Why Your Space Matters
Updated: May 16, 2022
Video Transcription
Well, hello friends. It is Wednesday and today, we are going to be talking about why your space matters and I just want to help you understand that it goes beyond the pillows and paint that it can go be beyond that and be so much more for you. I am Becky Bunnell, owner of Lykke Haven Design and I am coming here live with you 1 PM every day for for the next six weeks. I'm excited to just dive into more about purpose driven interior design. So, I have my two-year-old down. I actually even have my five-year-old down. They woke up way too early this morning. So, I am excited to take this breath with you today. So, I know we all have just met or maybe you've known me in the past but I wanted to take a second and have us close our eyes in order to make make us understand why our space matters. So, if you're willing and open to trust me. It might feel a little bit weird but it will really help hone in and help you understand why your space matters. Take a big deep breath in and out. And we're going to imagine that we've had one of those days. One of those days where there just seems to be messes everywhere. Everywhere you look, there's something else on the counter. The toys even though they're put away, they are just everywhere. And you haven't had a chance to even get to number one on your to-do list that you've made. There is just things everywhere. Kids running around. You took a sip of your coffee finally and it was cold. And it's cold and rainy outside even. And just can't even remember the last time that you've gone to the bathroom by yourself. We've all had these days. You just got back from the grocery store. So imagine you're coming in to your house. You just got back from this grocery store trip and you come in and your house feels dark and it feels cluttered. And it feels so heavy and burdensome. Like it's not even yours. And you set the groceries down and you plop yourself on the couch. You're just tired. You're done. You don't feel like putting the groceries away. And you just don't want you're not the mom that you wanted to be for the rest of the day. We're going to take that deep breath in and out and imagine this dark day. And how unsupportive your house feels in it. And now imagine, just take a second because I've been here but we're now going to take a second and we're going to imagine the exact same day, exactly the same, the same cold coffee that you had but now when you walk in from the grocery store you feel this lightness about your house. So, even though there are toys, places, it's not too much. There's just enough sense of, yeah, kids are having fun here. And it feels like support. And it feels like belonging. And it feels like you're able to catch your breath. And breathe in the life from this home and breathe out all the stress from your day and you come in and you feel productive. You feel like this is a place where I can be the mom that I know I want to be and you put away the groceries very quickly and you're able to settle down and play a game with your kids. And the room is filled with giggles and you are the mom that you know you can be. Now I want you to breathe that kind of space in. A space where there is life, where it feels like there's intention and support. Now, how many of you have been here? Because I have and I want to get you there too. Because this is what homes are supposed to be. They are supposed to be places where we feel supported. That can bring life. So you can open your eyes. I want you to see that your home is more than that mortgage payment. That is more than the pillows and paint. That is more than the toys in it. Even that it can be this place that is productive, that is supportive, that can have intention, and that it can have purpose behind it because it's when we do this, that we're able to have refuge away from the world that is filled with joy continuously. And that is what Lykke Haven is all about. And so how how do I know this? What kind of spurred this in me? Being in past engineer I love data. So I have a few studies. There are multiple studies out there. I urge you to go Google how your environment truly affects you. Because so many times we just think oh it's just a room. It's not going to affect me as much as other things I'm doing. I need to workout. I need to do this. But really your environment feeds so much into you. So, I have a couple of sites here that show that it affects your mood, your motivation, along with enabling relationships. It can reduce stress and it can even positively affect your immune system and your physical health. In one study, I have here that I found really interesting was the was a college campus that painted a variety of colors around their campus and then gauge the moods and sensations that people felt as they went into these spaces and the study showed that shades of green brought out feelings of peace, right imagine this light sage green room. Just how much peace because it brings the thought of nature. And while warm colors like reds and yellows helped create a sense of comfort, right? It's that fire, that warmth, that color can have. So, just by knowing the feelings that you want to evoke in your home, you can intentionally choose the colors in your space. So, not only the paint but what kind of textiles that you have, what kind of pillows, what kind of blankets do you have in your space and then, if they're intentionally chosen, it's going beyond just the paint on the walls and it's going into a place where it's evoking feelings that you want to feel in your space Another study at UCLA found that cortisol levels or the stress hormone was actually heightened in a cluttered space and then with those heightened levels comes from comes procrastination. Imagine when you're stressed. You feel procrastination. Like you just want to sit and do nothing. You feel frustrated because you don't even know where to begin. And it just spirals into more chaos in your life. And that's what a cluttered space can make you feel. I love it best. Allie Casazza says that your clutter is just unmade decisions. Can you imagine coming into a home filled with clutter. Things are put away but it still feels cluttered. Because there's a lot of unmade decisions and I know as me as a mom, we struggle with decision fatigue, right? That there are just so many decisions to make but if your house is uncluttered and there's space, space to breathe, then, we don't have so many decisions we feel like we have to make. And