Save this post to read later. Later… after the cleaning up… after all the shopping. Later… when you finally sit down on the couch and you can look around your home and really take in what you see and you’re seeing how your home makes you feel.
Have you heard of Hygge? Pronouned “hue-gah”, hygge is a Danish word that is a feeling or mood that comes from taking genuine pleasure in making ordinary, everyday things more meaningful, beautiful, or special. It’s about making things… well… cozy. 
Hygge is one of those words that has no direct, single English translation so I’ll do my best to explain it to you. Hygge is about the joy in our minds and bodies that’s created by the things with which we surround ourselves. Surrounding ourselves with only the things that make us truly feel good inside – that’s hygge. It’s not about the physical things. It’s the feeling… the pure joy created by the things, people, and places we love.
Hygge is creating a warm, cozy atmostphere. For some, this may be the atmostphere created by fireplaces, candles, warm blankets, the smell of cookies baking, and family conversation. For others it may be a warm cup of coffee and a long walk with a friend.
Here you can see how Danielle over at Finding Silver Pennies created this feeling for herself and her family in her dining room. If you read Danielle’s blog on a regular basis, you know she values family relationships, lives by the ocean and loves the sea (notice the large sea shell by the window), and loves ironstone and blues and whites. She’s created a cozy atmosphere through the use of candles and by placing the things that make her feel good around her home.
I’ve talked about this concept before and how by simplifying the items in our homes, we can then “see” those things around us that really make us happy. Imagine if every time you walked into your home, you were flooded with the utmost feeling of contentment? No clutter. Items neatly organized and put away in their place and it feels satisfying. It feels good. It makes you happy and content.
If you’re happy at home and your home makes you feel joyful, that feeling will eventually spill over into other parts of your life. Your work, your family, your relationships. Can you see how living a hygge-rich life can improve your overall well-being?
Pottery Barn does a wonderul job of creating a cozy feeling in their winter catalog. Here are just a few…
While these images are beautiful and feel warm and cozy, they may or may not instill the feeling of joy in you personally. That’s why hygge is about adding those things to your home that give you the feeling of joy.
Thank you to Janel over at Apartment Therapy who posted about Hygge recently. It helped put a name to the concept I’ve been living and talking about here on Entri Ways for the past few years. Surround yourself with ONLY the things you love and make you happy and it will affect every other area of your life in a positive way.
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