The pandemic has made our homes the ultimate multitaskers: they’ve become offices and schools, as well as where we sleep, relax, exercise and pursue our hobbies.
To find out how people felt about their homes in these changing times, IKEA carried out a global survey of more than 34,000 people. IKEA’s Life at Home report 2021 revealed that feeling positive about our homes has a beneficial impact on mental wellbeing, gives us a sense of purpose and allows us to look back on what we’ve achieved at the end of each day.
Homes have been critical in helping us remain productive, but it hasn’t been easy. A massive 93% of people who took part in the survey said that it was important that where they lived provided them with a sense of comfort, but only 41% said home was meeting their needs for working and studying.
While many parts of our lives may revert back to the way they were, it’s likely that some form of WFH will remain – so how do you preserve home as a place of sanctuary when we’re asking so much else of it?
Focus on creating ‘sanctuaries’
IKEA believes that the idea of sanctuary is made up of three aspects: function, emotional stability and space. Function asks us to look at whether a room is working as it should; so a kitchen should be used for preparing and enjoying food, while a bedroom needs to promote sleep. Emotional stability requires a room to induce calm, not make us feel ill at ease, so it shouldn’t be cluttered. Then we come to space, which doesn’t mean having somewhere enormous, rather a place that feels roomy through the way it’s lit and its storage solutions. Even a small room can feel big if the space is utilised in a sensible way.
Recent times have challenged each of these three pillars of sanctuary differently. Rooms have been made to function in ways they weren’t designed to: we’ve been working in bedrooms, home schooling in kitchens and exercising in sitting rooms. When a room’s function is changed in a way it wasn’t designed for, it can induce a feeling of stress and anxiety. Similarly, a room may no longer promote emotional stability when, say, it becomes cluttered or poor use of space makes users feel claustrophobic, leading to a sense of fear and a lack of control.
Know when to switch off
The role of the home has been transformed forever and IKEA found we now want “hybrid spaces for hybrid lifestyles”. With a combination of good daily routines and clever home design, this is possible.
But no matter how big your home is, or how it’s arranged, the most important factor in making a hybrid space work is you. You need to prioritise self-care and to mentally – and physically – compartmentalise work and relaxation. Keep regular hours and begin your day with a ritual, whether that’s a cup of coffee or a bowl of cereal, to get into the “work” mindset.
Schedule regular breaks and take them in their entirety. At the very least, leave the room you’re working in; ideally leave the house and get outside. Work out when you’re most productive and, if that’s between 9am and 11am, avoid scheduling breaks or meetings during this time, as they will disturb your concentration. You should try to finish at the same time each day, logging off from your work computer and work emails and not looking at either until the following morning.
Get creative with your home
There are plenty of home solutions that will help make this compartmentalising much easier to achieve, and IKEA’s Life at Home report found that 60% of those surveyed have significantly changed the way their home is organised during the pandemic. Ideally, we’d all have a separate home office but, if you don’t, a room’s function can be altered to better serve several uses.
If your bedroom or living room has to double up as an office, think creatively about making the best use of the space. Having a separate zone for work will help you define the boundaries between work and home. You can achieve this either by the arrangement of furniture or the use of colours – you could try decorating the wall in front of your desk, for instance.
To further emphasise the distinction, it might be worth buying a room divider or curtain, or getting a wall-mounted table that can be dropped down at the end of each day. If it’s storage you’re after, a small drop-leaf table with integrated drawers works brilliantly as a desk without taking up too much space. Alternatively, store all your work items in a box, basket or trolley that can be moved out of sight when you’ve finished so it can’t distract you after work. Wherever you’re working, splash out on an office chair that’s supportive. Your back will thank you later.
Deal with the clutter
In IKEA’s report, 27% said that their ideal home would be easy to clean and that keeping it clutter-free was more important to them than it had been a year earlier. Declutter by setting aside 10 minutes each day to tidy up your office area; you’ll feel more in control of things, and it will boost your mental wellbeing.
Your desk should only contain what’s essential for working, helping you to focus and preventing distractions, so it might be worth having a desk tidy to keep everything well organised. Hanging peg boards and cork boards are perfect for pinning papers and organising ideas without taking up precious desk space, and wires can be kept neat with cable clips to prevent tangles.
Alongside all this organising, you want to make sure your home still feels warm, welcoming – and still your sanctuary. A scented candle or a house plant is a great way to encourage a sense of calm. And get creative with your wall art to reflect your personality.
Make the most of your space
When it comes to space, 28% of those questioned said it was one of the things that has grown most in importance. While we can’t magic up square footage, multifunctional furniture, such as sofa beds with drawers, modular storage systems or coffee tables with storage, will make you feel that you have less clutter and more space to play around with. Taking your storage vertical is an easy way to maximise space, so look to wall-to-ceiling shelving or bookcases. If you have large amounts of paperwork, invest in a small filing cabinet and a large bin. If space is particularly tight, tuck away your papers in attractive storage boxes that can sit on any shelf.
Keep things bright
How a room is lit will also add to the feeling of space. There’s no real substitute for natural light and its health benefits, so make sure blinds or curtains can be pulled right up or back to let in maximum daylight. For shorter winter days, opt for a variety of lighting options, including space-saving wall lights on swing arms, and stylish desk and table lamps, so wherever in the room you are, there’s plenty of light to work with. If you can, how about putting a slim desk by a window to bring the outside in?
We’ve asked so much of our homes recently, it’s not surprising that the primary thing we want from them, a place of sanctuary, has come under threat. As we adapt where we live, we need to keep in mind the importance of function, emotional stability and space so we can ensure that working from home – and relaxing from home – successfully coexist alongside each other.
With clever and creative solutions, the hybrid home can work for you. Discover more at IKEA.com
