Designing Your Home for Wellness

This may seem like a foreign concept to some, however to others redesigning or configuring your home for wellness may be exactly what you need to focus on this spring. With the workforce shifting significantly to work from home flexibility and lockdowns continuing in Ontario, we find ourselves in our homes more than ever before.

So why not make your home enjoyable and even healthy to be in? There are simple choices and changes you can make to design your home for wellness. Whether you’re renovating or just want a weekend project, give some of these tips below a try and enjoy a new sense of peace. 

Kitchen Layout

If you have the opportunity or control over your kitchen layout, this is a great one to focus on first. Surprisingly, your kitchen layout can affect your productivity and ability to create healthier food. A few tips from the experts include having lots of counter space for prep, especially an island if you have one, a big deep sink and a brightly lit area – whether it’s natural from windows or through high quality lighting.

If you’re not able to rip apart your kitchen just yet, try to focus on the space you do have and declutter as much as possible. Making sure your drawers, cupboards and counter space is well organized will also help create a more harmonious area to be in. Organizing your refrigerator and keeping it clean will also help with making more healthy meals, faster. 

Colour & Material Choices

Interior design trends saw a significant shift this year in the way choices are being made for colour and materials. Softer, pastel colours are becoming increasingly popular within the home, helping to create a sense of calm and peace throughout. The colour choices you make for your home will impact you and your mood much more than you may even realize. If you are interested in creating a more zen space, but don’t want to repaint your whole house, maybe select a small room to focus on or add elements of calming colours with art prints, to help set the mood.

Material choice has also shifted to be more eco-friendly and simplistic and to evoke a sense of nature. We have seen an increase in the use of bamboo, natural stone, cork, reclaimed wood and repurposed materials within homes. It's thought that incorporating natural materials will bring you closer to nature and as a result create a sense of peace. 

Simplicity & Organization

Simplicity and organization have also become a huge trend – think The Home Edit. Having an organized home not only creates  harmony but also lowers stress and allows you to be more productive in your life. Yes, it can take time and effort to become organized, but the benefits are substantial. Have your kids help you organize their toys and Lego or even books. Make organization fun and something to do together rather than a frustrating task and it will help encourage your family to continue to keep it up!

Simplicity is a luxury not all of us have, however if you can implement the idea even in small places like bookshelves or countertops, it will make a massive difference in your home. Simplicity simply means to reduce clutter. Remove or donate things you don’t need or use anymore. Keep any cluttered items in drawers or containers if necessary, tidy as you move throughout the house and after yourself as you do things – encourage your family to do the same. 

Light

Light is a really important factor in our lives that many people overlook. Having a light, bright room in your home can be vital to your well-being and mental health, especially when you’re home much more than usual. If you’re renovating consider adding skylights or additional pot-lights into your ceilings, work with your designer or contractor to find the best ways to utilize natural light and bring it into your home with additional or wider windows.

If you aren’t renovating, don’t give up on bringing light into your home just yet. Consider changing around furniture in certain rooms and position them closer to windows. You can buy lighter curtains for commonly used rooms like the family and living room. Use mirrors on walls to bounce the light into other areas in the room. If you can swing it, swap out some items like a carpet or chair to lighter materials to help create a brighter feeling in your home or even office. 

Designing your home for wellness doesn’t have to mean renovating your entire home, changing some smaller things can make just as big of an impact. Having a calming space surround you feels much more essential than ever before so take a look around and see what small changes can impact your home.