you're trapped. We have some great tips to help make cost-effective changes that can refresh your whole outlook.
- Rearrange the furniture into a new, fresh pattern
- Redecorate the furniture with new pillows and throw blankets
- Swap the wall décor from one room into another
- Paint or decorate an accent wall
- Bring in new smells with a diffuser
Making small changes to the way your home is organized can make a big impact during the times you need a change, but don't necessarily want to replace everything at once. Changing little things here and there can help keep your brain engaged with its surroundings, instead of getting used to the same-old, same-old.
Clutter vs. Simplicity
It can be hard to feel relaxed and happy if you are surrounded by clutter and disorganization. One of the first things you can do to change up the interior design in your home is to get rid of the unnecessary items laying around the house. Your home may not appear cluttered to the eye of a visitor, but it may be possible that there is significant clutter in your cabinets, drawers, and closets. Even though this may be out of sight, it usually isn't out of mind. It can be frustrating to know that you have a lot of clutter just below the surface.
If you are working from home via laptop, spend each day working in a different room of the house. Take 5-10 minute breaks every hour or so to declutter and organize part of the room. By the end of the week, you could be well on your way to a perfectly organized, peaceful home!
Use Live Plants in Your Design
Houseplants are not only beautiful, they can also help bring a more peaceful atmosphere into the home. Plants have been shown to actually help boost mood, lower blood pressure, and promote good vibes just by being present. There have been studies that show environments with plants have a calming effect. In offices, it has been shown that employees are happier, more motivated, and take fewer sick days when there are plants in the office. Plants get their nutrients by converting sunlight and carbon dioxide into food for itself and oxygen. That increased level of oxygen in your home is a great benefit to having plants as part of your interior design.
Plants can even help purify the air! They filter harmful substances called Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) out of the air. These chemicals come from paint, carpeting, drywall, flooring, certain cooking materials, cleaners, and more. So many home materials produce these compounds, it's no wonder that there can be high concentrations in your home. Plants can help capture these materials and filter them out of the air for better indoor air quality
Choose a houseplant that is easy to take care of and that fits your design aesthetic. There are a lot of beautiful plants that you could use to decorate your home, but there are a few that are particularly great at purifying the air. Read below to see what kind of plant may be right for you!
English Ivy
This plant has been known to very effectively remove a large portion of mold from the air. Environmental mold can be a big problem in Missouri, so having some English Ivy around could help improve asthma and allergy symptoms caused by mold.
(This plant is not safe for pets.)
Boston Ferns
NASA ranked this plant as great for removing formaldehyde, plastics, and cigarette smoke from the air. In fact, Boston Ferns will take these compounds and use them for their own development.
Snake Plant
This plant is effective at removing xylene, toluene, and trichloroethylene from the air. An extra benefit to the Snake Plant is that it continues to turn carbon dioxide into oxygen through the night. Having one of these plants in your room could help you sleep better due to the increased level of oxygen in the proximity.
(This plant is not safe for pets.)
Gerbera Daisy
This plant also produces oxygen through the night and could help with sleep. NASA rated the Gerbera Daisy as the most effective plant at removing benzene from the air.
Mass Cane
This is a slow-growing and low-maintenance plant, so it's a great option for people that don't have a "green thumb". It is also ranked as the number one plant at removing formaldehyde from the air by NASA.
(This plant is not safe for pets.)
Follow Feng Shui & the Elements
In the culture of Feng Shui, it is believed that the elements of wind and water are associated with good health. Surround yourself with that energy by designing with the calming colors, airiness, and movement of water and wind.
Bring balance to your life and add a natural aspect to your interior décor by using the other elements in your design as well: wood, fire, earth, and metal. Getting back to nature and these basic elements can help us feel grounded and more balanced in our homes.
Feel Happy at the Lake
When you have an interior design that supports you, your happiness, and your productivity, that's a win-win! John Elliott Interiors can help make that happen for you. We are passionate about interior design at the Lake of the Ozarks and would love to help you create your own centered, mood-boosting space. Come visit our high-end home store or give our expert designers a call! 573-365-7057
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