Have you ever experienced that warm feeling after being embraced by someone you love dearly? Well, that is hygge.
Hygge (HOO-gah) is a Danish term that encloses a feeling of comfortable happiness and well-being by enjoying life’s simple things.
Now you can transfer this concept into your home these chillier months. It all starts from the idea of living a cozy, welcoming, warm, and present lifestyle.
You can practice hygge in all areas of your life, from the way you dress to how you choose to go through your day (mindfully, rather overscheduled and rushed), but it’s probably most recognized as a way of decorating your home.
Look up #HyggeHome on Instagram, and you’ll find more than 300k posts of people’s cozy and inviting homes.
Chunky blankets, fireplaces, and mugs of hot chocolate or tea are common fixtures, as is a general sense of calm and inviting home. So how do you achieve this massively coveted style?
Here are some of the easy things you can do to create a warm ambiance that will help you cozy up your nest this winter.
Get The Lighting Right
Nothing helps change the mood and set the tone like lighting. Light is, of course, a critical element in the hygge approach.
To be more specific, lighting is the quickest and easiest way to create a warm and cozy ambiance.
Danish people absolutely love candles, but they also go for having a lot of lamps dotted about, creating calming pools of light for reading or just lounging.
To bring hygge inside, start with warm light bulbs and modern light fixtures that sweeten your home’s décor.
Fireplaces are also extremely hygge, and if you aren’t lucky enough to have one in your home, you can always opt for an electrical fireplace.
They look amazing in any room, not just the living room.
Candles should not miss from your hygge scenery. Danes have them scattered throughout the house, and there’s nothing quite like candlelight.
So, if you want to hyggify your home, make you have multiple sources of light.
You Can Never Have Enough Pillows and Blankets
From cozy layers to eye-catching textures, there are a few ways to bring hygge into your home this winter.
Faux fur blankets, throw blankets, fluffy pillows, duvets, decorative pillows – it’s all a viable hygge-option.
It’s incredible how much a well-placed fluffy pillow or throw blanket can add to the look and feel of your house. Add them to a couch, bed, chair, bench, etc., to take it from functional to heavenly.
Pro Tip: Opt for 100% organic and responsibly sourced throw blankets and pair them with comfortable pajamas for women to cozy up on the couch with.
Textures that draw you on and make you want to touch them help them create that coveted sense of hygge.
Ground Your Décor With Treasured Memories
While keeping it simple is key, a large part of this Danish style is the joy and pleasure that your home brings you and the people and things in that home.
Evoking nostalgia, a feeling often associated with cozy memories is a large part of creating the allure of hygge.
According to Meik Wiking, author of The Little Book of Hygge and CEO of the Copenhagen-based Happiness Research Institute, memories are key to happiness.
Meik says that memories can be intense, palpable and can help us connect with other people. Our shared stories are the glue.
Our ability to create and hold on to joyful memories is fundamental to our happiness and resilience, especially in times of sadness.
Put those memories to good use and create a warm and cozy ambiance in your home.
Perhaps create a simple but sentimental display of family photos or travel objects you’ve accumulated throughout the time.
Book Make Everything Hygge
When you plan a cozy night in, chances are the image of snuggling up in bed with a good book comes to mind.
That’s because this idea is a key element of hygge. Books are like a personal zen master.
They invite you in and settle down for a whole and require you to be mindful in order to disappear between pages.
Hygge-up your reading experience by creating a dedicated reading corner.
If your corner is intended to be your happy place, a punchy shot of color might be just what you need.
Find out what stories spark your interest, what colors calm you, and what invites you to an all-day hyggelish reading sesh.
Let the Forest In
Implementing aspects of nature into your home creates a sense of realness and warmth that you just don’t get from exclusively store-bought products.
A branch of pine in the mantel, a pot of lovely greens on the kitchen counter, or a window sill herb garden are all the bits you need to warm up and greenify the aspect of your home.
Using items that are made from wood or stone also helps create a beautiful (and eco-friendly) home environment.
Hand knitted wool blankets or raw edge countertops are lovely examples.
Declutter & Save What Brings You Joy
Hygge isn’t all about minimalism. However, creating an inviting and clutter-free space that will help you enjoy your present self and the presence of family and friends around you works wonders for hygge.
Clearing your space of excess clutter is a key step in creating hygge. Incorporate clever storage solutions to hide away excess items that you may still need and purge the items you don’t.
Before anything: follow Marie Kondo’s guide to reevaluate your space and home.