Carolyn J. Braden • 3 Minute Read
Creating a Mindful Living Space for a Calmer Home
Creating a mindful living space requires you to be, well, mindful! Carefully considering every change is paramount, or you can end up with a disappointing or inadequate home. At the end of the day, all you really want is a place for calm and peace as well as modern home functionality.
So, how do you actually go about this? Of course, it is more challenging than you may think. However, from engaging your senses to reducing waste, here are some helpful suggestions.
Yoga at home is beneficial for your whole body and soul
Think About Personal Activities
Most people want a home that supports mindfulness, peace, and relaxation, and it’s not an easy thing to attain. Lighting, textures, and even routines are all part of the process. Further to routines, these are an important part of crafting your space alongside activities. Think about how you relax, such as playing games like Spider Solitaire while enjoying some tea. The space should reflect your personal needs, and even the flow between these activities must be smooth.
Engage the Senses
Senses play a major role at home. In fact, your sense of smell is the most powerful you have for memories. Thinking about your senses will help you create the perfect atmosphere at home based on what excites and encourages you. Why not give these a try when starting out:
Calming colors are easier on the eyes, and soft lighting can increase a home’s calm.
Sounds of nature, calming music, and even white noise create a calming atmosphere.
Scents are emotion enhancers. Incense, essential oils, and food help you feel calm.
Need to calm down? Try a cruelty free Ryan Porter candle like this one….their candles make great gifts and smell yummy!
A green plant space creates calm vibes
A Mindful Living Space Needs Plants
Plants are a popular home decor addition and have been since the beginning of recorded history. There are many reasons to keep plants apart from just looking great. For example, a study of plant statistics found that being surrounded by houseplants can actually increase productivity by 15% if you work from home. However, you can also feel closer to plants by growing your own too! Devices such as Click and Grow make this easier than ever before.
Adding jute rugs and plants helps keep your home feeling calm
Add Some Natural Elements
Further to plants, there are more natural elements you can add to your home for a sense of calm. Natural elements are softer, warmer and even come with unique scents that scream nature! Hardwoods like oak are excellent for dining tables and will potentially last forever if you look after them. And is there anything more beautiful than stone flooring? Natural elements will also boost your sense of calm when you want to create a balanced space for meditation.
A swing inside your home can be a relaxing book reading or viewing space
Create Interesting Views
When you think about it, there should be something interesting wherever you look in your home. Whether it’s a clear garden view, a feature piece, or even something as simple as a vase and flowers, unique items help a home feel like just that. With a deeper connection provided by the items you create and place, your home goes from being somewhere to reside, to a place you want to actually live. Think about the things that provide instant joy and place them accordingly.
Include Meditation for a Mindful Living Space
There are few things as powerful as meditation for crafting a mindful living space. There are many benefits to meditation, including using meditation during tough moments in life and when you are stressed. Headspace has over 100 million users and is a great start to the journey.
Neutral colors keep a bedroom calm
Location, location, location
A space for meditation is best when it is private, secluded, and as quiet as possible. These will help you maintain a sense of calm and focus when trying to free your mind from distractions.
A comfortable and inviting area
Of course, any meditation needs to be comfortable or you won’t even want to use it. Soft furnishing such as meditation cushions and blankets, and natural lighting are recommended.
Meditating at home can help keep your environment peaceful
Free from distractions
Meditation space must be free from distractions so you can focus on claiming yourself. This includes no phones, and removing clutter. You can even consider soundproofing the space.
Meditation is an activity enjoyed by many people all over the world. If you are yet to get around to it, then a space at home for doing so can be just what you need. It takes some practice, but people who try it report quick results, a sense of calm and a better general outlook on life.
Salt lamps provide beautiful calming light
How About a Sacred Space?
Meditation space is one thing, but there’s no reason why you can’t also create a sacred space at home for reflection on the past, future, and where you are now. This can be tied to your religion or personal beliefs and elevates your connection to the spiritual side of life. For instance, a prayer room is a personal escape when you don’t have time to visit your place of worship. Of course, this is very personal and should be designed accordingly for the greatest benefits.
A neutral kitchen
A Room for Relaxing Activities
If you have the space to include activities, then it can be a massive advantage when getting the most from your home. For example, a finished basement has all kinds of uses, including a workout room, a gaming space, or even a man cave. A room away from the rest of the family helps you get the most from the space to indulge in what you love. However, it also means you won’t get in the way, which helps maintain an increased sense of calm and peace in the house!
We love using our Grounding Well products to increase a calm feeling among other things. Watch our 1-minute YouTube video below via our channel @carolynjbraden to see how we use them and use my link here or my code GWCAROLYNBRADEN to get a 10% discount on all Grounding Well products.
A Mindful Living Space with Eco Materials
Renovating means you can build something special from the ground up. Today, there is a massive focus on eco-friendly materials and appliances. Eco-friendly materials can cost up to 20% more than traditional materials when renovating. However, they last much longer and contribute to the environment, reducing overall costs in the long-term. This means less headaches as appliances and systems age, also reducing stress as well as overall costs.
A small but well organized kitchen helps reduce waste
Reducing Waste at Home
Most people waste too much stuff. From money to food, waste is a major concern these days. At home, there are many things we waste, but this is easily changed by making some minor amendments to how you live. If you aren’t sold, just give these pretty easy changes a try:
Separate food and general waste from waste that can be easily recycled.
Use base recipes and a food plan to ensure ingredients are used as much as possible.
Reduce how many single-use items you use and invest in reusable items such as bags.
How About Some Upcycling?
Why spend a fortune on new stuff when there are plenty of things you can upcycle or reuse? If you are crafty, then you can make use of materials and things you have lying around. Popular upcycling projects for beginners include homemade lighting, shelves, and vases. Of course, this doesn’t come naturally to everyone. But it can help to begin to look at things differently. Upcycling ideas are hard to develop alone, but some Google searching can usually help!
Summary
Designing based on personal activities will help create a mindful living space for a calmer home. Of course, a designated meditation space will help you get the most from a spare room or area. However, you can also save money and stay eco-friendly by using crafty and creative upcycling.
When all is said and done, it comes down to personal preference and what makes a calm home is different for everyone. Try to keep the needs of everyone in the house in mind when crafting.
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Carolyn J. Braden is the owner of Carolyn’s Blooming Creations is a regular contributor and editor for CBC. She has been featured in numerous media publications such as InStyle Magazine, on HGTV, on Bustle.com, and more. She is the author of the books Georgia McMasters in Amethyst Lake Cemetery, How To Be Yourself: 3 Ways To Help You Being You, and the illustrator for the children’s book Bridging Connections. She is a former classroom teacher that now dedicates her life to educating others on how to live their most healthy, creative and happy life. Learn more about her visiting our About Us page.
This is a collaborative post and may contain affiliate links. All opinions and ideas expressed in this post, however, are based on my personal point of view.