1. Determine the Room's Purpose

Guest says the first step in designing your home to fight the winter blues is to determine the room's purpose. Your first thought might be that the purpose of each room is self explanatory—kitchen is for cooking, bedroom is for sleeping, living room is for relaxing or entertaining—but Guest encourages homeowners to dig deeper. "The true purpose of each room is to support the mental and physical needs of the people who will use the room," she says. Deciding what you need each room to do can help you guide your design choices for it.

The purpose of each room can also change depending on the season. For example, Guest depends on her atrium, which has an abundance of natural light, as a place to absorb as much sunlight as she can. She exercises, reads, and works in that room in the winter to fight off bouts of grogginess and low energy.

Using this person-centered approach to design allows you to make sure the spaces you spend a considerable amount of time actually sustain you. Then you can start to focus on the details to make that happen.

2. Clear Clutter and Let Natural Light In

Guest says, in the home, clutter and natural light have the biggest impact on your mental health. Too much clutter or too little natural light can lead to the winter blues taking over.

“In a cluttered environment, every object is competing for our attention, increasing our anxiety and making it difficult to focus and think clearly," Guest says. Additionally, if you're self-conscious about your cluttered home, it can lead to isolation. "If we’re not comfortable inviting other people into our home, we lose opportunities to spend time with people," she says.

Luckily, Guest says living a low-clutter or clutter-free life doesn't always mean getting rid of things—although the minimalist approach may help some people. She suggests simply organizing so you can find things when you need them. Set up drawers and other places to organize and store items to create an environment that doesn’t overwhelm you with chaotic visual stimulation. 

Natural light also has an influence on your moods and energy level. It impacts mental, brain, and overall physical health. Exposing your body to natural light during the day, especially during the winter when days are shorter and darker, helps regulate emotions and sleep cycles. Guest recommends making design choices that take advantage of natural light. Put your exercise equipment on an enclosed patio or a room with skylights or big windows, and set up your computer, or read in a room with natural light.

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3. Consider Your Color Choices

For any space, Guest recommends painting your walls with cool colors—blues, greens, and purples—to make rooms feel bigger and ceilings feel higher. The brain registers cool colors more slowly than warm colors—like reds, yellows, and oranges—so walls painted in cool colors seem to move away from the eye. “We feel as if we are in a larger room, and we breathe more easily and feel freer as a result,” Guest says.

Paler and cooler colors also reflect more natural light, making the most of the shorter days of winter. Moody colors have the opposite effect. They absorb natural light instead of reflecting it, making the room appear smaller and darker. Guest says that spending time in a moody room in the winter may dampen your spirits. "If you’d like to use a moody color on the walls of a room, consider using it in a room where you won’t spend hours every day, such as your dining room or a guest bathroom,” she says. Or, assign the color to bookshelves or cabinets to minimize the moody effects.

Light colors soothe the mind, but Guest also emphasizes the importance of having an enriching environment. “To create a place where you can relax without becoming bored, and feel stimulated and inspired without becoming anxious, find a balance in a room between soothing cool colors and vibrant warm colors,” she says. Paint the walls in a cool color, but make your accent pillows a warm color. Play with different colors, textures, shapes, and materials to add depth and drama to your home without creating clutter.

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4. Add Natural Stress-Relief

Introducing natural elements to your spaces is a great way to bring a feeling of warmth in the cold months—and reduce stress. Spending time in nature reduces stress, improves memory, and heightens creativity. “Plants and greenery in a room soothe—even if the plants are artificial," Guest says. "And natural materials, such as wicker and wood, deliver the same benefits as greenery because humans associate those materials with nature.”

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5. Focus on Good Sleep

Getting sufficient sleep is vital to mental health, so it's important to have a bedroom that supports your sleep. “Keeping our rooms cool, dark, and quiet is key," Guest says.

Make sure your bedding is comfortable and keeps you from overheating, and consider choosing a color that isn't too vibrant. Use room-darkening shades and blackout curtains to prevent light from seeping in to interrupt your shut-eye. Decorating with curtains, rugs, and upholstered furniture can "dampen noise because they absorb sound," Guest says. Installing bookcases against walls can have the same effect.