Dopamine Décor, Serotonin Style, and Gardenesting
If you are in the habit of reading interior design magazines, you may have seen articles written about dopamine décor and serotonin style. Both these terms have become hot topics for home decorating in 2023 because these styles help to create home environments which enhance “feel good” hormones, such as dopamine and serotonin. Through the use of color, texture, spacing, lighting, etc., these styled spaces bring us joy, relaxation, and rejuvenation.
But why limit this style approach to only our interior spaces?
I have always been a strong advocate for blending indoor and outdoor elements as much as possible, whether that is through extended porches, skylights, sunrooms, water fountains, or simply well positioned windows which allow views of gardens and other green spaces. So, when I collaborate with clients or give talks about gardening, I try to extend this concept even further by using the term gardenesting to describe how gardens, green spaces, the natural world, and ultimately, our dreams can be used to integrate our interior and exterior spaces.
I am not only a gardener. I am a gardenester.
Gardenester. Gardenesting. You may not have heard these terms before, but you no doubt will in the future. The word gardenester is a portmanteau of the words garden and nester (a bird or other animal who builds a nest, refuge, cradle, or sanctuary) and implies how our home greenspace (garden) should also serve as part of our nest – that place which offers us comfort, peace, safety, socialization, a place to nourish, and a view of the world. And just as different bird species have different types of nests to meet their needs, our nests should reflect our unique personalities, goals, and lifestyles.
Gardenesting can be practiced by everyone, and anyone can be a gardenester. If you live in a home on a sprawling acreage or a cramped studio apartment, you love to garden or make plants die simply by looking at them, integrating garden and natural world elements into your living space is easy to achieve and creates highly versatile and individualized home environments which help you feel safe, relaxed, and joyful.
No room or time for a garden? No worries. Consider instead incorporating a simple flower box on a balcony. Perhaps you can position a comfy chair next to a window which has a view of a park, beautiful trees, or a garden down the street. Maybe, you can buy a few virtually indestructible plants such as Pothos or ZZs which thrive on neglect. And don’t forget to consider a small tabletop water fountain, calming posters of a forest or stream, your favorite music, or even a wonderful pet as a companion (just make sure you have the time and space to keep your new best friend happy and healthy). Finally, never underestimate the importance of color and smell in your space. Try to consider all your senses and any special needs or interests you may have when gardenesting so you are able to make your unique nest most pleasing to you.
If you are fortunate to have an outdoor living area, the sky is the limit. Even in small patio gardens, gardenesting is quite achievable. First analyze your needs, budget, and goals, then look at your available space.
But this is key: Don’t simply think in terms of square footage. Look up. Can you go vertical with a screen or fence? What about climbing plants or hardy columnar trees and bushes? And how about a suspended garden tarp or sail to keep you dry when you’re sitting outside, reading a book, or listening to the rain?
Also, consider going down. You could possibly add a small inground pond or a water feature. Maybe even add a few paving stones for a small table and chairs for entertaining, relaxing with friends, sipping on a glass of wine, and listening to music (or wind chimes, or birdsong from the birds by your birdfeeders).
Whatever you do, don’t let an overly large or small outdoor space intimidate you. Plants, lighting, music, water, and other inexpensive garden elements can easily create a private, welcoming space(s) and an indoor/outdoor connection to your home. Ultimately, the only limiting factor to gardenesting is your imagination.
Gardenesting is far more than the latest trend in interior design or garden styles. It is a highly personal lifestyle which incorporates the elements of the natural world into our indoor and outdoor living spaces, which in turn, allow us to create our own unique and harmonized happy places. And as with all traditional nests, gardenesting is intended to be our safe place. It is that special place we come home to at night, where we can rest, and eat, and socialize, and dream, and sleep.
In future posts, I will write more about specific elements of gardenesting and how we can use them to enhance our living spaces, and in turn, our health.
Until then, I hope you have a joyful and wonder-full gardenester day.
