Five Ways to Recalibrate the Home, Without Shopping, While you Shelter in Place
With distance learning, working from home, and social limitations becoming longer term, many of us are coming face-to-face with how our homes support us, and how they don’t. Some are trying to reclaim a neglected or cluttered space that was once a mere pit stop between busy schedules. More are lost in a living room that was simply not designed to be a home school, an office, a conference room, a playground, a gym, a yoga studio and half of the “Pandemic Pantry”. The question is how can we compress the full spectrum of our complex lives into a single apartment or house?
As a designer, I believe our dwelling spaces are an expression of our inner landscape. When our spaces are stuck, overwhelmed or unaligned, our moods and thoughts are too. When our spaces are flowing and clear, they have the power to pull us towards our future selves. As we spend more time at home, the effect is magnified. Escaping from the reflection of our homes is not much of an option nowadays, and you may need to make a few simple changes before you consider investing in new decor. Here are some pointers which focus on the idea of working with what you’ve got, regardless of size or aesthetic, so as to make a psychological impact.
KEEP THE ENTRANCE CLEAR
De-cluttering is truly as effective as it is hyped up to be, but you may not have the will to turn your drawers inside out right now. The entrance, however, is one easy area that I highly recommend tackling. The frequency with which we are using the “exit” or welcoming guests may be lower these days, but your subconscious mind associates the Entrance with circulation and the outside world. Clogging it up with delivery boxes and hand sanitizers, or some kind of hygienic barricade, is only signalling to your psyche that you are closing off. Circulation is life, both physically of air, water, and blood, but also of the energetic force of nature, community and social connection. Now is the time to clear and organize shoes, bags, umbrellas, and random items that have accumulated in the entrance. Pair back the clutter and arrange a few essentials that indicate warmth to you. If you have a wide open or tunnelled entrance, you may need to “slow” the incoming chi - a plant, rug, or chime can serve as symbolic filtration without blocking the flow. Welcome circulation, and the vital force that comes with it, into your home.
As a by-product, by focusing on the entrance, you will find that your efforts flow more easily into other parts of the home. At the very least, the entryway will be a place of order when other parts of the home are occupied with a “living mess”.
MAXIMIZE SUNSHINE
Everyone has a different view out the window - however, we all need natural light shining through our home. If you have furnishings obstructing windows, re-orient them so that they allow for plenty of light flow. Bulky curtains could even be taken down for a lighter mood, if privacy is not required in a particular room. Mirrors do a great job of brightening and enlarging a space, and work best near natural light, but please make sure they are reflecting something worth seeing double of!
If you can set up your daily perch (whether you are working from home or otherwise) in a way that maximizes exposure to natural light, it will instantly boost your mood and allow your circadian rhythm to stay intact…because, should it be affected, a whole host of issues may be set off throughout your nervous system, which is the last thing you’d want compromised in the midst of a pandemic.
DON’T NEGLECT THE ELEMENTS
Fire, Water, Earth, Wood, Metal. The elements are integral to Feng Shui practices and for good reason: they help connect us to our cosmic origins and their roles in the life cycle. Here are a few simple ways you can incorporate the elements:
Fire: Candles, smudging tools and incense, which can, in turn, set the tone for a more meditative space when you need a reset. Red and orange tones.
Water: No need for an indoor water feature. A watering can for the plants, a foot bath and a glass decanter for purified water all count. Blue tones.
Earth: Natural crystals, ceramics or earthenware. Think dirt. But not actual dirt. Yellow and Brown Tones.
Wood: Anything wood or plants. Green tones.
Metal: Small metal objects will do. Cooler white tones are associated with metal, so if your home is primarily white (as many rented homes are), you may already be working with the metal element in color.
USE A ‘BLANK CANVAS’ METHOD
Humans are accustomed to transitions, moving through various environments each day. If we have to stay in one place, we can create for ourselves a sense of transition. One way to do this is by clearing our multi-functional spaces back to a blank canvas between each activity. For example, if the kids’ items can be fully put away after arts & crafts is over, then you will be less likely to feel that their items are encroaching upon the living space. Putting your workstation out of sight will also give you a fresh space to relax in. And the added benefit is that your home will be ever tidy.
This method may require a combination step of de-cluttering within your existing storage to make more room, and honing in on an area of the home that is underutilized space, which could be reconfigured to house an existing trunk or basket. The point here is not to create more space to stuff clutter, but to give your edited, utilitarian objects a home when they are not in use.
TRY SOUND THERAPY TO VIBRATE OUT STAGNANT ENERGY
Sound is becoming more widely accepted as a vibrational healing modality, and I can personally attest to its effects. Certain sounds can be used as a space clearing technique that almost anyone can do. You can either use tools, such as a singing bowl, a bell or a tuning fork, or find sound therapy videos online and play with good speakers. Sound energy activates and excites particles in and around us, and our bodies are extremely sensitive to those waveform shifts.
Time and space may be limited but the right small moves can still make a big impact. Try these tips out and feel how it shifts the space, it may even naturally inspire a bigger rearrangement. A home is now meant to be lived and worked in, so perfection is not the aim - just good flow and easy maintanence to be its best!