Elevate Your Mood and Life with these 5 Decorating Tips

Jenny Gericke
Dec 11, 2017
3 min read

Updated: Oct 16, 2018

Your home environment affects more than you realize. Color, lighting, furniture - these all can have a big impact on our mood and well-being. And with the majority of our lives being spent at home, we want to make sure our interiors are ones that boost our mood instead of agitate it.

Neuro-architecture is a concept mostly applied to designing hospitals and work environments. However, we can apply its simple principles to our homes as well to make sure that our surroundings are both welcoming and relaxing.

Consider these 5 Decorating Tips to elevate your Mood at Home:

1. Layer your Home's Lighting

Harsh, bright lights, especially at night, can interrupt our body's natural rhythms. So its important to layer lighting in each room based on task and ambiance. Consider removing overhead central fixtures that cast harsh shadows and replacing them with up-lighting or track lighting that will wash the walls or ceiling. Add in lamps or other task lighting to illuminate tables, reading areas, or work surfaces. Layer in accent lighting to highlight architectural details, like a fireplace, or works of art in your home.

2. Bring in Furniture or Decor with Rounded Edges

Studies have shown that rounded decor can actually bolster brain activity while sharp objects convey a sense of danger and make people react negatively toward the space. Curves are more organic and reflect common and familiar forms found in nature giving the occupant a sense of contentment. You don't need to go overboard with round furniture. Just adding a round bowl on a square coffee table or a round throw pillow on a square couch will do the trick!

3. Simplify Decision-Making

Clutter plays a big role in adding stress to our lives and home. And clutter can easily get out of control fast. Most of us experience decision-fatigue at some point in our day. We're tired of making too many decisions so our brains default to the easiest option. Thus, recycling piles up. Paperwork clutters the counters. Cars and rooms get filled with stuff because we can't decide what to do with it. Its easy to make small adjustments in your home to help your brain process every micro-decision. For example, place a trash bin near the door so junk mail can be thrown out as soon as you walk in. Hang a hook by the door so your keys can be immediately hung up and not lost somewhere in the house.

4. Add in Living Plants

Research has found that plants can reduce stress and improve concentration. This makes them perfect for a home office - or even on your desk if you work outside the office. Plants improve our emotional well-being by giving us a bond with another living thing. If you aren't great at keeping plants alive, a poster or piece of art that shows a landscape can have a similar effect.

*Some easy to grow plant options include:

Peace Lily
Snake Plant
Spider Plant
Aloe Vera

5. Change Things Up

Dopamine is activated in the brain when we are exposed to novel stimuli. If you work or stay at home with kids, you are constantly exposed to the same things day in and day out. Your mood can actually be improved by rearranging or changing your environment. Think about how it feels to move into a new space - everything is fresh, new, and clean. Consider doing this in your own home every couple years by "moving out" and "moving in". Clear out the clutter, paint your walls, deep clean your surfaces, and rearrange your furniture.

Design and decorating becomes a powerful anti-depressant when you consider both the art and science involved. Clearing your space equals clearing your mind. Beautifying your home equals boosting your mood.