How to Make Your Home Feel More Relaxing

Our homes should be our sanctuary, the place where we feel safe, comfortable, and at peace.

However, the reality for some is that their home may feel like a cage and the last thing they feel is safe or relaxed.

There are people who suffer great anxiety and hardship, who crave peace and tranquility, and who need a safe haven to help promote a positive state of mind.

There will also be those who have recently moved home or are in the process of moving home. People who want to turn a new place into their special place.

The thought of creating a calm and happy home is a sweet dream for many people.

Often we are so busy we fail to appreciate all the simple things in life and to realise how important our home is to our wellbeing.

Whether we live on our own or with a large family, a relaxing and calm environment can do wonders for our mental and physical health.

But it need not be expensive nor difficult to find a few simple ways to make your home feel more relaxing.

Even if you can find the time to make just one room a place of peace and tranquility then the rewards of doing so will be well worth the effort.

You may also like to read: How to Love a House You Hate. Mover regret is a very real thing, you cannot let go of your old home and your new place just does not feel like it is your home. In this guide, we offer some practical tips to let go of your old life and embrace your new home and surroundings.

11 Ways to Make Your Home Feel More Relaxing

#1 Clear the Clutter

Messy desk, messy mind. It is impossible to feel calm and relaxed when you are surrounded by an untidy mess.

This is an easy fix that will cost you nothing, but the reward is instant.

Get your home organised.

If your home is scattered with stuff you don’t need and is a mess, then take time to tidy up, to put things away in cupboards.

 If you have the time, go through all your things deciding if you really need that particular item. If you don’t actually love it, or really need it, then now is a great time to get it out of your life.

Ideally, you want to be surrounded by things that give you joy, peace, and a sense of calm.

And if you intend to move home soon then decluttering is the one guaranteed way to reduce your home moving costs.

You may also like to read: The Epic Guide to Decluttering Your Home. In this guide, we look at how to declutter each room of your home and also how to let go of things that you have an emotional attachment to.

“Have nothing in your home that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful”. William Morris.

#2 Time for a Spring Clean

Now your home is free of all the clutter give everything a really good clean.

This is a fresh start for you and your home, and a clean home free of clutter will be the blank canvas you need to make your home a haven of tranquility and calm.

You do not need to buy expensive cleaning materials, you can use some natural products that you probably have lying in your kitchen cupboards.

White vinegar, baking soda, and lemons are just a few of the everyday ingredients that can make excellent household cleaners at a fraction of the costs of shop-bought cleaners.

You may also like to read: How to Deep Clean a House. In this guide, we share not only some great cleaning tips for your whole home but also some recipes for easy-to-make, eco-friendly cleaning products.

#3 Relaxing Furniture Layouts

Often where we place furniture can have a huge effect on the perception of space and light in a room.

Work with different layouts of the room to make the space available as spacious, comfortable, and practical as possible.

It is important that the sanctuary you are creating is comfortable, it is somewhere to relax where everything is where it should be and you actually crave sitting in the space you have created.

When you sink into your favourite chair with a good book or to meditate, you want to be sure that the worries of the world do not encroach upon your safe space.

You might like to have a cosy chair by the window or by the fire, or maybe a couch in a corner of a room where you feel the security of the walls around you.

The layout needs to work for you and what makes you feel good.

It could be something as simple as putting a rug beneath your feet by your chair, relishing the warm feeling as you scrunch your toes into the pile of the carpet rather than placing them on cold laminate flooring.

So whilst you are trying to create a visually pleasing environment it has to be comfortable and practical.

We will look at simple Fen Shui ideas for your home which will help you create that ideal environment in another section of this article.

You may also like to read: How to Make a Simple Floor Plan. Having a floor plan will allow you to design your furniture layout without having to keep moving furniture around. This guide shows you how to measure furniture and your rooms, and how to create a simple floor plan.

#4 Add Soft Furnishings

Adding soft furnishings to your home can not only add to your comfort but can be visually calming too.

Consider the texture and colours, soft pastel colours, and velvet or wool are great choices. Avoid cold or hard materials.

You can have lovely soft blankets to wrap yourself up in, soft cushions to sink into, or rugs on the floor.

#5 Relaxing Lighting Ideas For a Tranquil Home

Ideally, you want natural light flooding your room but that is not always possible.

But you can maximise the amount of light your room gets by how you hang the curtains or the thickness of their material.

Consider having blinds rather than curtains which let in more natural light.

Here are some ideas on how to create the lighting mood you want in your home.

• Avoid using ceiling centre lights which are often harsh. Use table lamps or make use of a dimmer switch on the main lamp. Use a bulb of lesser watts or a pearl bulb rather than a clear one.

