How to Make Your Home Feel Cozy
A co-worker the other day asked me “What makes a house feel cozy?”
I was about to give an off-the-cuff reply about the size of a house and the world’s largest latte and a good book, but then I started thinking about it a bit more.
It’s mostly because one of the common compliments we receive about our home is that it’s cozy. And while cozy may mean different things to different people, it’s generally a compliment.
I interpret "cozy” to mean that a house is warm and inviting, and is a comfortable and welcoming place to experience and to inhabit. It’s neither stuffy nor cold, and it feels like it should be lived in (as opposed to a commercial property that is specifically made for working only).
Having a cozy home is so important - not only does it make your home welcoming and enjoyable to live in, but it helps in other ways too.
For example specially since we’re spending more time at home, it has been important to us to make our home cozy so sheltering in place is not a strain. And now that we’re looking at spending a lot of time at home during the colder, darker winters of fall and winter, we wanted to ensure that it brings as much joy and comfort as possible.
Here are some ideas that we’ve come across over the years (and implemented ourselves) to make your home feel warm, inviting and cozy!
Paint your walls a warm color
Note that I’m not necessarily talking about saturated warm colors - you don’t have to paint your walls fire engine red (unless that’s your thing). A warm, neutral tone will work too.
We have painted our home six times. Seriously. And it took us six tries to get the color correct, but it is perfect, and I am in love with it - day or night, sunlight or by lamp or candlelight. It’s from Benjamin Moore and is known as “Pumpkin Seed”. It is a light beige, the color of coffee when you’ve added a bit too much cream to it, and works perfectly with just about anything. The color is just as warm at night as it is during the day without being overtly colorful - it is this wonderfully magic chameleon color that always is warm without feeling dark or overwhelming.
You can choose a color very similar with a warm tone to suit your esthetics and style. Even a warm ivory or taupe can work well depending on what you’re going for.
Add warm light bulbs
Light bulbs come in different “temperatures” (i.e. colors) that can have an affect on the room it is illuminating. If you’re looking to make your house feel warm and cozy, you’ll want to pick lightbulbs that have the label of “Warm”, which have more of a yellow/orange/red tone (think late evening sunset colors). Avoid light bulbs with the labels of “Cool” or “Daylight” - these usually have too much of a blue or cold cast to them (think middle of the day full sunlight colors).
(Interestingly enough, most portrait photographers who shoot outdoors choose to take photography will also shoot right as the sun is setting. Photographers refer to that time period as “the golden hour”, which gives you an idea of the spectrum of light at that time).
The nice thing is that you don’t even have to use fluorescent or incandescent lighting anymore with the advances made in LED lighting. We use warm LED bulbs in all our lamps, and they just make the house feel super cozy and inviting.
Add indirect lighting
If you want to make your home feel warm, you’re going to need to add a lot of indirect lighting. And by indirect lighting, I mean lights other than the overhead light.
Too many people use the overhead lights of their homes, which is the worst light as far as direction and quality. There are no good angles with overhead lighting, and most people use cool colored light bulbs (which only adds to the poor effect)
Instead, good lighting is achieved through multiple sources of light that indirectly light the room.
For example, in our living room we have five lamps. Each lamp illuminates their own area, but also will overlap with other lamps as well. This creates this beautiful, soft room that is lit-up from all angles at all different levels to create this warm, romantic look.
Think of the lights you put on a Christmas tree - the old-school incandescent warm bulbs, not the new LED ones. Those lights are soft and twinkly and warm, and they cast the most magical glow when lit up. Similarly, if you can have multiple little lights all around your home, they will act like the little Christmas-tree lights in producing this wonderful even ambient lighting that is cozy and beautiful.
We like placing lamps on all surfaces and levels - some on tabletops, some on the mantel, some on the wall, others being floor lamps, and these all together produce an evenly lit home that is warm and wonderful.
Add natural fibers
Artificial fibers like polyester, nylon, and spandex are great if you’re looking to create a sleek, contemporary look - which again, might be your thing, but it’s not ours. I find that artificial textiles give a very well, artificial feel to your home and its surroundings.
Textiles that are shiny, glossy, or have that weird plastic sheen tend to reflect light, as opposed to absorbing it. This causes everything to have a glossy finish to it, which again may be desired in some cases but if you’re looking to create a warm home is best to avoid.
We’ve started getting rid of anything with artificial fibers and have instead started focusing on natural textiles like cotton, wool, linen and silk. Drapes, linens, towels, napkins, throws, pillows - even our own clothing - are better and more comfortable when made from natural fibers.
Even when they are worn and show signs of use - small defects, natural wear from repeated washing - they age gracefully, becoming more beautiful with their natural wabi-sabi esthetic.
Use warm metals
Although the trend these days is brushed nickel and chrome, you may find that warm metals may give you a warmer feeling of your home.
By warm metals, I mean brass, copper, gold, bronze and oil-rubbed bronze. Similar to the color spectrum of light bulbs, these metals have a yellow/copper/brown tone which allows them to fit in with the warm esthetic of a home.
Stay away from the “cool” metals - silver, nickel, chrome, aluminum, stainless steel and gunmetal. Although they can sometimes be used and still achieve a warm effect, it’s usually because they are balanced out by other more warming items (such as what we’ve mentioned here).
Interestingly enough, some of the warm metals (copper in particular) have traditionally played a role in warmer climates - think Mediterranean and the Southwestern U.S. - for both functional and esthetic purposes.
Incorporate wood
One of the most beautiful and easy details to add to the warmth of a home is the addition of wood. Whether that is with furniture, decor and ornamentation, or even the house itself, wood adds that natural grace and organic feel of a home.
Take for example, the wooden vigas that are so popular in the Southwest. Part of the Spanish Revival style, these are large solid beams of wood that will often span across an entire ceiling. They are impressive, imposing at some points, but add such a wonderful accent of wood as an organic element.
Another way you can incorporate wood may be with furniture. Even if the whole item isn’t made out of wood, if you can even add wood embellishments such as legs or arms, it will add to the feeling of natural grace and beauty.
You can be even more direct in your incorporation of wood by adding wood as decor or sculpture. A great piece of driftwood can make a wonderful focal piece, or small pieces of carved wooden decor or items constructed of wood can help to balance out metals and plastics and mineral-based items.
Add warming textures
When we talk about warming textures, we mean textures that you just want to wrap yourself up in and snuggle down into. For example, a fluffy fur (or faux fur) rug makes for a wonderfully warm texture to place your feet on, especially in the winter. If you live in a house with bare floors, this is especially luxurious and comforting to contrast in comparison to the other more stark areas of the home - you will notice a definite tactile difference.
Growing up, we also would always switch out cotton sheets for flannel sheets in winter. There’s something about cotton that would always feel very cold to the touch- which is perfect in summer when you’re wanting to cool off from a hot summer’s day, but in the winter can be a bit shocking in sensation. Flannel on the other hand is warming, without the cold sensation and is much more comfortable during the winter months.
Similarly, you can find other materials that give a similar effect. Knitted throws and pillows, large fluffy blankets and cushions are all making your home more comfortable to sit and make it more inviting to sit, relax and cuddle.
We hope you find this helps you make your home more warm and inviting
We always are striving to make a home comfortable and cozy. You don’t have to make it cluttered or stuffy, and you don’t even have to makeover your home. Even just the simple addition of a couple of elements can really help to soften a home and make it appear warm and inviting. And after all, shouldn’t your home be comfortable?