After you’ve had a long day at work, the chances are that you just want your home environment to envelop you in its comforting arms. This is where you dream about being all day long, and when you finally set foot on your home turf you can breathe a sigh of relief and settle into a setting that offers exactly what you need. At least, that’s the hope…
It’s this ‘just home’ feeling that most of us have in mind when we decorate, declutter, and generally work to keep our houses clean. In reality, though, it’s not unusual for even your best efforts to prevent these welcoming vibes. Instead, you might feel the need to sort the house as soon as you walk through the door, or you may just head straight to bed rather than spending time in a space that doesn’t feel right.
It’s astounding how many of us experience this reality, preventing the wellness that our homes are ideally meant to provide, and meaning that, in extreme cases, we may even feel more comfortable at the office. Luckily, it is possible to overcome this and achieve the right welcome at long last. Here, we consider precisely how you can make that happen.
Get your parking in order
If you have to park your car half a mile up the road after an already long day, the chances are that even a well-laid, beautiful home isn’t going to placate you. In fact, if you experience this struggle often, you may prefer to stay at the office until you know that rush hour parking won’t be a problem. Luckily, overcoming this could be simpler than you imagined, and may involve something as fundamental as finally decluttering the garage so that you can park your car there instead. Even if you don’t have a garage right now, a little research could see you extending one onto your existing property, or even investing in alternatives like an oak framed garage that really does provide that welcoming vibe you’ve been missing. Equally, a more involved project like the installation of a driveway onto a front lawn that you don’t use at the moment anyway could be all the solution you need. In each instance, you ensure unquestionable parking space that means you can practically fall into your front door like you so desperately feel the need to do.
Think about curb appeal
It’s also important to note that, while many of us will take time perfecting our interior decor/appearances, it’s not unusual to let curb appeal slide. Unfortunately, with things like unclean gutters or flaking windows, in particular, these niggles can quickly make returning home feel like yet another stress you don’t want to deal with. In fact, you may be so distracted by the looming presence of these jobs, and thoughts about when you’ll get around to them, that you won’t even notice those flowers that you purposefully placed by the front door, or the pristine decor of your interiors overall. To some extent, attractive parking options like the oak garages mentioned can help here, providing the immediate right vibe for a cosy home that instantly looks the part. Equally, investing in even simple gutter cleaning or window painting could mean that your exteriors finally welcome you with open arms. Either way, the better your house looks on the outside, the better you’ll feel when you finally step across the threshold.
Perfect your entrance hall
More even than those exteriors, in many cases, your entrance hall sets the tone for your entire house and is a crucial part of the welcoming reception that we all hope to receive when returning home each day. By keeping it clean, clutter-free, and perfectly staged, you ensure a refreshing return rather than just another stress in your day. It’s especially worth considering your colour palette in this space (think warm colours like yellows/oranges/etc.), and also perfecting decor that enhances the area, e.g. flowers/potpourri/vintage coat stands. Make sure, too, that you perfect storage in this area, ensuring that there’s not a shoe, coat, or set of keys in sight to unbalance your return, and potentially ruin the impact of this much-needed welcome.
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Further to these focuses, you may also want to consider things like the flow of your home overall and how you use those spaces (open plan/minimalist/etc.). In a general sense, however, getting these touchstones right certainly sets the tone for a welcome return that you should easily be able to feel throughout your house.
