So, you’ve been settled into your home for a little while now. The ‘new home’ smell has started to wear off, and things are starting to feel a little stale. So now, the place is in need of a refresh. Not a complete top-to-bottom makeover or anything; just enough of a redesign to breathe some new life into those four walls.
After you’ve been out at work all day, you deserve to relax in a place that feels distinctly personal, that gives you a real sense of satisfaction. Well, one hack that I’ve come up with to achieve this is to design a home that caters to all five senses. I know, it might sound like a bit of a gimmick, but hear me out. When you make sure that your home’s sights, sounds, smells, textures, and tastes are all aligned in a deliberate way, you’ll create a unified experience that complements each and every sense.
Visual Cohesion
The key to getting visuals right is to plan in advance and make sure you have a clear visual direction for your home. Make sure you have a colour palette, inspire yourself with Pinterest boards, and minimise clutter in favour of just having a few select pieces, like framed art on the walls or custom photo books atop the coffee table.
If you have a favourite colour that is on the bolder side, but desperately want to find ways to incorporate it into your interiors, then focus on highlights or secondary colours, rather than your walls and sofa, or primary colours. Think about cushions, vases, photo frames. Splitting up colours into these separate groups, with different weighting, will help create a more considered, unified space.
Textures With a Touch More Depth
Make sure your house isn’t flat. Incorporate groups of different textures by focusing on things like natural textures, e.g. linen and wool, or polished surfaces like stone worktops and stone floors. Consider how you can also factor wall art into this too. Framed paintings or prints can come off as more sophisticated or polished, while canvas prints will fit in nicely among more naturalistic textures.
Don’t forget about textured rugs under coffee tables, fluffy blankets to sofas, and woven baskets if you need an easy win here. If you’re lucky enough to have some exposed brick already, then lucky you! The rest of us will have to risk destroying our walls, but it’s probably worth it.
Your Soundscape
This one is a little more subjective, but if you want to relax in your own haven of relaxation, then it would be hard to say no to the trickle of a natural water feature in the garden, or to a set of appropriately placed wind chimes.
Personally, I love music, and I play a little guitar myself, so naturally there is always music playing through my house. The genres, artists and songs you choose will be completely up to you, but I think that the best thing you can do here is invest in a proper sound system. Nowadays, a soundbar with surround sound capabilities is relatively inexpensive.
If you prefer something a little more on the vintage side, then you can get a solid record player new for two figures. The authentic pops and scratches will definitely balance well within a house where nostalgic authenticity is the dominant goal.
Homey Aromas
We all want our homes to smell good. I’d say it’s something of a dark horse on this list. If you can get it right, then you’ll feel a huge difference being at home. I’d recommend doing something of a deep dive when it comes to finding the right reed diffusers, candles and sprays. Find the ones that you love the most, and spread them among different rooms to give each one its own personality.
Tastes
Taste is the ugly duckling on this list. It’s trickier to implement, but I’ve still found ways to make my home target my taste buds in the best ways. Start by having a kitchen that actually inspires you to cook your favourite foods – you’ll be amazed by how proficient you can be when the environment you’re in supports you. Secondly, if you have a garden space, grow your own produce. The result will be you and your home working together to create your own flavours. Start off small, with a versatile fruit or vegetable that you’ll actually eat, like tomatoes, before branching out from there.
Final Thoughts
So there you have it! I hope this article can help inspire you to give your home a refresh that manages to cater to each and every sense in specific, thoughtful ways. Whether you’re sticking to a particular colour palette, focusing on natural textures and sounds, or lighting your favourite candle every night, I have no doubts that your house will start to feel more like your home very soon.
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