• Experiment with where you place the lighting, a simple change of position can dramatically alter the atmosphere of a room.

• Uplighters can diffuse the light in a room as can the shade that you choose to put on a lamp.

• Candles are great for creating mood lighting in your home and using scented candles can be very beneficial when trying to create a calm atmosphere.

Work out what is practical and creates the ambiance you are looking for.

You may also like to read: How to Make a New Place Feel Like Home. Making a new place feel like home is not confined to the four walls of the building. Feeling at home in your new neighbourhood is equally important. In this guide, we share tips on how to make a new area feel like your home.

#6 Nine Plants For a Calm Environment

Flowers and plants are not only visually pleasing but will help clean and oxygenate the air in a room.

A few well-placed plants in a room can change the whole atmosphere instantly and fresh flowers will fill the room with scent.

Here are some suggestions for plants that help promote calmness and well-being.

• Chamomile will help ease anxiety and help you sleep better. Although it is well known as a tea, it is also easy to grow yourself.
• Spider plants are useful for keeping the air clean in your home and require very little maintenance.
• Bamboo palms are easy to look after and great for purifying the air in a room. They are also known to help reduce stress-inducing toxins.
• Snake plants absorb carbon dioxide and release fresh oxygen.
• Lavender will help you cope with anxiety and depression. Lavender is easy to grow in a pot.
• Aloe Vera helps reduce anxiety and removes harmful chemicals from the air.
• Gerbera will not only brighten up any room but is known to induce a feeling of calm.
• Rubber trees are really easy to look after and are one of the best air-purifying plants you can have.
• Peace Lily is a plant that will help reduce the number of toxins in the air in your room and they are pretty too.

You may also like to read: How to Move Plants to a New Home. In this guide, we share lots of practical tips on how to move plants to a new home without killing them.

#7 Display Good Memories

Having visual reminders around you of what makes you happy or of the good times you have had is a great way to create a stress-reducing environment.

It could be photos or trinkets, it does not matter.

What is important is that when you look at the item it instills warmth and happiness, it wraps your soul in a feeling of tranquility and peace.

Obviously, you want to keep your home as clutter-free as possible but a few well-placed memories will do wonders for your mental well-being. 

#8 Eight Scents for Relaxation and Stress Relief

Scents are really important when it comes to creating a relaxing home.

But it is important to choose the right scent for the atmosphere you are trying to create or for the effect you want the aroma to have.

• Rosemary is known to help promote feelings of contentment.
• Ylang-Ylang helps you destress and unwind.
• Yuzu helps relax the body and calm your mind.
• Lavender will help you feel more relaxed and calm.
• Lemon is an anti-depressant that reduces stress and enhances your mood.
• Bergamot helps relieve stress and can elevate your mood.
• Geranium oil can promote emotional balance.
• Sage will help ease negative moods and promote long-term emotional well-being.

You may also like to read: The Surprising Health Benefits of Moving Home. Moving home is universally regarded as a stressful and exhausting time but there are also many health benefits to moving home as well.

#9 Six Relaxing Home Décor Ideas

Changing the colour scheme of a room can have a significant effect on how the room makes you feel.

And you don’t have to run to the expense of redecorating, just adding soft furnishings in relaxing colours will have a positive psychological and emotional impact on you.

Always go for soft, pastel, and neutral shades to get the maximum benefit. These are the best colours to go for if you want tranquil home décor.

• Blue will help manage stress and reduce anxiety.
• White can induce a feeling of well-being, but it should not be too bright or too dull.
• Yellow is a colour that promotes happiness.
• Green will help reduce anxiety and help you feel calm.
• Pink helps promote peace and tranquility.
• Violet helps bring emotional balance and inner peace.

You may also like to read: Which are the Best Home Blogs to Follow? In this guide, we share our pick of the top blogs that will help you create your perfect home. From gardening to interior design, you will find some really useful blogs in this guide.

#10 Relaxing Sounds for a Tranquil Home

When we are trying to create a relaxing atmosphere sound can play a crucial role.

You may want to play spa-type music or soothing jazz, but also consider the sounds of nature.

Having a small table-top fountain with running water may be ideal for you. Having the sound of the jungle may work for someone else.

Whatever your happy trigger is, a few minutes a day listening to your favourite sounds will work wonders for your well-being.

And you don’t need to disturb anyone else in the house, you can use headphones to fully immerse yourself in the sounds that make you happy.

You may also like to read: How to Soundproof Your Home and Garden. Often external noise can ruin our peace and quiet. Equally, you may want to create an environment where the music you are listening to does not disturb others. In this guide, we look at ways to soundproof your home and garden.

#11 Be Tech-Free

Whilst your home will probably never be tech-free, when you need to fully relax it is best to keep your phone or digital gadgets out of sight.

