The Importance of Color in the Bedroom

The bedroom is an environment which is particularly important for your psychological health and well being. The place where you both relax into sleep, and awaken to face the world, the bedroom has a symbolic significance in our lives. The colors that you choose for this space can affect your mood and outlook throughout the entire day. By contemplating the meaning and effect of various hues you can to some extent control this environment, creating a haven that cradles your psychological needs in whatever manner necessary.

One of the best ways to use color in a bedroom is to set a tone for the energy of the space. If you are a lethargic person, that finds it difficult to get going in the morning, then you may want to use bright and exciting colors in the bedroom. When you wake up the first thing you see will be stimulating tones, coming at you from the entire environment, instantly engaging your cognitive functions. In this way you can get a positive and vigorous start to your day, the second your eye lids crack.

If on the other hand you are an excitable person, that finds it difficult to fall asleep at night you might want to take a different approach, choosing softer, more soothing colors and tones for the space. Darker colors will tend to elicit calmer psychological responses in most people.

Red tones are particularly interesting in a bedroom. Red is a color that is associated with energy, heat, and vigor. These tones can be applied to someone suffering from lethargy, and looking for a boost in the morning, as mentioned above. Having a lot of red in an environment also tends to make people feel hungry, so you have to consider any tendencies you may have towards midnight snacking.

Often people will use red in the bedroom to create a more amorous atmosphere. On the other hand red is also an excitable and angry color, so if you are prone to fighting with a spouse it may not be a good choice for you. In general, red is such a volatile color that it should probably be used in accent pieces, such as pillows and wall clocks, rather than being the main theme of the entire space.

Green and blue tones are generally considered to be rather serene, and are useful when trying to create a relaxed atmosphere in the bedroom. Green usually has a little more vigor than blue, bringing to mind thoughts of woods, and fields, and life in general. Meanwhile blue tones tend to call up images of the depths of the sea, or a sky on a cloudless day. Even when blue tones get dark and stormy there is still something deep and peaceful about them, and so they are perfect for creating a tranquil paradise in your bedroom setting.

Earth tones fall half way between manic and morose. They are vigorous industrial colors such as orange and amber, and even some shades of light red, but they also have more stolid and resigned hues such as brown and gray tones, to dampen their lively effects. In general earth tones in the bedroom will make the space feel cozier and more inviting. People often associate these colors with family, love, and security.

By far the most important reference to consult when choosing colors for a bedroom is you. Everybody reacts differently to hue and tone, based on personality as well as experiences you may have had in your life. The important thing is that you start paying attention to color in the bedroom, in order to create a space which pampers your particular psychological needs.

The Basics of Dealing with Small Kitchens

A small kitchen can be a curse. There isn’t room for all of the great gadgets that you want, you hardly have space to turn around, and there are never enough counters. However you can put a positive spin on a cramped kitchen by turning your thinking upside down. Instead of feeling claustrophobic, allow the space to be cozy, wrapping itself around you and making every tool you own, every bowl you mix, every utensil you use just a hands reach away.

The secret to achieving such an environment in the kitchen is organization. If everything is tucked neatly away into a specific place, then you will be able to retrieve whatever you need instantly. Then, by putting it back into its place, you will avoid leaving it lying around to clutter up your work area.

Finding the optimal arrangement for your various tools and appliances will depend to a large extent on the shape of the room, and your own predilections. A good general rule is to keep like items together. That means all spoons and ladles should be in one area, and all knives should be kept together in another. This helps to keep things organized because it gives a kind of logic to the arrangement of these items.

Another important element when trying to create functionality in a small kitchen is clutter. This can consist of a variety of useless or even semi useful items. The juicer that you haven’t used in six months, but which you really do hope to use one day; well that’s clutter. So is the bread maker that you never took out of the box, and the home made ice cream machine, and any of a variety of other relatively exciting products, that you simply do not have time for on a day to day basis.

That doesn’t mean you have to throw them away. Just get them out of the main kitchen where they’re getting in the way. You can put them in a spare closet, or on some unused shelves, or up in the attic. Just make sure that when you do store them, you keep them organized and well labeled. That way when the time comes that you actually have a need to use one of these contraptions, you will know exactly how to lay your hands on it.

Probably the most important functional element in a kitchen is counter space. Unless you have found the room for a small kitchen table, this is where the majority of your work will be done, and it is a precious commodity. Don’t make the mistake of taking it up with a lot of useless knick-knacks. You should also be frugal with the number of appliances you keep on your counters. It’s tempting to leave everything out where it can be used, but when it’s not being used it will just get in the way.

A small kitchen does present a number of challenges to a chef, however a little bit of planning, strategy, and organization and you can actually turn this negative aspect into a positive one, where the room fits around you almost like a glove. In such a space you will be able to reach out in an instant and place your hand upon any utensil that you require. In this way you will squeeze the maximum efficiency possible from this room.