The colder months of the year are upon us. The dark early nights have arrived and before long we’ll soon be waking up to frosts on the ground and a cool chill in the air that lets us know winter has well and truly taken hold. It is at this time of the year that your home really acts as the shelter from the elements it is designed to be, keeping you in the from the cold and well away from any of the elements the winter weather decides to throw at us.
Your home should be somewhere you look forward to coming back to at the end of a cold winter’s day at work, so detailed below is your seven step guide to transforming your home into a warm winter hideaway through a few interior design tweaks and improvements;
Step 1 – Add Warmth to the Walls
If the walls of your home are currently decorated with pale colours, this won’t create a warm feel to the room when it gets colder outside. Instead consider decorating walls in warm and hearty red and orange tones to immediately make any room feel cosier and a cocoon-like retreat that you can snuggle down in every evening.
Step 2 – Look at the Lighting
The next step is to consider how you are lighting rooms, particularly your lounge, as soft lighting is the order of the day when attempting to create a warm winter haven. Avoid using the ceiling lights in the room and introduce lamps that give off a much softer light in addition to candles that can help to create a calming atmosphere within your space even if the wind is howling and rain is pouring down outside.
Step 3 – Up the Comfort Factor
Comfort is the order of the day in a cosy winter interior design, so go mad with cushions, the fluffier the better, and introduce throws to seats that you can wrap yourself up in as you watch a movie on TV with a warm mug of hot chocolate.
Step 4 – Block Out the Outside
The weather outside can be less than inviting during the winter months so any opportunity to block this out is likely to be welcomed. Curtains are the most effective way of achieving this as they can also add to the appeal of your interior by complimenting the colours of the walls and accessories at the same time as keeping heat in your home and blocking out any cold draughts your windows may be allowing in.
Step 5 – Add a Big Rug
Nothing epitomises a warm environment in winter than a big rug in front of the fireplace (which is confirmed even more so if the fire is from a wood burning stove!). A large shaggy rug for instance will immediately add a feeling of warmth to any room it is introduced within, whether this be the usual living room or alternatively in the master bedroom.
Step 6- Introduce Warming Wintery Scents
It is in winter and the Christmas period that numerous scented candles and incense sticks are released that let off a warming wintery scent; cinnamon being the prime example. It’s not just candles and sticks that can create this feel though, as many plants can also achieve this, with their bright flowers also adding to the aesthetic appeal of the space they are introduced within.
Step 7 – Light a Fire
Although central heating is often the choice made by many when it comes to heating a home, there is nothing quite like the atmosphere created from a fire. Whilst central heating will keep your property warm, a fire creates a warm and inviting environment that you can relax within and look out to the wintery conditions outside in joy that you are tucked away inside your home winter hideaway with a fire roaring.
With winter fast approaching, now is the time to make your home a warm hideaway for the coming months, and hopefully the seven steps outlined above will help you achieve this in numerous rooms of your property.
