Managing the Temperature without touching the Thermostat!

Our brains and bodies work and feel best in spaces where the temperature is 72 degrees Fahrenheit and relative humidity levels are 40% to 70%.

Ideal conditions are not always achievable ones.

There are a few tricks you can use in your home to make it seem slightly warmer during the Winter than it actually is.

• Being in a space that features warm colours makes us feel slightly warmer than the air temperature justifies and the reverse is true for areas with cooler colours. This effect can be significant and change impressions as much as adjusting the temperature the thermostat is set at by 5 degrees Fahrenheit.  Now might be a good time to get out your paint brushes! And while you’re at it—lighter colours on walls make areas seem larger so a warm, light colour is likely in your best interest (if you live in a house with rooms that are too large, and are reading this article, be in touch, we have some inventions we’d like you to invest in).  Also, if you’re going to wall paper, smaller patterns make a space seem larger than it does with larger patterns.
• A more sunny space seems warmer to us than a less sunny one, even if it isn’t actually hotter, so pull back those curtains.
• More intense, brighter light, in general increases the apparent temperature in an area (as well as larger). Warmer light can also help “warm up” a room.
• Indoor plants can also help a space seem warmer.
• Spaces where the air moves more briskly also feel a little cooler, so now may be a good time to tweak your HVAC system, but always take care not to create unhealthy conditions.
• When we’re in a space that smells “warm” to us (for example, of cedarwood) we feel warmer. Eucalyptus, for another example, is a cool smell.
• People who feel lonely also feel colder, so buddying up with a pal can literally warm them up. In general, hearing people talk (even quietly) warms us up.