Cosy winters with crackling fireplaces and chunky knit socks. Freshly picked daisies in the warm summer sun. All-embracing hugs filled with love, the sound of laughter with your friends. Breathing in…and breathing out. Hygge is everywhere you look. So, why not open the door to a hygge lifestyle while you’re working from home?
What is ‘hygge’?
Hygge (pronounced hyoo-guh) is the feeling of utter contentment and cosiness. It’s a Danish wellness lifestyle that’s making its way over to the Western world.
The rain pattering on a window while you sit around a fire in comfortable silence with your family is hygge. Riding on a bicycle on a summer’s day, the breeze in your hair and a baguette in your basket is hygge. And you can bring hygge into your home office.
A home office may be a stretch for some people. Many of us sit hunched over kitchen tables or slumped on sofas while we tap away. The room gradually fills with drunk cups of tea and misplaced notebooks. Clutter gets left on the floor, and the air becomes stale from a lack of ventilation. It’s a representation of work stress in your home.
But, instead of fostering an environment of anxiety, what if you created a peaceful hygge atmosphere? I say…why not?
The benefits of hygging while you work
Hygging isn’t a real word, but it made me happy. So, I thought I’d use it to tell you the joy of inviting in hygge while working from home. There are the benefits I’ve found from practising hygge when I work:
- It soothes work anxiety.
- It helps you focus.
- It makes your working life feel romantic.
- It shows self-care.
- It’s relaxing and calming.
- It helps you appreciate small moments.
- It reduces negative thoughts and toxic behaviour.
- It invites a calming vibe into your home during work hours.
Now that you know how hygge benefits you while you’re working from home, I bet you’d love to learn how to do it. Turns out, it’s pretty simple.
1. Light a calming candle on your desk
Many people choose the soft lighting of candles in the evening for a romantic, wind-down atmosphere. But embracing slow-living and the hygge life isn’t about doing it for one moment of the day. It’s a lifestyle that consistently nurtures your wellness and creates a cosy connection.
The gentle flickering of a candle is not just for winter evenings but for 6 am summer mornings.
Trust me, there is nothing more soothing.
Whether it’s a simple tea light or a beautifully handcrafted candle in a jar, lighting candles instantly sparks relaxation. Their presence during the day is a visual reminder to slow down and enjoy the little things.
Ensure you select non-toxic, eco-friendly candles to embrace a sense of wellness while you tackle your most dreaded tasks. It’ll help you remember, ‘Oh yeah, life isn’t so bad.’
2. Make a soothing cup of hot tea
If you’re from the UK, there’s nothing better than wrapping your hands around a hot mug on a cold day (except, perhaps, for having a cosy large rug underfoot as you sip). It’s the definition of English hygge. But why reserve that warm glow for winter only? Brew a calming tea no matter what time of year, and place it gently near your working place.
I personally love loose-leaf tea because it tastes so good and goes a long way. I tend to wake my body up with a gut-loving herbal mix in the morning, like lemon and ginger or turmeric. When I need a pick-me-up after lunch, I reach for my favourite, energising green tea and then wind down with an aromatic rose tea as the sun sets.
3. Surround yourself with beautiful scents
If there’s one thing I cannot live without, it’s filling my home with the calming scents of incense, wax melts, or essential oils. Jasmine, lavender, rose, ylang-ylang, peppermint, lemon…the list is endless.
Even my partner, who knew nothing about scenting the home when we met, now lights incense sticks or puts a few drops of sweet orange essential oil (his favourite) into our diffuser throughout the day.
Citrus scents and peppermint are great for energising and focusing the mind. Whereas lavender, jasmine and white sage are incredible for soothing anxiety.
4. Play gentle music while you work
If I told you music could change the whole vibe of the room right now, would you believe me? Putting on gentle and non-distracting background music really sets the tone of the day.
If I find myself getting wound up, music is the first thing I put on, and it completely shifts the atmosphere. It releases stress and slows down your mindset. Instead of rushing through your to-do list, it helps ease the pace of life’s pressures.
Simply search hygge or calming LoFi background music on YouTube, and the possibilities are endless. If you want to block out noisy distractions, cocoon yourself in a hygge workspace by playing the music through noise-cancelling headphones.
You can check out my favourite hygge playlist here.
5. Keep a gratitude and wellbeing journal by your side
Hygge isn’t just about fancy essential oils and cashmere jumpers while the sun rises (although that does sound idyllic). It’s a mindset. A way of living. That means looking after your internal as well as external well-being.
The perfect way to do that is always have a journal by your side. Your journal is your best friend in a pocket. It’s there for you when you need to grieve, express joy, confide your worries, write a to-do list or plan your day.
Having a beautiful journal placed next to your laptop is a reminder that you are there for yourself.
What’s a great addition to journalling? Gratitude journalling. I love to write down things I’m grateful for every evening, but there’s something special about doing it in the moment.
It can be easy for one overarching event, difficult feeling or worry to dominate your day. But if you add things you’re grateful for as you experience them, your journal becomes an album of beautifully captured moments in time.
Lean into hygge while you work
The perfect time to introduce a new and relaxing lifestyle is during stressful moments. You’d be amazed at how the act of lighting a candle, gentle music and appreciating the smallest pockets of time can transform your well-being. Instead of a high-strung environment, you can create a magical work-space sanctuary.
Now go hygge.
Emma is a wellness, lifestyle and beauty freelance blogger and copywriter who loves working with holistic brands. She doesn’t just write about these topics, she lives and breathes them. Emma is most serene when writing inspirational content that shares knowledge and connects communities.
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