Your home is your sanctuary. It’s where you and your family can relax and feel comfortable. Your home should be a place of safety and should allow your mind to be at ease.
A relaxing and mindful home environment can do wonders for your mental health and can help recharge you for life outside of your sanctuary. However, not everyone feels so relaxed in their home.
In order to create a home that feels comfortable, it’s important to not only make changes that focus on creating a positive environment but to do so in a mindful way.
5 Ways to Create a Mindful Home You Love
1. Make Energy Efficient Choices
Energy efficiency is a choice that benefits you, your wallet, and the environment all at the same time. By making a few energy-efficient changes in your home, you can create a more positive and relaxing environment for everyone.
This summer, try opening more windows instead of relying so much on the air conditioner. Fresh, circulating air in your home feels more refreshing, and it’s energy-efficient. You can also try installing a ceiling fan or blocking the sun with better shades.
Making a change like using a clothesline instead of a dryer is also a great idea to increase mindfulness and relaxation in the warmer months. Not only does it get you outside, but the process is also calming and saves on electricity — which, in turn, saves you money and is better for the environment.
2. Plan Mindful Family Activities
It can be easy to sink into the same routine when it comes to family activities, but some of them may be more draining than rejuvenating for a person.
For example, relying on television or electronics for family activities usually doesn’t promote mindfulness. Instead, make a conscious effort to try to implement more mindful activities into family time.
Find some child-safe craft paint and plan an arts and crafts day. Plan an outing each week to do something outside with your family, like going on a walk or spending time in the park. Spend less time with electronics and more time outside, and it’ll allow your time at home to be more tranquil.
3. Declutter and Organize
Decluttering and organizing your belongings is a beautifully mindful way to increase your home’s peaceful energy.
Tidying expert Marie Kondo has a lot of tips for doing this in a way that helps to appreciate the things you’re getting rid of and how to store the things you decide to keep. It’s about decluttering in a way that helps you live the life you want to live while keeping the things that spark joy for you.
Extra items around your home only create more “noise” that makes it hard to feel relaxed. However, you can be more mindful about decluttering by choosing to donate, recycle, or upcycle items.
There are plenty of ways to create art from recycled car parts or to use old furniture to make shelves and other storage. Otherwise, make sure to donate or recycle what you can.
4. Mindful Decorating
There’s a way to decorate your home in a way that fosters mindfulness and relaxation. Use color to create the energy you want for a room by using paint or fabrics. Utilize as much natural light as you can in order to let some of the outside world in.
Focus on comfort, utility, and simplicity. Don’t overdo a space with too many standout pieces, and instead focus on a few things you really love. Utilize sentimental items, plants, and comfort to help make your home a more mindful and relaxing space.
If you have a lot of items to store, utilize some storage furniture pieces to create more storage space. It’s less about being trendy or fashionable and more about creating a simple and beautiful space for your family to enjoy.
5. Remember All of Your Senses
Creating a relaxing and mindful home isn’t just about what it looks like, it should encompass all of your senses. Think about what your home smells like, feels like, sounds like, and even what it tastes like.
A clean home will make your home smell better, but you can also implement aromatherapy, candles, and incense to help increase your mindfulness and relaxation.
Choose comfortable and soft fabrics to increase the positive textures that you touch in your home. Clean carpets, soft sheets, fluffy towels, and comfortable couches will do wonders for your relaxation.
Be mindful of your home’s sound by eliminating noisy items, creaky floorboards, or squeaky hinges. By focusing on home-cooked meals and healthy food, you can create a sense of health and rejuvenation in the taste department.
The Home of Your Dreams
Your home should make you and your family feel mindful and relaxed, and it should be the place where you feel most at ease. However, a cluttered and overwhelming household can create feelings of stress and restlessness instead.
In order to increase the positive vibes of your home, work to make it a place that’s comfortable. By increasing your energy-efficient choices, planning mindful family activities, decluttering and organizing your home, decorating mindfully, and remembering all of your senses through it all, you can work to create a mindful home that leaves you feeling at peace.