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4 ways to bring joy back into your home after losing a loved one you lived with
The months after losing a loved one are difficult to navigate, especially if you lived in the same home as them.
Seeing their belongings around you can make it difficult to move forward, but there are things you can do to bring joy back into your home after someone you lived with, whether it’s a partner, parent, sibling or friend, passes away.
How to bring joy back into your home after losing a loved one
Funeral expert Alex Wilson, from Affordable Urns, says “small design touches” can make a home feel like a place of “healing and happiness” after experiencing grief.
1. Create a memory space
The first thing to do is create one corner or room that is full of your loved one’s memories. Items that once belonged to them are a constant reminder that the person isn’t here anymore, which can make it harder to heal. Moving photos, momentos and belongings into one place means you can go there when you want to reminisce and feel close to them but have the rest of the home for new experiences and beginnings.
2. Add splashes of color
Adding splashes of color, whether it’s painting a wall, buying a bright piece of furniture or finding some new cushions, can instantly help improve your mood. Color plays a huge role in how we feel, breathing a new life into areas you associate with sadness. Calming hues like blues, yellows and greens will stop the room from feeling so heavy and bring warmth and positivity back into your home following a difficult time.
3. Transform your rooms
After losing a loved one who lived with you, it can be difficult to enter certain parts of the home where they spent a lot of time, such as their bedroom. Rather than avoiding it entirely, transform the room into something new that brings purpose and allows you to create new, positive associations and memories. For example, you could turn it into a music room, a gym, a space to do art or even a meditation room for when life gets a bit much.
4. Bring nature indoors
Finally, never underestimate the power of nature for healing. Plants and flowers symbolise life, growth, renewal and new beginnings, and their presence can bring feelings of calm into your home. Get some houseplants or make an effort to buy a new bunch of flowers for your dining room table every week, which will not only make you smile every time you walk past it but also make the space feel lighter and brighter.
