Interior design tips to make your home super cosy this Winter
There is no doubt that 2020 has been an extraordinary year for all of us and our homes have never played such an important role. Our lives and habits have changed so much and so have our interior spaces, adapting to the demands of lockdown. With the festive season around the corner, now is the perfect time to get our homes winter ready so that we can enjoy spending more time in them.
Defining Spaces
With many of us having to work from home it is really important to create a specific area to work from, whether it is in a separate room or at a small table in the living room. Make your workspace as comfortable as possible but ensure that it is somewhere you can walk away from when the working day is over to truly relax.
Layers
Adding texture to a room immediately creates a warmth and cosiness to your home. Laying a soft rug on a hard, wooden floor for winter transforms a space both physically and aesthetically. Replacing the materials of your cushions as the seasons change, introducing velvet, faux fur and boucle, will contribute to a snuggly sofa experience. However, fabrics aren’t the only way to layer, groups of vases, sculptures and accessories of varying colours, shapes and materials will add a depth and area of interest to your interior. More importantly, layers can add personality. Surrounding yourself with prints, photos and items that tell a story promote a true feeling of home.
Scents
Scent is a key component in interior design to complete a mood or feeling. This year, in particular, you can define the smell of your space to evoke memories of travels or to aid with relaxation. Whether it is a sweet, spicy nutmeg aroma to transform your home into a winter wonderland or light, floral rose notes to transport you back to summertime, adding a fragrance lets you know you are home as soon as your walk through the door.
Lighting
Lighting is so transformative and essential for when the days become darker and the nights longer. Ensure you have a selection of light sources at differing levels — floor lamps, table lamps, candles and overhead lighting. Don’t be mistaken by using one, bright, intense light to illuminate a room, the key is to create soft, flattering, warm light, this will provide an atmosphere of comfort and relaxation.
Colour
Natural, neutral shades are hugely popular this winter with Dulux announcing the colour of the year as ‘Brave Ground’, which has an earthy, brown hue. Olive, taupe and ivory all work well with already established shades of grey and pink carried over from previous seasons. You can use these natural neutrals as a base for an entire room scheme as they lend themselves to adapting well to changes in light. They can add warmth to un-lit hallways or transform a bedroom into a cocoon. The key to getting it right is to choose a soft tone, one that works in harmony with the rest of your colour scheme, choose depth over darkness, subtle rather than strong.
Natural Materials
A neutral setting, as we have just discussed, is the perfect backdrop for the use of natural materials. Wood, wicker, cane, stone and plants are all welcome elements for Winter 2020. The need to submerge ourselves within a healthy environment has never been stronger so utilising natural materials in our home is not only better for the environment, it’s good for our health and well-being. There is, however, a danger of going over-the-top rustic, so try to incorporate these materials in the form of classic pieces of furniture or stone surfaces. Just don’t hold back on the greenery, you can’t have too many plants. And if you’re not fortunate enough to have green fingers then dried flowers such as grasses and wildflowers with their muted colour palettes, not only add height and texture but last a really long time too!
