There are so many techniques and methodologies that are being used nowadays to inspire a cozy and tidy place to live in. But, rather than just following a list of methods, it is important to first look at what unique touches turn your house into a comfortable and welcoming home. While your house is important, being the actual building in which a person or family lives, the warm feelings of safety, security, and belonging when a house becomes your home are paramount. I believe that a home can be made anywhere you live (whether the construction is a house, apartment, or tent). We make the place we live into our home.
When we say, “feel at home”, or “let’s go home” we are actually abstractly describing the sense of being in that special place where you feel most comfortable, that belongs to you, and where you are welcome.
Imagine a messy home with kid’s toys tossed around everywhere, a pile of dishes in the kitchen sink, and another pile of laundry on the bed. These are examples of a state of being that do not inspire calm when you think about home. Still, a messy place also has an important hidden message inside: there is life happening here, yes, maybe it is not the perfect organized place to live, but as we also know, life is far from perfect. In life’s imperfections and mess we can find some of the most beautiful elements. An extremely organized house can often give off a sense of emptiness and solitude. I am not here to make judgments on either of these lifestyles, or those that are in-between. My only intention is to point out how our places reflect our lifestyle, our state of being, and to bring our awareness to the choices that we make and the influence of those choices on the atmosphere of our home. When it comes to hosting and welcoming others into your home the atmosphere of your place, will be the contributing factor to the first impression and feeling that a guest will have when stepping into your house.
Each time someone invites me into their home to help them organize, re-design, or authenticate their space, the most important thing for me to look for and to highlight is the spirit and the identity of that family and the ways in which that can be reflected in their home. Each one of us brings our energy & vibrations into our homes, even without intention.
As we are beings of action and energy, it’s inevitable that the main place of the expression of this energy is in the place that we live. Order and care are important, as we should view our home as our temple – a sacred and well cared for place of living – where we spend the most beautiful moments of our lives. I believe that the same sacred importance and care should be taken with all the areas in nature and any other place we come to visit. Sometimes (if not all the time) we carry so many things on our shoulders and we are so busy with an endless to-do-list that, at the end of the day, we are left with no energy to take care of our own homes. The basics are often overlooked as we move forward with our massive routines. Clean, fix, organize? What boring things to do, right? Why spend the time taking care of my home if I have so much to do outside? But then our homes are left without care and without our personal touch. Suddenly that youthful, adorable, and lively “mess of kids’ toys” that is all over your place takes root as the main energy of your home. You feel like your living room is an extension of the kindergarten, your kids took over the whole house, and you are too tired to even to think about what you need to do to create a charming, welcoming and inviting living area.
And you need a beautiful living room, you deserve an aesthetic place to live, where you and your family can feel the energy of harmony and enjoy your time together.
By bringing your unique beauty & harmony into your home, that welcoming energy extends to any guest you invite into your place.
An inner “state of home” is bringing the awareness that your home is a mirror of your inner self, it is the expression of gratitude and care for your own wellbeing. It takes an unlimited amount of effort and daily care to keep your place comfortable and organized. When the mess gets out of your control, when your place is not just messy but has become the mess itself, it can turn into an exhaustive and ending process of neglect. And you postpone turning your home into a lovely place because it seems (almost!) impossible to see the end of the garbage and clutter of all the things you “might need”. This is an important point here: it is part of our responsibility to live a sustainable life on this planet, and with that, we are responsible for every little thing we bring to our home; we are responsible for every little piece of plastic that we collect in our life. Eventually, you will find that less is more, especially when you want to be responsible for the daily cleaning and organization of your home. In this spirit, I will note that having help at home won’t replace the fact that your home will still be shaped by your identity, energy and hands, and we must assume responsibility for our consumption and garbage.
When someone asks for my help in decorating or even just arranging their home, it is important for me to embark together on an inner journey of letting go & detachment, opening space and highlighting what is really essential for the desired ambiance. It is a deep cleansing, not only of the physical space, but also of the feelings and emotions that had been trapped in the clutter. As we organize, we share an invigorating experience for the home & soul. The effects of this journey often reinvigorate the homeowner’s energy flow and bring their awareness to how much they were actually being suffocated by unnecessary things.
At other times, it is not actually about getting things out of the home but bringing things into your home. Finding items that will express your identity and your care for your place. When there is too much emptiness the ambiance is clearly affected. The home does not only need furniture, but things that express care & love as well. This is the unstoppable movement of in and out, the reflection of the home & body, the body & soul. Your home is asking for your soul’s expression and it is not something you can purchase in the market; we need to first find our “state of home” inside us. And because it is a state of being, it doesn’t need to exist constantly, it comes and goes. Sometimes we feel more inspired to care for our homes, and other times less, and that is Ok.
Our home is our temple, a sacred place where we have and host our intimate moments with our loved ones.
If you feel too tired or too busy to even think about how to take care of your place with passion, maybe it is a good idea to think about how this exhaustion is reflecting in your self-love and confidence and how it is reflected by your daily life. To feel good and comfortable at home, we need to feel good and comfortable with ourselves. We need to release unnecessary blocked energy and uncover stifled feelings, repairing (when possible) what is broken, renewing the old and clearing out the dust that gathered in our hearts.
This is when the magic happens… The reflection of the inner-self in the outside, and the outward environment being a reflection of what is going on inside. Give your heart to your place of living and you will be gifted in return by a magical experience of living your everyday life with beauty & harmony.
Cultivate plants, open the windows for sunlight, add warm lights & personal elements that will infuse your home with your unique identity.
I just love enjoying ‘nothing-to-do’ time at home; nice music playing in the background, a delicious smell coming from the kitchen and my family and friends gathered around me.
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