Retirement can be a wonderful time in your life. It offers opportunities to relax, travel, and spend time with friends and family. For many seniors, it’s also a time to move into a new living space, such as a retirement residence or senior living apartment. While this move can be exciting, figuring out how to furnish and decorate your new space can be a challenge.
8 tips to decorate your senior living apartment to feel like home
1. Personalize the space with familiar items
One of the best ways to make a new living space feel like home is by surrounding yourself with familiar items. This might include favourite photos, artwork, or knick-knacks that have special meaning. These items can help you feel more connected to your past and provide a sense of comfort in your new home.
2. Add artwork and décor that reflects your interests
Your apartment should reflect your unique interests and personality. Consider adding artwork, décor, or other items that showcase your hobbies and passions. For example, if you enjoy nature, you might consider adding landscape paintings or nature-themed décor.
3. Add plants and greenery
Plants can help create a peaceful and inviting atmosphere in your new apartment. Not only do they add visual interest and colour, they can also help purify the air and improve your mood. Consider adding easy-to-care-for plants like succulents or larger plants like a fiddle leaf fig or monstera. A shelf or side table placed in front of a sunny window is a perfect perch for indoor plants. Check out the marthastewart.com blog for some plant possibilities: “24 Beautiful Indoor Plants That Are Perfect for Apartment Living.”
4. Use lighting to create ambiance
Lighting can create a welcoming atmosphere in your senior living apartment. To create a cozy and comfortable environment, use a mix of natural and artificial light. Consider adding table lamps, floor lamps, or string lights to create a warm and inviting ambiance.
5. Use decorative storage
While senior living apartments can be cozy and comfortable, they often lack storage space. To keep clutter at bay and make the most of your limited storage options, consider using decorative storage solutions. For example, you might use wicker baskets, decorative boxes, or colourful bins to store your belongings while also adding visual interest to your space.
6. Consider round furniture
In smaller living spaces, round beats square or oblong because sharp corners are eliminated. Round can be a better shape choice for dining tables because they can suit smaller spaces more effectively. Get help with shape choices in the spruce.com blog, “Find the Dining Table Shape That Is Right for You”.
7. Do light right
Light is key to successfully decorating a retirement living space. Place lighting such as lamps in places where they will be used the most. Reading lamps on end tables or a floor lamps near easy chairs are functional and help to brighten dark corners. Find out more ways to make light right in the smallhousedesign.net blog, “9 cool small room lighting ideas.”
8. Don’t shy away from using colour
Retirement living spaces are an opportunity to experiment with the use of colour. Bright, bold colours can have a dramatic effect in smaller rooms. Opportunities to bring in colour include draperies, rugs, pillows, painting accent walls, and more. The hgtv.com article, “Color Rules for Small Spaces,” looks at some of the possibilities and how to do it right by experimenting first.
Want more ideas on how to make a smooth transition to senior living? Contact one of our communities near you.