Our homes should be our own personal happy space. They should be a place we enjoy living and want to spend time; that’s why making a house a home is so important. It’s about creating a positive, inspiring, happy place that we are proud to call home and that also brings out the best in us.

Our home can affect our positivity and wellbeing. If we are able to see, touch and smell things we like then we are going to feel more positive whilst in these surroundings. If we dislike a lot of things about where we live then they’ll put a damper on our mood.

For those of us that work at home we spend nearly all day in these surroundings. It’s so important we create a living space that is uplifting and promotes creativity.

Even if you don’t work at home, you want a place to look forward to returning to in the evening; a place where you enjoy relaxing and socialising by yourself or with friends and family.

In this blog post I will share some home décor tips to help you create a positive living space.

How to bring more positive energy into your home

Don’t be afraid to use colour

We love neutral walls and our entire home is painted white, but don’t be afraid to use bright colours in the décor to reflect your personality and bring some happiness into the room. We recently upgraded our drab and dreary play-it-safe beige sofas to two fun, bright orange sofas and the difference is incredible. The room feels brighter and happier. It’s now my favourite room in the house and we’ve even added more pops of different colours such as bright yellow and turquoise in the textiles and décor. It’s amazing what a splash of colour can do to improve the ambience of a room.

Create a happy wall

There’s nothing quite like happy memories, so why not create a photo wall full of your favourite photos? We have transformed our hallway by using an eclectic mix of white picture frames to cover the wall in our favourite family photos. As we grow, the wall is growing. It’s an ongoing project of mine. Every time we enter the house we see all the happy memories and it makes us feel good. We open the door to beaming smiles from photos of Reuben as a toddler. Seeing those photos as soon as we enter can’t help but make us feel happier.

Hang motivational quotes

It’s not just photos that make us feel happy, but also inspirational quotes, our favourite lyrics and sayings. Using some online design tools you can easily make some motivational prints to hang in your home. You’ll be able to find graphics, mock ups, photos and even free designs to help you create some artwork for your walls.

In my office I have my favourite success quotes hung above my desk. I simply used online design programmes to create them and printed them on A4 glossy photo paper. I even found some free printables. You can search online for free design resources to get you started and discover ready to print free quotes with a quick search on Pinterest.

Bring the outdoors in

Nature is well-known for bringing us peace and calm, so why not bring it indoors? Adorn your rooms with hanging plants and potted indoor house plants. They’ll give you some natural décor and will also have the benefit of boosting your mood. Botanical printed bed covers or cushions will also help to bring the outdoors in.

Make the most of natural daylight

We need sunlight for vitamin D and to make us happy, so it’s a great idea to maximise the sunlight in your living space. Make sure windows are clear and clean to encourage as much natural daylight to enter your home as possible. Position desks and seating near the windows where possible so you can benefit from the natural light instead of always turning a lamp on to see.

Declutter and organise

In my experience, a cluttered house leads to a cluttered mind. Embrace minimalism and lead a simpler life with less things. Organise the things you do have so everything has its space and you are not stressed in life trying to locate things. Have only the things you use or that make you happy. Many people I know are stressed with their clutter and owning too many things, yet they don’t do anything about it. Try not to be attached to things, but to people and moments instead. By decluttering your home, keeping it tidy and organised, you will likely find it a more enjoyable place to be. Don’t get bogged down with ‘stuff’.

Use affirmation post-its

On my mirror, I have a post-it stuck at the top saying ‘if you don’t build your own dreams, someone else will hire you to build theirs’. It was for my husband as a motivational success type quote for when he left his employment and ventured into the unknown of self-employment for the first time. Rather adoringly, my seven-year-old write ‘incredible’ on another post-it and stuck it next to mine. I love seeing these post-its each time I look in the mirror. They inspire positivity and success and are a reminder of how cute my daughter is! Stick your own positive affirmations on the wall/mirror/fridge to inspire you.

Open the windows

Not always a great idea on a freezing day, but try it for at least five minutes in the winter. Let the old air out and new air in. It’s amazing how a burst of fresh air can revitalise a room. Let the sounds and smells of the outdoors in, especially in the summer. Hearing the sounds of nature can have a positive effect on your mood, especially if you’re cooped up indoors for long periods of time.

Make your bed

This is all part of keeping an organised home that does not stress you out. A messy unmade bed can make an entire room feel untidy and uncared for. This is because the bed usually makes up a large percentage of a bedroom. As soon as you get out of bed or are dressed, make it a daily habit to shake the covers to refresh them and make the bed. The room will look so much tidier and you now have a great space to start and end a productive day. It’s at this point I usually open my bedroom window for five minutes to let some fresh air circulate whilst I shake off my sleep from the night before.

Use natural scents

Don’t fill your home with toxic chemical air fresheners, but choose natural plant based candles such as soy wax, organic essential oils in a diffuser and natural incense sticks. Fill your home with calming or uplifting natural scents that will lift the mood and have aromatherapy properties.

There are so many ways to create a positive space in your home, but ultimately it’s about creating a space that is right for you and makes you happy. If there are elements of your home that bring you negativity then work on changing those and removing anything that causes stress. Make your home a place you want to be so it can bring you peace.