Creating a Calm Home Environment: It’s Easier Than You Think

Creating a calm home environment is something we all long for. But we don’t always know how to get there. 

The world outside is chaotic and stressful but your home shouldn’t be. These days the world outside is more stressful than ever. This makes creating a calm home environment is more important than ever.

I can’t emphasize enough how much your home matters. It is the center of where we do life. Home is where we start and end our days and the place we connect with our people and ourselves.

The truth is we are greatly impacted by our environment. It affects how you feel. A chaotic and disorganized environment makes it difficult to think clearly. At the same time, an organized and tranquil space makes you feel calm and allows greater clarity.

Your home should be a place that feels calm and peaceful to you. If it’s not, there are some simple changes you can make towards creating a calm home environment.

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How To Begin Creating A Calm Home Environment

Before you begin making actual changes to your home, it’s important to think through what a calm home means to you. For example, a minimalist modern look may feel calm and peaceful for you. Or perhaps you may prefer a more cozy vibe.

The next step is to consider how you use each room in your home. This will help you think through how you want the room to feel.

You can then put more intention into those rooms to create that calm home. With these 12 tips you’ll begin creating not just a home that feels calm and peaceful, but one that you love!

1. Clear the Clutter

Let me just be honest with you, there is no way you are going to create a calm home if you don’t clear the clutter! After all, it’s pretty much impossible to feel calm when you’re surrounded by chaos.

Now that, that’s out of the way, it’s important to know that decluttering your home doesn’t have to be an overwhelming task. In fact, by clearing the clutter you will actually be eliminating the overwhelm.

Clutter is the main culprit when it comes to making a space feel chaotic, stressful, and disorganized. This is because clutter by its very nature is overstimulating. When you have excess clutter everywhere you look you’re taking in that stimulation. The end result is that it’s nearly impossible to feel calm or rested in your home.

So to begin creating a calm home environment start getting rid of anything you don’t use, need or love. 

If you’re just getting started decluttering, check out this post for some great tips on getting started with decluttering.

And here’s the thing you don’t have to fully declutter your entire home before you can start creating a calm home environment. Just do some small decluttering tasks each day. Even if it’s only one item, little by little you’ll accomplish much. Truly consistent decluttering makes a dramatic difference.

There really is no dispute that a cluttered home makes you feel more anxious and stressed, while an organized clutter-free home helps you feel calm and more peaceful.

So take some time to do some decluttering. You’ll feel the calm immediately enter the room as you let go of those unneeded items.

2. Stick With a Calming Palette

When creating a clam home it’s important to think about the colors you will use.

Colors evoke emotions and feelings. Warm colors evoke higher arousal emotions, while cool colors, like blue, green, and purple are linked to calmness.

White or light neutral walls are a great base for creating a calm home environment. In fact, monochromatic schemes and quiet neutrals are the most calming palette choices you can make.

But this does not mean you cannot add touches of color throughout your home.

If neutrals are not your thing, or you want to add some color a great way to pick a color scheme is to take one or two of your favorite decor items and pull from the colors in that item. But to really foster a sense of calm make sure to keep the base and primary colors neutral.

Go ahead and experiment with different shades and combinations to determine how they impact the feeling of your home. Just remember having a consistent color palette throughout your home, will help your rooms flow together and create a more calming feel to your entire home.

3. Display Your Favorite Decor Items

“Your Home should tell the story of who you are, and be a Collection of what you Love.” ~ Nate Berkus

This is one of my favorite quotes because I believe it is a vital part of creating a home you love. Your home should be a reflection of your unique personality and who you are. It should be a reflection of your style, and values, not a reflection of a Pinterest perfect-styled home.

At the same time, it’s important to realize that visual noise and distraction can be created by too many decor items or too much stuff on the walls. Display things you love, but to keep a sense of calm in your room, keep your decor and wall hangings simple.

4. Use Natural Elements in Your Decor

Nature is incredibly calming. Think about when you are outdoors in the mountains, the beach, a lake, or even at an open park. There is a sense of calm all around you.

Bring those elements of nature into your home and you will create that same sense of calm and peace.

Consider adding various textures and pieces made from natural materials. Use wood furniture, add branches to a vase. Hanging pictures with nature scenes will help with creating a calm environment as well.

Of course, one of the best and easiest ways to bring some nature to your home is to add plants. Plants and greenery have a very calming effect on us.

Don’t worry if you don’t have a green thumb, there are some plant varieties that are very easy to care for. Pothos, snake plants, spider plants, or even the ZZ plant are all very easy to grow. Even keeping fresh flowers on hand,  is a great way to add a feeling of calm to your home.

