SINCE YOU HAVE SENSES
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In recent months, I have had quite a few instances where I have been considering my central nervous system - and my kid’s - and thinking of ways to increase or decrease different sensory input in our lives. Now, I am by no means a doctor or specialist in this area (and if my friend who is an Occupational Therapist reads this, she might cringe) but I have been inspired to do some thinking on ways our physical homes play a role on our sensory input, and therefore our bodies, and how we feel.
Home feels like home because of the people that are in it, but also because of the functionality and how it serves our daily needs. So, let’s take a little journey through our 5 senses and consider how our physical home could play a role in our sensory input:
Sight: Interior design and decorating is prominently sight: complimenting wall colors instead of clashing, coordinating patterns in a space instead of competing - the list goes on. Personally, I think there is a lot to be said to be in a space that has beautifully balanced tones and coordinating elements to look at. Maybe it is just because I am a designer, but that gives my eyes peace. In our homes, we don’t want to be wasting our energy looking at things that do not bring us rest. Our screens, phones, advertisements, the news, everything gives us plenty to look at. I am not saying we should live in boxes, but I am saying the things we see in our homes shouldn’t be adding to the chaos.
If you want to dive into this a little more, considerations for sight also include my previous blogs about decreasing clutter, lighting considerations, and restoration theory.
Sound: We have talked about sound considerations for your home in “Soften the Sound” and an older blog post called “Did you hear that?”. For the point of sound, I do think those blogs are great places to start. One thing that has been on my mind recently is noisy toys. I was very close to removing ALL of the batteries from my children’s toys recently. The chatter with the conflicting sounds, clanging of other toys, and our beloved bumblebee scooter roaring across our LVT made me feel like I was seconds away from losing every last drop of sanity I have. This is a tricky balance though - do I sacrifice some of their entertainment for my own limitations on noise? Maybe, maybe not. I think it just depends on the situation, and creating a culture of both adventure and rest in our home.
Touch: I absolutely love tactile things. I love gathering samples for clients and feeling the texture of various upholsteries, tiles, countertops, and coordinating the various touch experiences in a space. Touch can be comforting, like a plush pillow cover, or it can be grounding, like a cold floor tile. Our kitchen counters right now have a leathered texture - which allows some of the natural stone variation to remain after it is polished instead of a completely smooth surface. It’s one of my favorite things in our home. I think intentionally providing variety in tactile surfaces in our homes creates dedicated areas to relax and work.
Taste: Eh - this doesn’t directly relate to interior design and decorating, unless you are my infant daughter that still puts things in her mouth. Just design a good kitchen so you can make good food :)
Smell: On the unpleasant side of smell - off-gassing is a common topic in interior design and decorating. Drying paint has off-gassing, new furniture and upholstery often off-gasses, new wallpaper off-gasses. Normally, it is a less-pleasant experience than new car smell. Many times, you just need some good ventilation or a chance to let new items air out before they start to smell less harsh.
You can also consider diffusers and scented candles to elevate the experience of your home, sometimes that requires coordinating an outlet placement and other times it means making sure you have a good space to burn a candle. Sometimes, it means buying this amazing cleaner because you found a spot on your carpet where some milk was spilled from a sippy cup and then dried before it was noticed.
Obviously - only considering the external input is not the only consideration for a calm and loving home. The way I show up to mother my children, the way they wake up in the morning, and the way we let our schedule dictate our lives are big factors. But sometimes, I think I feel irritated because I have been staring at the same chaotic clutter pile at the bottom of my closet for months, and I have been closing the doors to hide what I don’t want to deal with while the stress of the messy sight bubbles in the back of my mind. Or the loud rumble of a bumblebee scooter around the house right as I am prepping dinner amidst hangry children may only be adding to my tension, and a simple “Let’s wait and ride the bumblebee after dinner, kiddo.” is all we need to implement and organize some of the sensory inputs in our home. Or turning off the music, or turning it on. Or docking our phone on the kitchen counter instead of carrying it around everywhere. There are also more layered inputs to consider like movement, temperature, balance, etc. - but those might be best explored when I have a little more knowledge.
People are complicated. Homes are complicated. Sensory input is complicated. So, let’s simplify our homes a little, and give a little more space for rest, and allow God to fill the silence and remove some distractions so we can see the innumerable ways He is blessing us throughout the day.
