第1708期:The feel-good home

Our environments can affect the way we feel. This is not a new concept – after all, the traditional practice of feng shui has been with us for thousands of years. More recently, scientific research concluded that the design of healthcare environments could support patients in their recovery. Increasingly, however, it is our homes that are being seen as places we can improve our wellness.

我们的环境会影响我们的感受。这不是一个新概念——毕竟，风水的传统实践已经伴随我们几千年了。最近，科学研究得出结论，医疗环境的设计可以支持患者康复。然而，越来越多的人将我们的家视为可以改善我们健康的地方。

A new approach to interior design suggests that many of us now care less about how our homes look and more about how they make us feel. How we feel can be influenced by a number of different things, including the furniture and objects within our homes and how these are arranged. For example, 'to create cosiness and the ability to connect with others, we want our furniture facing each other', says Lindsay T Graham, a personality and social psychologist. Smaller objects, too, have a lot of power, according to Monica Khemsurov, one of the founders of online design magazine Sight Unseen. Whether it's something an old friend made for us or a souvenir purchased while travelling, objects allow us to relive moments or feel closer to people we love at a glance. It makes sense, therefore, that taking a more intentional approach to where we place objects in our home, can affect our mood.

一种新的室内设计方法表明，我们中的许多人现在不太关心我们家的外观，而更关心它们给我们的感觉。我们的感受会受到许多不同事物的影响，包括我们家中的家具和物品以及它们的布置方式。例如，“为了创造舒适和与他人联系的能力，我们希望我们的家具面对面”，人格和社会心理学家 Lindsay T Graham 说。在线设计杂志 Sight Unseen 的创始人之一莫妮卡·凯姆苏罗夫 (Monica Khemsurov) 表示，较小的物体也具有很大的力量。无论是老朋友为我们制作的东西，还是旅行时购买的纪念品，物品都能让我们重温美好时光，或与我们所爱的人一目了然。因此，有意识地处理我们在家中放置物品的位置会影响我们的心情，这是有道理的。

Other elements that help create a personal space that makes you feel good include the type of lighting, the use of colour and texture, as well as bringing nature into the home. Plants and 'natural materials, particularly unpainted wood, are really great for keeping our stress levels in check', says environmental psychologist Sally Augustin. And controlling stress levels can also be helped by making sure our work space and any clutter are hidden from sight when we want to feel calm, for example, during our night-time routine before going to bed.

其他有助于打造让您感觉良好的个人空间的元素包括照明类型、颜色和质地的使用，以及将自然带入家中。环境心理学家莎莉奥古斯丁说，植物和“天然材料，尤其是未上漆的木材，对于控制我们的压力水平确实非常有用”。当我们想要感到平静时，例如，在我们晚上睡觉前的例行活动中，确保我们的工作空间和任何杂物都隐藏在视线之外，也有助于控制压力水平。

However we choose to adjust our living spaces to improve wellness, the final tip from the experts is to not treat our homes as a museum. Instead, we should see them as idiosyncratic and constantly changing – just like us.

无论我们选择调整我们的生活空间以改善健康，专家的最后建议是不要将我们的家当作博物馆。相反，我们应该将他们视为与众不同且不断变化的——就像我们一样。

词汇表

concept 概念
healthcare environment 医疗环境
wellness 身心健康
approach （思考问题的）方式，方法
furniture 家具
object 物体，实物
arrange 布置，摆放
cosiness 舒适，惬意
connect with others 与他人产生联系
face each other 面对面
souvenir 纪念品
relive 重温，回味
at a glance 看一眼就…，立刻
intentional approach 有意的方式
place (v) 放置
mood 心情，情绪
a personal space 私人空间
lighting 灯光，照明
texture 纹理
keep (something) in check 控制
clutter (n) 杂物
hide from sight 遮住，藏在视线外
living space 生活空间
idiosyncratic 独特的，与众不同的