Interiors
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By Katherine Sorrell
Design for Well-being
How can you create an interiors scheme that adds to your overall comfort and contentment? We look at ways to decorate for a happy, healthy home. Science aligns with art when it comes to developing a sense of well-being in our homes. Although some elements of the well-being industry may be little more than optimistic nonsense, there is actually serious research that outlines ways in which we can redefine design schemes to promote mental and physical good health. Decades of scientific experiments have shown that, if we get it right, we can reduce stress, blood pressure and heart rates, while increasing productivity and creativity. Add some house plants - To start with, there is a big bonus that comes from introducing natural elements – such as house plants. Our brains are wired to respond positively to the signs of a healthy natural world – so that spider plant on your kitchen window really is making you happy. Not to mention the mental positives that come from the mindful repetition of watering, spraying, dead heading and so on, while enjoying watching your plant (hopefully) thrive in its environment. As well as real, living elements placed indoors, looking out onto beautiful views is demonstrably good for us, as are – intriguingly –artworks that realistically depict natural scenes, say the experts. Get the light right - Numerous studies have
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also linked natural light to increases in mood and cognitive performance. If you are renovating, this means it’s really worth looking at light-enhancing alterations such as enlarging windows, replacing solid doors with glazed ones, adding a skylight or French doors, and so on. On a more basic level, check that curtains or tall furniture do not block windows, and place mirrors where they can bounce the light around a room. High-sheen surfaces can help with this, too. As for artificial lighting, it is worth designing this with our circadian rhythms in mind, so that it aligns with natural periods of light and dark, and too-bright light does not interrupt our sleep/wake cycle. One trick is to use full-spectrum lights during the daytime, which are similar to natural light and – perhaps using an app – dim them to a warm light in the evening, triggering melatonin and helping you go to sleep. Make sure your home smells and sounds good Throwing open the windows and airing your home thoroughly can be greatly beneficial and, further than that, why not add some scents that make you feel positive? Use a natural wax candle or an electric diffuser, and try lemon for office work or studying, cinnamon or vanilla for creativity and lavender for
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