erhaps you’ve heard that mindful-
ness can increase our happiness, and
even improve our well-being. With
daily practice, it can reduce stress,
increase focus, improve memory and cogni-
tive flexibility, and build resilience.
What you might not know is that it’s
much easier to foster a daily practice of
mindfulness when you have a home
environment that supports it. And it’s simple
to do. Here are some of my favorite tips to
help you design a more mindful space, for a
more mindful life.
Start by setting an intention. Just as you
do for your day or your goals, when you start
by mindfully setting an intention for your
home and for each room in it, you clarify
what you want, which helps you make better
decisions, saving you time and money.
Intention can guide your color palette, furniture layout, fabric choices and so much more.
To set an intention for your home, first
ask yourself: How do I want to feel in my
home? Relaxed? Playful? This helps to drive
your color choices. For example, if your
intention is to create a serene and spacious
effect, choose a softer, more neutral color
palette. If you want to turn things up, you
might opt for brighter and bolder tones.
Being in touch with your intention instantly
narrows your color choices, giving you
confidence in the color palette you
ultimately select.
When you set an intention based on
what you love to do, it will make your home
successfully reflect how you want to live.
Ask yourself: How do I want my home to
function? What activities do I want to do in
each room? If you like to entertain often,
you will want to know how many guests you
usually accommodate at any one time, which
determines your layout and how many seating surfaces you need to bring into your
home. And remember, seating doesn’t have
to be a chair or a sofa; floor cushions and
ottomans are great alternatives. If young
children or pets are welcomed, that will limit
your fabric choices to ones that are easy to
clean and hide stains.
Pay attention to your surroundings.
Mindfulness improves your ability to pay
attention to your surroundings, which helps
you to better identify what’s working in your
home and what’s not. Start by observing and
Living
mindfully
Setting up any
room in your
home intentionally
by JENNIFER ADAMS
P
COSTCO
CONNECTION
Costco warehouses
and Costco.com
carry a variety of
furniture and
décor items to
create the home
of your dreams.
Jennifer Adams
( jenniferadams.com)
is a designer and
author. Her products
are available on
Costco.com and
rotate through
Costco warehouses.
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