How Can We Design Our Homes to Nurture Our Mental Health?
The latest report from the Happiness Research Institute was released earlier this year. Titled “Wellbeing Adjusted Life Years”, this report investigates how can we produce the greatest happiness return for humankind? Interesting reading, especially in light of COVID-19. In many countries around the world, including developed countries, average wellbeing levels have stagnated or even declined […]
Biophilia is Important, but Don’t Overlook Adding Joy!
In my last blog post I talked about the importance of Biophilic Design – adding that connection to nature to our interior spaces. But so often, when I see examples of biophilic spaces, it is a sea of natural wood and indoor plants. What is missing for me is those elements of joy. When I […]
Why is Biophilic Design so Important?
Since the beginning of human evolution, we have been connected to the natural world, observing the changing seasons, learning what foods grow when, and when we can celebrate earth’s bounty, or when we need to build up reserves for the leaner seasons. The term Biophilia refers to our innate biological connection with nature. It helps […]
Is Your Home a Happy Home?
My front door is yellow. I chose this colour because it’s a colour that says happy and optimistic and that’s the vibe that I want for my home so why not start with the front door! If this COVID-19 outbreak has taught us one thing, it is the importance of home! Last year The Happiness […]
Finding sanctuary in our homes
Finding sanctuary in our homes has never been so important. A global pandemic can do that. Our homes are our safe places – where we are isolating and social distancing with our loved ones. They should be somewhere where we enjoy spending time, and should help us to feel relaxed, calm and safe in these […]
Choosing Colour for how you Want your Home to Make you FEEL and BEHAVE
How does your home make you feel? Is it a supportive, comfortable haven that expresses and reflects who you are, nurturing your wellness and encouraging positive behaviours? Or is it leaving you feeling exhausted and overwhelmed, or bored and lifeless? How we choose to decorate our homes, or more specifically, the colours that we surround […]
Designing for Introvert vs. Extrovert Personality Types
I am used to spending quite a lot of my days alone, with my husband out at work, and me quietly working away in my business. However, spending the majority of time during lockdown under the same roof as my husband has highlighted to me our different personality types. I am very much an ambivert. […]
Does Your Home Bring You Joy?
When you think about your home, does it make you smile? Does your home inspire you; fill you with energy and creativity? And how can tangible things create an intangible feeling of joy anyway? Research has shown that there are certain properties that define the way an object looks and feels that give rise to […]
How Do Our Homes Affect Our Mental Health?
Yesterday was World Mental Health Day, so I thought I would spend some time on today’s blog post looking at the affect that our homes can have on our mental health. With humans increasingly spending up to 90% of their lives indoors, there is a growing body of scientific evidence showing that how we design […]