Over the last few years, the Scandinavian ideal of hygge has grown in popularity in America, particularly in parts of the country where the winters can start to feel awfully long.
Pronounced “hoo-ga”, the idea of adding hygge to your home mostly revolves around making yourself as cozy as possible while the weather outside is particularly unenjoyable, even to those of you who enjoy winter activities. However, in our rush to add a bunch of soft blankets and cute candles to our home, we can tend to overlook more practical concerns like storage and organization.
Even before hygge came into our lives, wintertime tends to be a source of clutter and mess in the house. There are, however, ways to manage your clutter and keep your home neat and tidy without getting away from the nice, comfy hygge vibe you’ve set up for yourself!
Focus on natural materials
The idea behind hygge is to use more natural materials that can bring a sense of warmth to your home, and remind you of the better weather to come. Any storage you add should keep these ideas in mind, as the wrong sort of fixture can work against the vibe you’re going for. Try to focus on softer, more natural materials like wood for things like end tables and wooden wall shelves to help your home keep a hygge look without skimping on your ability to store and organize things.
Only display what you love
When trying to hygge up your home, you’ll want to strike a balance with what you keep out. Don’t consider this a full decluttering – instead, just focus on the things that will make you happy when you look at them. Memories of vacations to warmer climates, favorite books, artwork you love, a few treasured collectibles, anything that helps you express yourself or just makes you smile to look at it. (Granted, it can be easy to go a little too overboard with this, so exercise restraint where you can.)
Keep cozy things close by
We’ve all got our favorite blankets, and hygge living encourages you to keep them close at hand for when the winter chill – or the winter blues – start to set in. A fun way to keep your blankets within reach while enhancing your overall hygge aesthetic is to keep them in something more rustic-looking, like a wooden chest, a vintage barrel, or a small wicker basket. This will make sure you can grab your favorite blanket whenever you need to snuggle up on the couch, and add to the natural, homey aesthetic you’re shooting for.
Make a home for books
Reading is an essential part of hygge. After all, the point of hygge is to give you reasons to be happy indoors while the weather is bad, and what better time is there to catch up on some reading? Take a small bookcase and some bench seating and make yourself a cozy little nook to read the winter away.
Get your kitchen ready
Even the kitchen is a big part of hygge. Part of hygge is the joy of fika, or enjoying coffee and cake with your friends and family to stay warm and cheered up during the winter. If you want to occasionally indulge in some sweets to help stave off the cold and dreary weather, make sure you have a few bakers racks handy to store your favorite ingredients and keep your dishes somewhere before they’re enjoyed by your loved ones.
Hopefully with these tips, your winter is a little warmer and more comfortable!