Dopamine Décor – A hit of happiness in your home
Interior’s latest trend infuses your heart and your home with joy and delight. Based on the thesis that surrounding yourself with joyful interiors stimulates feelings of intense happiness and provides your brain with a positive burst of the happy hormone dopamine. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter which acts on the parts of the brain involved in motivation, pleasure and reward - dopamine décor maintains your surroundings can greatly impact your mood an your mentality.
Dopamine décor is a decisive move away from designing your home within the parameters of how it “should” look towards designing your home to evoke happiness in those who live there. Cast your mind back to your childhood bedroom, adorned with posters, cheerful knickknacks and bright and garish bedlinen – call on your inner child to inspire your interiors, adorning it with colour, texture and objects that spark joy. Your home is not a show house decorated to please the masses and offend none, it’s your sanctuary and a place that can bring delight and solace. So rather than playing it safe, choose smile over style and infuse your space with your unique personality!
Remember when you were a child and you would be asked “What’s your favourite colour?” and you would immediately know the answer? Pose that question to yourself now and embrace your hero colour in your home. Vivid colours which evoke a bright and cheerful atmosphere provide the happy fix that dopamine décor espouses. Be brave – drench a whole room in colour and reap the benefits of a maximalist colour hit rather than a single feature wall. Where before you choose a neutral palette and added pops of colour, ramp it up a notch and go large with a vibrant colour palette you truly love. Paint is the most cost effective way to transform your interior. With endless possibilities using paint to introduce colour is a sure-fire way to bring your vision to life. Consider using colour clashes and complimentary colours to create a lively and delightful space.
Shape and form can exaggerate and enhance interior schemes, acting as blocks of colour and texture, inviting interaction and providing comfort. A plush leather sofa cranks up the cocooning quality of a space, while jewel-toned sumptuous velvet evokes delightful decadence. Cushions, footstools, throws – all allow you to layer pattern, texture, colour and style, deepening a sense of individuality and generating a one-of-a-kind quirkiness that evokes an essence of you!
Pattern plays a huge role in the dopamine décor ethos, finding its way into your interior via wallpaper, fabric, accessories and art. Wallpaper is a fabulous way to infuse your personality into a space. Whether you choose abstract patterns, floral delights, bold geometric designs or traditional damasks, the joyous decadence of wallpaper allows your personal style to sing and, more importantly, induces a smile and that feel-good factor every time it’s encountered.
Objects imbued with treasured memories have the ability to evoke emotion but can tend to be of a style or era that isn’t representative of what brings you joy. Pine and mahogany furniture, for example, while beautiful and poignant, can struggle to sit alongside more contemporary interior elements. Develop them into dopamine décor designs by painting them a bright and bedazzling colour. Change the handles as an extra design touch and watch a dated piece transform into a cheerful and striking treasure.
Responsibility for inducing happiness can’t lie solely with colour - texture and fabric play a huge part in creating the warm and fuzzy feeling of a happy home. Rugs provide warmth, texture, pattern and yes, colour. The luxurious tactility of a teddy rug or a shaggy rug create the snug vibes that imbue a space with comfort and cosiness. Rugs are also an effective way of introducing pattern, enhancing an interior scheme, creating a focal point and zoning spaces – another way to invite an element that provokes a smile into your home.
Choose art and objects that makes you happy, allow elements to clash, if kitsch is your thing embrace it wholeheartedly and surround yourself with ephemera that induces a laugh or a smile. If you fall in love with a patchwork chair, bring it home. Adopt novelty doorstops, add plants, hang inspirational quotes, frame nostalgic posters.
Your home has the power to fill you up with glee and contentment so be brave and chase that dose of dopamine – joy is sure to follow!