5. Focus on Scents

Certain scents also have the ability to create a calming environment. Scents are known to trigger positive memories. And specific scents improve your mood and lessen anxiety. Lavender is an excellent scent for this purpose.

Lighting candles with soothing scents is an easy way to begin using scents to create a clam home. Candles are wonderful because they also cast a warm and calming glow.

If candles are not your thing try using essential oils in a diffuser, it’s a great alternative. With essential oils, you can mix several oils together to find that perfect scent for you.

6. Bring in The Right Lighting

Good lighting is an extremely important factor in creating a calm home environment. A recent study has shown that human emotion, whether positive or negative, is felt more intensely under bright light. What this means is that in order to create a calm home, you need to be aware of your home’s lighting.

Allowing natural light to fill your home is the best way to create a sense of calm and positive feelings. Sunshine is important for our physical and mental health.

We often experience the winter blues because we don’t get enough sunlight. Sunlight is the best way to boost your mood and feel good about your life and home.

So go ahead and open those curtains or lift up those blinds and let the light shine in. Bring in as much sunshine as you can.

In the evening time use soft, warm lighting where you can. It will make your space feel calmer and cozier.

Switch out your lightbulbs if they are bright white and replace them with soft white bulbs. Placing a lamp next to a favorite chair will make the entire room feel much calmer.

If your home has a lot of overhead lighting try using dimmer switches. Focusing on the type of lighting you have throughout your home and notice the impact it has on how you feel in that room.

7. Keep Flat Surfaces Clear

We’ve already discussed how clearing the clutter will help you create a calm home. This is especially true when it comes to your flat surfaces.

By limiting the amount of stuff you keep on your home’s flat surfaces you’ll instantly add a feeling of order and calmness to your home.

This means limiting decor items on tabletops and shelves to the things you truly love. For countertops try and store as many appliances and other items in the cabinets below. You do not have to remove everything, but you should remove as much as possible. It will go a long way toward creating a calm home environment.

Another flat surface area we often forget about is the floor. The goal should be to keep clutter off of the floor and keep as much open flooring space as possible. The more open space you create the calmer your home will feel.

8. Have a Spot For Everything

As we’ve discussed, creating a calm home is dependent on creating order around you. The best way to do this is of course by clearing the excess clutter. Once you’ve done that the next step is to make sure everything you own has a place to live.

This makes it so much easier to put things away where they belong. When everything has a home it keeps the clutter at bay, cleaning takes much less time and your home feels calmer.

Make sure everyone knows where things go and encourage them to put things away in their designated home. This may take some reminding in the beginning but eventually, it will become a habit.

9. Have a Regular Evening Routine

Aside from decluttering, one of the best things I did to create a more calming environment was establishing a regular evening routine. As part of that routine, we take 15 minutes to put everything away that’s out. Everyone pitches in to do this.

Being consistent with this short 15 minutes tidy-up keeps things calm and peaceful because it prevents giant messes from forming.

One of the big benefits of routines is that they become automatic habits that you don’t have to think about. This allows your brain space for clarity on more important things, which in turn creates a greater feeling of calm.

10. Make Your Bedroom a Sanctuary

Your bedroom is important! It’s the last thing you see at night and the first thing you see in the morning. Creating a calm oasis in your bedroom will give you a place to escape from all the busyness of the outside world.

To create a calming bedroom keep comfy pillows on the bed. Invest in the best bedding your budget allows. Use soft lighting, a favorite scented candle and you will instantly feel calm and relaxed.

Your bedroom should always be a place of calm and it will carry that sense of calm throughout the house.

11. Have a Designated Work Space

Working remotely is becoming increasingly popular and many of us are now working from home in at least some capacity.

If your workspace is not separate from your living space it can be hard to give your mind the needed break. So creating a calm home requires having a designated workspace. After all, the last thing you want to do is stare at a pile of work papers as you’re trying to unwind and relax.

If you don’t have a room you can designate as an office space, pick a particular spot in a room and be sure to shut the computer and put away work papers at the end of the day.

By doing this you’ll be able to focus on being calm and present rather than thinking about all the pending work assignments you have.

12. Play Music In The Background

The old adage “music soothes the savage beast” has a lot of truisms. Put on some soothing background music and feel that sense of calm envelop the room!

Music can quiet your mind and even relax your muscles. Think about that calm spa or yoga studio, there is always soothing music playing in the background.

So when creating a calm home make sure to include music playing in your home.

What makes a calming space?

At the end of the day, remember, your home should be a reflection of you. Take these tips and make them your own.

The goal is to have a home that is a calming escape from all of the uncertainty of the outside world.

Even if you can only start with adding one of these tips to your home that’s ok! Pay attention to how that increases a calming feel. You can implement more of these tips as time goes on.

What makes a calming space for you? I would love to hear.