Happiness Starts At Home
Natasha Rocca Devine shows how the dopamine decor trend can boost your mood during winter
Move over Barbiecore! There’s a new feel-good trend in town: dopamine decor. It is based on a concept that colour creates a sense of energy, fun and playfulness in our bodies, which releases dopamine – the “feel-good” hormone. So, if we follow this trend for winter, not only will we have a beautiful interior, we will feel great too. It’s a win-win.
In commercial and residential settings, the dopamine decor trend is all about creating spaces that fill us with joy. Colour can be applied on everything from walls to floors, furniture and soft furnishings.
In each of my recent projects, particularly showhomes or commercial design work, I incorporate colour in a carefully curated way. For these jobs, the dopamine-inducing decor had to appeal to a variety of buyers, with different personality and colour preferences. However, you can choose paint colours and patterns that bring happiness to you and your family. My recommendation is to start off with a strong theme, even taking inspiration from your favourite holiday, resort, movie or book.
Here are some examples of my work and accessories to bring your home to life:
For Robswall (a sea view development in Malahide, Co. Dublin by Hollybrook
Homes), I worked on “Oceanic Luxury’’ based on the skyline of Malahide with blue, pink and even turquoise hues on the bedroom walls, and integrated the colour thorough the space.
As Burrow Holiday Park rental apartments in Co. Wexford were for commercial use with a constantly changing clientele, I needed to think outside the box. To ensure variety in each unit I chose to have a different continent with different colour schemes for each.
For Ideal Homes, I opted for a more risqué “Lux Family” living with darker and strong colours and patterns on the wallpaper and a nude couch. The mobile bar and library created a sense of excitement.
Of course, bringing in colour trends and paint trends that invigorate is at the core of the dopamine decor. Bold colour combinations are one of the most effective ways to get your attention and lift your spirits. Pantone’s colour of the year, viva magenta, is a real show-stopper. It’s ideal for a bedroom, playroom or an office. Yellow is best suited to kitchen and dining areas, however in a softer shade it can improve your mood in sleeping areas. Cool colours like blue, green and purple can create feelings of calmness and relaxation, so these are ideal in offices, living rooms and bedrooms.