‘Make your bed!’ That was one of the first commands that cropped up on a random online search for guidelines to a happy home
Seriously…make your bed? When scientists have been harping over the years how making a bed could be detrimental to your health? How an unmade bed is a key to killing all the microscopic creepy-crawlies lurking in our beds?
If health is an intrinsic aspect of happiness, the first lesson in ensuring happiness within the home then should have been ‘do not make your bed’ – right?
Wrong! For happiness stems from little acts that have been spawned by habit or by a general sense of aesthetics. When all the little details in a home project a harmonious symphony, there is bound to be a feel-good emotion lurking in its corners. It is all about things that trigger happy thoughts – whether it is a neatly made bed, empty washbasin or spotless windows.
The happiness mantra on the home front suggests taking a couple of minutes in the morning to make the bed and spread the positive cheer emanating from a well tucked bed sheet and neatly folded blanket.
Minimise Clutter
On the same count as make your bed is ‘minimise the clutter’ approach to a happy home. It follows the need to ensure a sense of fluid movement of pace within the living spaces to ensure there are no distractions that can spread any unpleasant vibes. Clutter can be a distraction in the harmony of the home. Homemakers, in fact, associate a cluttered room to a cluttered mind. The first step in de-cluttering your home is compiling a list of things that are needed and things that have become defunct over the years. Do away with things that you do not need in your home and let positive vibes spread cheer of happiness in your home. Interestingly, experts on the subject of happy homes also suggest bringing the room/s back to its ‘ready’ state every time you venture out. That would mean getting back to a home that is positively ready for its members with clutter-free spaces.
Add Sentiments
As you minimise the clutter around your house, take time to ponder over the sentimental values of items that are lying around. Happy homes are made of little objects that trigger a sense of contentment, a spark of joy. Home is the only place where you can display pleasant memories through photographs or little objects collected as souvenirs of places or memories of growing years, without any inhibitions. So go on, place items of sentimental value around your home in such a way that it instantaneously sends a thrill of pleasure in every member of the house. Find ways to display them in a harmonious way, enhancing the aesthetic value of the room. Anything that is visually loud can prove to be a detriment and that means using a mental filter to not overload the room with all things that you attribute a sentiment or two to. Make your home a gallery of positive memories.
Bring Home Nature
Inject your home with little nuances of nature to create a fresh vibrancy that has happiness pegged on to it. As has been established, nature has a calming effect on all of us. So, while it is not possible for us to be out in the nature when the call of happiness gets strong, we can, in effect, bring a slice of nature into our homes. Visit the nearby nursery to pick houseplants or flowering shrubs that can easily add the glow of nature in your living space. Make use of the pleasant winter climes to bring in flowering plants that grow easily. However, if space is a constraint and you really feel inept at gardening, incorporate a wall with murals of trees or add wallpapers that depict a garden or a forest; even wooden furniture can do the trick, not forgetting a vase with a flower stem. There! a happy home…
Lights and Colours
Right lights and warm colours can help create a happy ambience. Studies have long established the effect of light on our emotions. While warm lights are said to be better for relaxing, cooler lights are suggested for a work atmosphere. Using candles in living and dining rooms have been found to be effective in enhancing mood. The same goes for the natural light that your home attracts. Leave the curtains open during the day for natural light to stream in. If dust isn’t an issue, you could even open the windows for some time during the day to ensure fresh air within. On the same count, some colours can instinctively fill us with a positive mien. Different colours have been found to affect our moods differently; understanding which can create a sense of happiness and boost positivity will help when repainting walls or incorporating new furnishings.
Quiet Space
Create your own little sanctuary within your home; a space for some alone time. It could be a little reading space or an area where you can indulge in your hobbies. You could devote a part of a room for your sanctuary or, if you are living in a large home/apartment, spare an entire room to give it a touch of your personality. It could easily become your happy corner, a place that will help you unwind and relax.