Your home, your haven

Our lives have become so fast-paced and frenzied that we really need to make a concerted effort to slow down.

When you come home after a hard day’s work, you should feel as if you are entering a safe haven, away from the hustle and bustle of the outside world. 

The question is, does your home provide that sense of calm? 

Ideally, your home would be a place that is clean, organised, pleasant and peaceful to return to at the end of a busy day. 

A place where you can enjoy quality time with family and friends. 

For me, achieving such a place means creating an environment that is conducive to rest and relaxation and one that emits a welcoming vibe, and that is where home decor plays a huge role. 

Environmental psychologists studying sensory science believe that the environment you create can have a profound impact on your mood and attitude. 

Whereas a disorganised home can cost you in energy, time and even money, a clean and organised home can provide a haven from stress and a place to feel safe and at peace.

The good part about this is that you don’t need a big house or a big budget. Your home may not be a mansion, a big house or you may not have a big budget, but your home can definitely be a haven, your own refuge. 

There are many ways you can create a home that oozes health, wellness and relaxation. I am all for simple things that one can do to enhance daily living without having to break the bank. 

One of the things that I noticed in all hotels I have visited is the attention to detail.

Luxury hotels have to create a wonderful first impression the moment that a guest walks through the door.

Perhaps you should enter your house as if you’re a stranger and see what you would like to change in your home.

The first thing you should see when you enter your home should be something you love, like a family photo, a painting that takes you to pleasant places you’ve been, or anything that makes you happy.

Many times people save up their money, time and energy to enjoy a hotel as a place to rest and recharge their batteries. A great hotel room is a comfortable, relaxing retreat that makes you feel like your problems are miles away.

Fortunately, capturing that comfortable and neat atmosphere doesn’t need to be expensive or difficult. Luxury is not needed to create a room that is comfortable and relaxing. Certainly if you have the financial ability to do so, why not? 

First of all, I have to mention what is not in a great hotel room, clutter! There is nothing relaxing about clutter. 

When your home is filled with stuff, be it piles of old newspapers, or even too many accessories or an abundance of furnishings, it creates visual chaos. When you see clutter, you think obligation not relaxation and that does not create peace.

Remember, it's not about the amount you spend, it's the way you pull it all together. In order to relax, you need a place that is clean.  Look for effective solutions to maintain a clean home.

The next step is to work out what you can spend. Sometimes just changing the curtains or keeping the ones you have clean, rearranging furniture, getting rid of non-essentials and the addition of some cushions in your sofa or perhaps a new rug can totally transform a space. 

If you like colours, keep patterns to a minimum. If you have too many bright colours or high-contrast patterns in a room, your eyes are going to be drawn all over the place, making it difficult to relax.

Simple designs and colours, on the other hand, are soothing.

If you implement small things in each room and add a frequent cleaning up schedule, you will find that your home will be more relaxing, and less stressful.

The most important decorating tip to remember is that each person relaxes in a different manner.

Incorporate what makes you feel relaxed into your home décor. You will not be able to relax if you are not comfortable with your surroundings.

The writer is a Lifestyle Coach & Author of The Seduction of food’

barbs_sai@hotmail.com