Reading Time: 4 min.
After spending more than a year in confinements and working from home, our spaces began to take on new life and demand novel trends and design renovations. Around the world, the desire to bring the outside world into our homes and workspaces repositioned trends to search for ideas, designs, and objects that consider the impact they have on the environment and that positively influence our well-being. It has given the so-called Biophilic design notoriety. But what exactly is it, and what is this trend?
As the world urbanizes more and more, comfort and lifestyle stimuli tend to increase, while access to nature and green spaces decreases.
Biophilia and biophilic design are the answer to that disconnect with nature.
What is biophilia?
We define biophilia as human love or the need for a close connection with nature and other life forms. Today this concept is more about the respectful integration of nature in our homes, offices, gyms, diet, beauty products, transportation options, and more. Biophilia is essential to improve people’s lives and also as a way to protect the planet.
Giants like Amazon, Google, and Apple have harnessed the power of biophilic design recently for their office interiors, so what’s behind the switch to these botanical workspaces?
Cleaner air.
Plants convert CO2 back into oxygen as we know it, but recent studies from institutes like NASA show that plants also purify indoor air for us. That means filtering out harmful chemicals, like formaldehyde, benzene, ammonia, to name a few, from furniture, paint, building materials, and pollutants released from the outside world.
For best results, we recommend you think big with the plants in each room and place around 6-8 per regular user and then supplement that with an air purifier, if possible.
Wellness
Interiors and exteriors using a biophilic design create spaces where such stimuli can be a dose of Vitamin Nature that will recharge our internal batteries and, as a result, improve concentration, productivity, and creativity.
Biophilic living is an effective way to counteract some of the effects of urban life. By embracing biophilic living, we can improve quality of life, health, and well-being while enhancing awareness of our connection to the planet around us.
Here are some ideas for you to adopt this trend:
Bring nature home by adding some plants!
We’ll start with an obvious one; Plants are a quick way to incorporate direct biophilia into any interior. It can be as simple as a few potted plants or as expansive as a vertical garden wall. To take full advantage of the benefits of this simple addition, we advise you to look for plants that clean the air and please the eye like the dwarf date palm, the Chinese evergreen, the spider plant, the Flamingo Lilly, Devil’s ivy, and others.
Get lit up and make the most of natural lights
Bringing nature into your home also refers to natural lighting, which works in any environment. Implementing a circadian lighting system that follows the body’s natural rhythm can help improve both daytime productivity and nighttime sleep.
Fill your space with natural light whenever possible, but when the sun’s rays aren’t available, look for a lighting system that uses blue-white tones in the middle of the day and amber tones in the early and late afternoon. The Philips HUE system does a decent job of this.
Mimic the voices of nature
Speaking of bringing the outside in good biophilic design appeals to all the senses, including sound. Possibly one of the most relaxing things about being immersed in natural spaces is the gentle sounds of birds, running water, and the rustle of trees.
The good news is that you can easily recreate this feeling by playing sounds of wild ambients, which are widely available and come in an array of themes and compositions.
Take advantage of natural scents.
Incorporating certain scents into space is a simple way to improve the user experience and influence the tone of the room visually, but also how the inhabitants feel while in it.
Forget synthetic fragrances. Use organic essential oils such as pine, cedar, or lavender, preferably diffused in the air for 30-60 minutes at a time. These are especially beneficial early in the morning and late at night while taking a relaxing bath or concentrating on work.
Choose organic materials
If you want to support the natural world in the best possible way, choose the most ecological and organic. Using organic materials can reduce the presence of harmful chemicals commonly found in building materials and furniture.
Use a naturally neutral color design
The color scheme is possibly one of the biggest influencers on the mood that an interior provokes. While bright hues can add energy, neutrals will help make any commercial or residential room feel rooted – and an easy way to bring the outdoors into interior design.
Try to go for colors you see commonly in nature, such as browns, beiges, and greens. Craving for a splash of bright color? Try a hint of sun yellow and a bright sky blue.
Wabi-Sabi style
Nature is never about perfection. Take advantage of the intrigue and natural beauty that imperfection can bring and integrate pieces into your design that have variations in the finish, or maybe, even a couple of chips or cracks.
Wabi-Sabi is a Japanese concept for vintage and handmade products, so look for furniture, dinnerware sets, and pottery with such «blemishes.»
These biophilic design strategies can help propel any home, office, or gym design in the right direction and bring the natural outside world straight into any space that needs improvement. Try them! Your home and your health will thank you!
Share
Images
unsplash.com @renran / @ninjason / @chrisleeiam / @curology / @lakeishajannell / @sonniehiles / @danielcgold / @minhphamdesign / @augustinewong / @derrick_cooper / @averyklein / @anniespratt