They say it takes at least six months to feel really at home in a new place. There is definitely an immediate adjusting period when you wake up and have idea where you are and no idea where anything is, but I think that hubs and I settled pretty quickly into our marital home. While there is a room (or two) still full of boxes left to unpack, we got the important rooms i.e. bedroom, kitchen and living room pretty much set up within a couple of months, despite having to buy or thrift pretty much all our furniture. One of the things that I think makes it difficult to settle into a new home is that ‘not-really-lived-in-yet’ atmosphere that comes with unfamiliarity. There might not be anything huge that you can do to counter this but I do have one little tip which is…
Scented Candles.
Bam.
There are a bunch of scented candles on the market right now but I really baulk at spending the $50 + price tag that some companies charge. Instead, I was sent these cute multicoloured scented candles from Air Wick to try.
First I tried the Amber Mandarin scented candle which I lit in the kitchen to help me concentrate while I was doing my marking. I like to work at the dining table as hubs takes up the desk in the study with all his readings and books for uni. One of the things that I do to help me concentrate is have a little candle burning. I have no idea why, but I find that this really relaxes and focuses me. As you can see, the candles are lit from the bottom with a changing light that switches on when the candle is lit. When this little baby turned pink, I was hooked. The pinker and nicer smelling my house, the more I feel at home! The Amber Mandarin scent was nice and warming for a chilly winter evening but I found that after a while it got a little overpowering. I think its a nice one to light for an hour or so and then let the scent linger.
So it was on to the next one. French Vanilla Romance. I’m a huge sucker for vanilla and if you think that vanilla = boring then, I think we can’t be friends anymore. Sorry. I found the fragrance for this candle much softer and I found that I could happily leave it burning for as long as I wanted without being overpowered. These decorative candles are little bit kitsch but I think its just another reason why I quite like using them. If you don’t have time for a little fun and kitsch in your life then, again, I don’t think that we can be friends.
So I made myself a cup of peppermint tea accompanied by some amaretti biscuits and lit my vanilla candle while I brainstormed for our upcoming trip to Italy! Hooray!
I like to imagine hubs and myself as the two little figures on the vespa.
Can you see it?
Hubs and I scooting around Italy on a sweet little vespa? Like Audrey and Gregory?
Ok so it would probably end up more like this…
But you get the picture!
Like I said before, fun and silliness people. Life is too short to be too serious!
So I know I began this post discussing atmosphere and I guess I should get back to the point here. I think that, regardless of how long you have lived in a place, the key to atmosphere and feeling at home is surrounding yourself with things that make you feel at home. It sounds simple but the more familiar and comforting everything is, the more you feel like you belong. I know that i’ll be having a super exciting time overseas very soon but I know that by the end of my trip i’ll miss my little apartment and be glad to come back home to it.
So what do you lovely readers like to do to create some atmosphere and feel at home?
