Your home’s atmosphere can make you happy, relaxed and inspired, or it can make you feel sad, discouraged and anxious.
This is where interior design comes into play. Interior design is not just about creating an aesthetically pleasing environment; it also affects the subconscious and can evoke certain emotions.
Interior Design’s Influence
Interior design involves a space’s creation through curation and placement of home décor, and can inspire certain feelings and reactions, marketing professor Philip Kotler writes.
It’s important to consider everything from lighting to furniture and fabrics when designing a space. Before buying anything or making changes, envision how you want the room to look and feel — yes, feel; home décor should engage the senses.
For instance, when you see light, it makes colors come alive. This helps you interpret your surroundings and it can uplift or depress you — bright colors can make you feel energized, while dark colors can make you feel exhausted and drained.
You use your sense of touch when you encounter texture and temperature. For instance, wooden bathroom cabinets are traditional and make us feel warm and cozy; metal cabinets are cool to the touch and reflect a modern, industrial atmosphere.
Home décor should be functional and represent who we are, and it should leave the right impression because how we decorate our homes can reflect our emotional state to others.
If you need help with that, here are tips to decorate a room with furniture.
Visual and Emotional Impact
Neat, visually appealing spaces can have a positive effect on the conscious and subconscious mind, whereas cluttered, chaotic spaces can negatively affect our thinking and behavior.
And altering a room’s design can influence the perceived size or spaciousness of it.
For instance, a cluttered bathroom with no mirror can be perceived as small and uncomfortable. On the other hand, a bathroom with a large mirror and space-saving cabinets can seem spacious and even luxurious.
Color and patterns used in paint, furniture and other home decor essentials also are important.
Vibrant shades like yellow encourage communicating and socializing, but darker hues like dark blue can give a gloomy effect. Warmer shades like orange can boost creativity, but cooler shades like green give a sense of calmness. And red should be used sparingly because, while energizing, it can also trigger hostility and anxiety.
Designing Comfort Zones
When designing a home’s interior, consider the furniture’s textures and patterns, along with the softness, smoothness and sight of a room’s decor.
To that end, pay special attention to a home’s comfort zones.
For example, your bedroom should be a place to relax and recharge. It should always be inviting, make you feel comfortable and secure, and should have enough personal touches to feel like it’s your bedroom.
The lighting should cast a warm glow, any rugs should feel soft underfoot, and the design should be tranquil. Adding a custom fireplace will not only enhance the room’s appearance, but it will make it warm and cozy.
The bathroom is also considered a home’s comfort zone. Bathrooms may be the smallest rooms in the house, but they can provide a peaceful retreat to users.
To properly design a bathroom, consider the lighting, fixtures, and accents to use. Soft, muted lighting can provide a relaxing atmosphere to it, as well as eliminate unflattering lighting.
A bathroom should also have functional storage. The bathroom cabinets’ design should be space-saving while also visually appealing.
So remember — the elements of interior design evoke certain emotional responses. The ability to positively and negatively influence the home’s atmosphere should pave the way to creating a place that promotes people’s overall well-being and happiness.
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