With research showing that spending two hours a week in green spaces can greatly help to reduce stress and anxiety, it is perhaps entirely natural that a major current trend in luxury home design is biophilia. Literally “the love of living things”, biophilic design celebrates bringing the outdoors inside, embracing natural materials, and incorporating sustainable design elements. Homeowners can enjoy the health benefits of living within nature with all the mod cons that a luxury home affords, and the environment benefits from a greener, more sustainable approach to building.
Design for life
Scientists have found that spending time outdoors, or even simply seeing pictures of nature, can improve cognitive performance by 20%, helping to refresh and re-focus the mind. Research also shows that being outdoors can help to lower blood pressure and reduce the production of stress hormones in the body. In this digital age, where a successful work-life balance still eludes so many, designing homes to provide and optimize a natural health boost is the perfect tonic. For the luxury home buyer, choosing a location with access to stunning natural scenery and architecture which complements and enhances its surroundings, is a smart investment in terms of both finance and health.
Living in harmony with the land
Successful biophilic design cleverly brings the outside in, whilst taking care to minimize the impact on external surroundings. The Park City master planned community in Utah is a notable example of this: with large outdoor living areas and dramatic floor to ceiling windows, homeowners can enjoy the natural light, sweeping views, and greenery on their doorstep. At the same time, the developers have worked with the area’s natural terrains, used sustainable materials, and created policies to protect the local ecosystem. This fits comfortably with current buying considerations: a 2020 report showed that nearly two thirds of realtors have clients who prioritize sustainability.
Inner beauty
Biophilic design principles can also be celebrated in a homeowner’s choice of interior décor. From using a natural color palette of greens, browns and neutrals, to sourcing stone, marble and reclaimed wood for kitchens, bathrooms and living spaces, taking inspiration from nature can be both energizing and relaxing. Soft furnishings can effectively use pattern and texture to celebrate the natural world, as can carefully curated pieces of furniture and art. Creating a living wall or simply placing house plants around the home can also provide a welcome top-up of nature’s healing effects: indoor plants have been shown to reduce stress and improve productivity, among offering other benefits.
As today’s homeowners seek to create living spaces which boost their wellbeing as well as providing a base from which to work, rest and play, biophilia has emerged as a key design trend which has much to offer. With sustainability a key focus for many buyers and developers, architects and designers have become increasingly creative and sensitive to their environment’s needs. The result is a winning partnership; a true love of the living.