Spiritual values to incorporate into your styling goals

Happy New Year, my dear reader! No matter where you are reading this from, always remember that I love you in a way that a writer can love her readers. I’m not sure what that looks like exactly, but it is informed by a heart full of pure intention and a connection forged over our love for home styling and decor.

We are in that part of the New Year where we sketch what the year ahead will look like for us. And that includes our homes – this launch pad of your life, your ground zero. Remember to set styling goals for your home in the same way you set goals for other areas of your life. As you set these styling goals, make sure to incorporate these spiritual values:

Simplicity

There is a lot of class and taste in the simple styling of a simple home. Simplicity is about buying only those pieces you know you need. You also have a simple rule that for each piece you bring into your home, one piece must leave. The reason for this rule is to avoid creating clutter.

A cluttered home is not a simple home – a simple home is a home with only the things you need. Simplicity borders closely on minimalism, they share the same backstory. The more minimal your home styling, the simpler it is and the closer you are to a simple lifestyle. Also, keep your home clean and tidy. Ruthlessly declutter often.

Remember also that simplicity is not about how much money you spend – or don’t spend – buying these pieces. It is about the positive emotions that piece evokes in you. The twisted nature of life is that the more simple a piece, the more joy it sparks.

Joy

Joy is a feeling of great pleasure and happiness. While it is a great feeling, it is also a subtle and powerful one, and it is found in the most unexpected places, in the most unexpected things.

Your home must be a source of joy for you and your family. It must. Joy not only comes from the people living in your space, it also comes from the styling pieces living side by side with you and your family.

You will know that a piece brings you joy from what you feel when you are experiencing it with any of your five senses. Perhaps you are holding it in your hands or sitting on it. Maybe your toes are digging into it or you lay your back on it every day. Or you are catching its scents. Even just looking at it.

Whenever you are experiencing this piece, take a moment to focus on what feelings this sensorial connection is evoking. Focus alone and in silence. You will recognise joy as a smile on your face.

If there is anything but a smile on your face, then that piece is not bringing you joy and you should ask yourself why. Then, take it out of your space.

You can choose to replace it with another piece or replace it with nothing. Nothingness can also spark joy.

Calm

A calm home is a home that relaxes and soothes you and heals you as soon as you walk through your front door.

The world out there is a chaotic place that demands a lot from us. It takes and, often, does not return to you in equal measure. You are likely depleted of energy at the end of the day.

There is also a lot of noise in our world. Not just noise from the racket of everyday living, but also emotional and mental noise from people and things we engage with. The noise of whichever kind upsets your spirit and upsets you. It is quite unpleasant. It can even make you sick.

Style your home in such a way that it calms you. It calms you when you walk through your front door, or when you are out in our chaotic world and you think about being there.

Styling for calm comes from the colours you choose for your decor palette, placement of your pieces, lighting (both natural and artificial light), airflow and scents.

Authenticity

Style your home in a way that is a reflection of your true self. Authenticity is simply about loving what is in your home. If you don’t know whether you are being authentic, then go around your home auditing the decor elements of every space. Ask yourself this one question: ‘Do I love this piece?’