When you embrace a carefree, vacation-inspired spirit at home, you’ll feel more relaxed and your guests will feel more at ease. How to do it? Swap out fussy fabrics and formal furniture arrangements and say hello to game rooms, hammocks and washable slipcovers. Pick and choose from these 10 ideas to infuse your home with a laid-back vibe everyone will love.
1. Embrace easy-care materials. When the surfaces in your home can take a beating and still look great, you can just kick back and enjoy your space. Wipeable leather upholstery, tough natural fibers, durable outdoor fabrics and solid wood and metal fit the bill.
2. Let art set the mood. Art can help awaken your senses and influence your mood. If you want your home to feel more mellow and laid-back, choose art that evokes these feelings in you. Hang up a large photo, art print or original painting featuring a scene or hues that put you at ease in the living room, entry, bedroom or anywhere else you want to channel that easy, breezy, vacation mood.
3. Go for slipcovers, but maybe not in white. While it’s true that you can technically throw (preshrunk) white cotton slipcovers in the wash whenever you want to freshen up the couch, it’s not exactly a quick job. So if what you’re really looking for is an easy, worry-free sofa option, go for washable slipcovers in a medium or dark neutral hue, like gray or chambray blue. Dirt and minor spills won’t show up as quickly as on a white background, letting you go a bit longer between washings.
4. Keep dining casual with banquette seating. There’s something friendly and inviting about a banquette seat: You can almost always squeeze in one more person, and kids love being able to sprawl out. Banquettes are also surprisingly space-saving, so it can be an ideal setup for a compact breakfast nook. Want even more ease? Pick bench seats with built-in storage so you can do a quick cleanup before guests arrive.
5. Say yes to self-serve stations. Encourage family and friends to help themselves to coffee, breakfast, snacks or drinks with a self-serve station that includes all the necessary items in one convenient spot. Or gather cutlery and napkins in mason jars and let each person set their own place at the table — a helpful tactic if you’re never sure how many people will be at dinner.
6. Opt for breezy bedroom touches. Keep the palette light and airy and the space uncluttered. Think breezy white curtains, whitewashed wood and fresh flowers. Maybe get a fun hanging chair, or an armchair and pouf to put your feet up on. Choose what makes you happy and let the rest go.
7. Pare back. With too many options available, we can get decision fatigue — which is partly why it feels so freeing to live out of a suitcase on vacation! At home, there’s no reason to limit yourself to a suitcase of clothes, but paring back to just your favorites is bound to make getting dressed in the morning a more relaxing experience. Aim to keep only what will comfortably fit in your closet and drawers, with nothing piled up on the floor.
8. Make room for fun and games. Whether you prefer card games, foosball or table tennis, making room for your favorite leisure pursuits is a sure way to make your home feel more laid-back. Turn the garage into a game room, transform the dining table into a pingpong court or simply set out a selection of board games in the living room so you’ll remember to play.
9. Create a backyard destination. Depending on the size of your backyard, this might be a spot just big enough for two chairs, a tiny shed, a smokeless fire pit for gathering around or an entire outdoor room.
The important thing is that it feels set apart from the house — so when you walk down the path, or across a few stepping stones, you feel as if you’ve arrived somewhere entirely new. Cultivate a feeling of privacy around your backyard nook by setting it into the corner of your lot near a fence line or hedge, or beneath the shade of a tree.
10. Hang a hammock. Is there anything quite as relaxing to look at as a hammock? String one up on the porch, back deck or anywhere you want a visual reminder to take it easy. And if you don’t have trees or posts sturdy enough to string it between, no worries — opt for a hammock with a stand, like the one shown here.
