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September/October 2009 Spirituality
Creating a Personal Sanctuary at Home

by Gregory Stinson

The environment of all rooms is made up of colors, patterns, textures, styles, lighting, sounds and smells - the elements of design. Designing a sanctuary at home takes you through a process of uncovering your favorites. Once you know your favorites, you can apply these ideas to your sanctuary and follow a three-step process to creating a unique and supportive space, no matter what's going on outside.

Step One: Design Rules

The first step has to do with understanding the impact that the rules and tools of design have on how people feel. Our five senses are impacted by the spaces we occupy. When you design your space, you have the ability to control the way your senses will react by adhering to the rules of design, which include balance, scale, proportion, emphasis, unity, rhythm and harmony.

Your sense of vision is pleased when you create your surroundings using the rules of design. When a room is in balance, the items in it are in proper scale - it has a focal point, a source of unity and rhythm that's enjoyable. When colors and patterns are applied to the room according to the rules of design, the result is visual harmony.

Your sense of touch is affected by the different textures chosen for the different surfaces in your space. Shiny, smooth, matte and rough textures can support how you want to feel. Texture can be visual, tactile or both. It may have dimension or it may have none. Texture goes way beyond smooth or rough - it's not always obvious and sometimes it's only implied. Think of an object that looks one way but feels completely different. Tactile impression is the way an item makes us think it will feel. Texture is as important on items in a room we would never touch (ceiling, walls or architectural details) as it is on items people would be in consistent contact with (floor, carpet or upholstery).

Certain smells in your sanctuary will quickly remind you of a past experience or can be a source of aromatherapy. Studies have shown that our sense of smell is the only one of our five senses that is not processed through the conscious mind. What ever you smell immediately takes you to the good or bad memories attached to it. You can orchestrate what you remember by consciously introducing scents into your environment. Aromatherapy has also been proven to influence how you feel, which is why certain aromas such as lavender and vanilla can help you to relax.

Step Two: Personality

Step two is about understanding your personality and emotional make-up - who you are and what you want. This is the soul searching part of the process where you choose your favorite colors, patterns, textures and styles.

Choose the area or room in your house for your special space. Furniture is designed to support activity. Once you've chosen the activities you want to support in your sanctuary, such as meditating, eating, sleeping, music, exercise or art, you can pick the furniture that will fit in the room. This can be furniture that you already have or need to find. Create a simple floor plan to place the furniture and establish circulation patterns. This establishes where you can apply color, pattern, texture and style.

Step Three: Unity

The last step in this process is applying the design elements to the surfaces in the room. This is where a point of unity becomes a great tool. A point of unity is an item in the room, often the focal point, where all of the elements of design come together in one place (color, pattern, texture and style). This item can be as large as an area rug or as small as a vase. It needs to be something to which you feel an emotional connection and love. This item gives you your color scheme and sets the character for the room. Once you have your design scheme it is a matter of choosing what color, patterns and textures will go on walls, floors, furniture, draperies and accessories. Most people are happiest by starting with muted colors and patterns on the big surfaces and letting them get more intense as the size gets smaller. It is kind of like cooking. We start out with meat and potatoes and add spices to taste.

The end result of this process is two fold. You end up not only with a space that you love to be in, but you get to know yourself a whole lot better in the process. Anytime you honor who you really are, you become more complete.

Gregory Stinson, a Portland-based interior designer, has a degree in Interior Architecture and 40 years of experience in guiding others in the creation of personal sanctuaries. Contact him at gregory.stinson@gmail.com or 503-694-2239.