What makes a home feel cozy and warm?
Is it the people living in it? Is it how a home is decorated or its age…or is it a combination of all…or some…of these things?
Whatever makes a home feel “like home” to you, you know it when you see it. You walk into a room and instantly you feel at ease, ready to relax and forget your cares for a while.
If that’s the feeling you want for your home, the following additions can help you create a space that you’ll love to come home to…and never want to leave.
Add a curtain wall
While it’s common practice to hang drapes over windows or even to partition rooms (or spaces within larger rooms), you might be surprised at the thought of hanging drapes against a wall.
Beautiful fabrics pinned close to a wall can really make a room feel cozy.
Imagine the luxurious, comforting feeling of lying in a four poster bed, surrounded by curtains.
It’s the same concept, only larger!
If you’d like this look for your home, here are some guidelines:
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- ⬥ Mount the drapery rod as close as you can to the ceiling, or if you have crown molding, near the edges, where they can remain visible.
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- ⬥ If the curtains have headers, make sure there’s enough room so they won’t be scrunched and unshapely against the ceiling.
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- ⬥ The curtains should run from ceiling to floor and wall to wall.
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- ⬥ When measuring your wall, add 2 to 2 ½ inches to add fullness to the wall of fabric.
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- ⬥ If you prefer, special brackets are available that will let you hang the curtains from the ceiling instead of the wall.
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- ⬥ Limit your wall covering to a single wall to avoid creating a “boxed-in” feeling to your room(s).
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- ⬥ Choose fabrics that drape well and aren’t stiff or bulky.
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- ⬥ Ensure that your rods are strong enough to hold the weight of the drapes and are well supported to span the entire length of the wall you’re covering.
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- ⬥ Choose colors that contrast well with the color of the walls. (e.g. light walls, dark fabric or dark walls, light fabric)
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- ⬥ For small rooms, go with a color that’s close to the color of the walls to keep the room from feeling too small.
- ⬥ Drapes can be used in place of a headboard.
Display family photos
Whether you pepper a single wall with images of your family – present and past – or choose a few memorable pieces to display throughout your home, nothing says home like images of your family members.
Hang your pictures at eye level to achieve the best effect or combine with family heirlooms and keepsakes to add visual interest to a room.
Seating in the bedroom
Tuck a cushy chair into a corner of your bedroom, add a fluffy pillow, a soft throw and some good lighting. Presto, Chango… you’ve created a magical place for lazy afternoons.
Pillows and throws
Imagine the contrast between an ultra-chic furniture with clean lines and your grandfather’s favorite over-stuffed chair.
Which image makes you feel warm and relaxed…ready to snuggle up with your favorite book and a warm cup of goodness?
Pillows and throws are a beautiful and inexpensive way to up the coziness factor in any room. You can even switch them out according to the season.
Create a nook
Even the word itself feels cozy, wouldn’t you agree?
Push a sofa, daybed or old twin bed next to a blank wall, smother it in pillows and blankets or throws and you’ve created an instant nook.
Or put a mattress, bean-bag or piles of old comforters or blankets and pillows on the floor of an unused (or lightly used) closet, replace the door with hanging curtains, hang twinkle lights and now you have a place to escape the cares of the day.
Add soft elements
Sometimes all it takes is adding a few details to any room to soften it and make it more inviting.
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- ⬥ Use fuzz/faux fur to add softness
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- ⬥ Add copper wire (or regular) string lights
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- ⬥ Light a fire
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- ⬥ Layer rugs (e.g. a fuzzy rug placed on top of a rug with a short nap)
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- ⬥ Paint the walls a warm color
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- ⬥ Add natural wood furnishings
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- ⬥ Use warm metals (e.g. gold, copper or burnished brass)
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- ⬥ Live plants and/or flowers
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- ⬥ Mix and match furniture, picture frames, etc.
- ⬥ Add a variety of textures and layers
A warm and cozy home can include all of these elements, but what makes any house the most inviting is the hospitality of the people who call it home.
What do you think makes a home feel cozy and warm?
