5 Easy Ways to Add Energy to Your Home
Even if you love your place and your stuff, there are times when your home can feel stagnant. It all too easily becomes a place of routine, or it just feels like there’s something that’s not functioning quite right. If your home needs a burst of energy, here are five easy things that you can do to give it some zest.
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Use scents.Even if you’re used to adding aromas to your home, you may not think about the kinds of effects that your preferred scents have on you. Seek out someenergizingscents. Citrus scents are particularly energizing (we say “zesty” for a reason), as are rosemary, peppermint, and eucalyptus. If you’re feeling sluggish, think about stepping away from the vanilla, lavender, and jasmine for a few hours. These are extremely calming scents that might put you at ease, but they won’t add a whole lot of pep to your step.
Use color.Unexpected bursts of color are great for stimulating the eyes, and, therefore, the mind. Vibrant colors have the power of being unexpected and rare, and for that reason, they draw our attention and make us more alert. Throw a hot pink tablecloth over the table, toss an orange pillow on the sofa, or just take a gander at a vibrant green plant for a while. Enjoy the rich colors and momentarily embrace the non-neutral.
Rethink your piles and accessories.如果你的产品太丰富,他们可以堵塞flow of a space and make it feel heavy. Lightening up the view will significantly revitalize your home. Think about rotating art out seasonally, or keeping a shelf in a cabinet with extra accessories that you can “shop” when you feel the need to change things up. Just because you love it, and just because you own it, doesn’t mean that it has to be on display at all times.
Even if you’re good about keeping your piles and accessories to a healthy number, think about moving them around periodically. This will help you see them with fresh eyes, and it will give your space a new feel, even if all the stuff is the same.
Consider the flow of the room.Apartment Therapy’s newest book,Complete + Happy Home, and earliest book,The Eight-Step Home Cure, both have sections dedicated to figuring out how to improve the flow of a space. Obviously, we think this is an important element in having a functional, healthy home! The subtle movements that our bodies make actually have a significant influence on our mental state, and if you’re weaving, bobbing, dodging, stopping, or getting cornered all the time, your room may not have the best furniture arrangement. Take some time to sit and sketch your rooms, and see whether you can come up with some ways to improve the flow.
Do something energetic in your home.This one is a no-brainer. A home is more than just a space—it’s a place where life happens. If you really want to add some energy to your home, then do something energetic. Play with your kids, turn up the music and dance, do some yoga, play games with friends, cook a dinner—whatever it is that will get you up and moving. Over time, you will develop mental associations between the space and the activities that you perform there, so if you’re high-energy, your home will be, too.