our stress hormone goes down and we're able to breathe and spend time with our kids and giggle with them and have people over and not feel like we are burdening them with our clutter. So, multiple studies like I said, scientifically proven that your space matters and yet another study showed that there is a connection between scents. And your memories and your energy. I know a lot of people have diffusers now and linking it to different ways they want to feel. But there are studies out there. So, when you link all these together, when it's what you see and what you feel cluttered or open along with the sense, it brings about this environment that is super productive, super supportive, and helps you have that better life. Then at Lykke Haven, we even pair it with another sense. In our environments and we believe that if you have a purpose-driven space. So, a space that is connected to a bigger purpose outside of yourself, that there is this ultimate connection made. So, what we love to bring in is if there is a mission that you are passionate about, let's say, it's making refugees feel welcomed. Then, we help you understand what nonprofits are out there that have that same vision, that same mission and maybe you already have one and we bring that into your space. We bring something that resembles that mission into your space. And now you feel this connection to this bigger purpose. That you don't feel on this lone island at your home. That you're like oh yeah. There's a bigger world out there. And even though I'm creating this haven away from the stress of that world. That the world is bigger. And there is purpose in my life. And when you can connect to that purpose in a space. Oh my goodness. I don't even know how to describe it. Just this breath. This life comes to your home. That is amazing and you get to share that with your kids. And you get to share that with anybody that comes in. Just think of how much your life feels heightened. Because of that. And this is why we at Lykke Haven believe your space truly matters. It's not only scientifically proven, but by doing that visualization study. How do you walk into the two different spaces. What kind of words came to mind when we did that exercise? And you know, even though I say this, right? If you'd like that first space or that second space in the visualization, we would say, yeah. Well, of course, Becky, I'd want that, the second space. That's that's a no-brainer, right? But so many times when I talk to moms, there's something holding us back from getting there. Some people say, you know, I don't know how and that's what I'm here to help you understand how to do throughout these next weeks. So, keep joining in. We'll have action steps that are very easy to take and how to create this space but a lot of the times when talking to moms, we feel unworthy of it. We have all these excuses, all these limiting beliefs that were not worth that second space and I say this of love because I have been here too. So many times, I've said, well, let's just make sure that the kids are you know, have all these activities or you know, we don't, I don't have the time or the money to put into this space but I want to say no to that because you are worthy. Imagine the different mom that you'll be in a space that supports you, in a space that's productive, in a space that is life giving. How much better of a mom will you be? Are you going to let your limiting beliefs and your excuses stop you from that? Or are you going to say no to them? Understand that you are worth it mama. To have this room. Because I believe you are. And I want all mamas to believe that they are. And it doesn't have it can cost you, there are things you can do that easily cost nothing. And we can have spaces that support us even more. There are little changes that we can make. So the excuses melt away and I want you to all understand that you are worth it. You're worthy of sitting down with your kids and being able to giggle with them. You are worthy of being able to to play games after the kids have gone down. To invite people over easily, so that conversations can be had. You're worth knowing your bigger purpose in this world. And I want to help you get there. So, now that you're able to wipe away all those excuses and make an positive change in your home these next couple days, we're going to actually walk you through how. So, we're going to start with those the three words that we have at Lykke Haven. We start with intention and the mission piece which we discussed and connection and we're going to go through those very methodically. We're going to talk about why each of those are important. With action steps We're going to talk about how you can implement those in your own home and then, I'm going to share of how we've done it at our home. So, we're going to step through these together. Like I said, I love to drive action. I don't want to just sit here and talk to you. I want to actually help you create those changes. Create those that life-giving home, that supportive home that you deserve and are so worthy of. So, I have action steps for each of you each day and you can choose to take them daily or you can choose to batch them during the weekend. I just really urge you to take a breath to do these action steps so that you can get closer and closer to that space that you want in your home because you are so worth it mama. And I am excited to take this journey with you. I will see you all again tomorrow where we start diving into why do we start with the intention of a home and a space. If you connected with me on anything that we've gone over today, I would love to hear from you. Please send me a message on any platform that you're seeing this. I would love to just know that we're connecting. And then if you have any friends that you find would find this beneficial, please share it with them. I would love to just grow this community together. And just inspire you and drive some actions. So looking forward to tomorrow as we dive into intention. Have a great day mamas!

Lykke Haven Design is a full service, purpose-driven interior design firm serving clients in West Michigan. We work with clients from Ada, to Grand Rapids, to Holland (and the occasional out of state). Our mission is to create Intentional Interiors curated with a Meaningful Mission that Cultivate Connection. We do this through a process driven by Human-Centered Design. We would love to discuss your next project and how we can help.
Please check out our services to learn more!