Just an hour a day away from the screen will do your mental and physical well-being a power of good.

Simple Feng Shui for Your Home

When you are trying to create a relaxing home then you may want to consider the unseen energy, the unseen forces that can affect how calm and tranquil your home makes you feel.

Feng Shui is a very popular way to make your home as harmonious as possible.

What is Feng Shui? Feng Shui is the harmony between nature and humans.

Feng (wind) is the air and field energy of the universe whilst Shui (water) means change and flow.

Feng Shui can seem quite complex but there are some basic steps you can take to ensure your home is happier and healthier according to Feng Shui principles.

• The front door is where energy enters your home. You should use your front door rather than the back door to get into your home to help the flow of good energy into your home. Always keep the front door of your home clean, well-lit, and free of clutter to help the energy flow.
• The commanding position is one of the most important principles of Feng Shui. It ensures that you are in command of your life and can easily accept the best opportunities that come your way and that you receive positive energy. Your bed represents you, the cooker your wealth, and your desk your career. None of these should face the door but you should be able to see the door from their position.
• Windows are the way natural light pours into our home. Clean your windows regularly to allow the maximum amount of light into your home. Metaphorically, clean windows allow us to see all the things around us clearly and to see their beautiful colours.
• Internal doors should open freely and without creaks or squeaks. Keep them free of clutter and keep them clean to allow good energy to flow freely around your home.
• Create space in your home by decluttering. The idea is that by getting rid of things that you do not need that are taking up space unnecessarily, you allow fresh opportunities to come into your home.
• Create an obstacle-free home. Look at how you move through your home, is the furniture in the best position to allow you easy passage? But this also applies to things that can annoy you like a cupboard door that does not close properly, these are obstacles to a stress-free life. Fix those little things that annoy you to allow positive energy to flow freely.
• Space blessing is the process of cleansing the energy in your home. Imagine a bright white light passing through your home cleaning and cleansing all the bad energy out.
• Place plants around your home. Plants clean the air in your home and promote a connection with nature nurturing a feeling of well-being, freshness, and vitality.
• Finally, be grateful that you have a home. In Feng Shui, everything has life, including your home. Just saying a thank you to your home for offering you sanctuary from the stress of everyday life will fill your home with positive energy.

You may also like to read: Help – I Can’t Settle in my New Home. In this guide, we suggest reasons why your new place just does not feel like home and what practical steps you can take to help you settle into your new home quickly.

How to Remove Negative Energy From Your Home

Like negative energy can impact your health and mental well-being, many people believe that negative energy can also be present in the home and have a negative impact on how you feel within the home.

Whether you believe that or not, there are some simple things you can do to rid your home of negative energy, it is easy to do and you have nothing to lose.

When you are trying to create a peaceful and relaxing home you should use all the tools at your disposal.

Cleansing your home of negative energy is one of the tools that may just help you create a calm household.

Here are 9 simple ways to get rid of the bad energy in your home.

• Open your windows to allow the negative energy in your home to flow out of the windows.
• Decluttering your home has been a theme throughout this guide. Old objects are believed to contain energy that can influence your physical, mental, and emotional well-being. Having unwanted things in your home uses up space that could be filled with new opportunities. If the item is neither beautiful nor useful then consider getting rid of it.
• If you have broken and irreparable objects in your home, get rid of them, they are believed to retain negative energy.
• Antiques should be thoroughly cleaned so that any negative energy they hold is cleaned away.
• Burn incense candles to help create a serene and peaceful atmosphere where negative energy cannot lurk.
• Burn sage to cleanse the air in your home and remove impurities. Start at the front door and work through each room in a clockwise direction, visualising how the smoke fills every corner of your home to purify it.
• Spray orange essential oils in each room. This is believed to remove negative energy whilst revitalising your senses and promoting good mental health.
• Put a salt lamp in your home. Salt crystals are believed to be one of the most effective methods for ridding a home of negative energy.
• Black Tourmaline Crystals are believed to help dispel negative energy whilst Rose Quartz replaces negative emotions with positive ones.

You may also like to read: How to Bring Good Luck and Positive Energy to a New Home. In this guide, we look at the subject of bringing good luck and positive energy into your home in more depth.

We hope you have found these tips for a peaceful home to be useful.

Making your home a sanctuary of relaxation, peace, and calm will help everyone who lives there to have a better quality of life, and to feel it is the one place in the world where there is comfort and joy to be found.

We all need our own space sometimes, our own little place to escape to.

Take the time to create your special space in your home, your mind and body will thank you for it.

And if you are thinking of moving to find that perfect home of peace and tranquility then be sure to visit our guides which will give you lots of inspiration.