CREATE CALM

According to researchers at Harvard University, the environment in which we sleep plays a large part in the quality of rest we get. So while the bedroom may not be considered a high-traffic room in your house, if sprucing it up makes you feel better, it will make a difference. Start with your bedding, suggests Ann-Marie Goddard, the director of design at Exodus Construction in Narragansett. “Switch out heavier, darker textiles with duvets, sheets, and blankets in soft, muted colors,” she says. Alternatively, she suggests that a “crisp, bright-white duvet with delicate eyelet trim and floral throw pillows” will lighten the mood for sure.