I’m using the Japanese principle of ikigai to make my home a more serene space – how the simple things make life worth living

by Furnishly | Sep 28, 2026 | Design Inspiration

Interior design experts are advocating for us to apply the Japanese practice of ikigai to homes to ensure our spaces are places that add small pleasures to our lives.

Ikigai is more than just a home decor trend. With ‘Iki’ translating to ‘life’ and ‘Gai’ meaning ‘worth’ or ‘value’, it literally means ‘that which makes life worth living.’ And interior experts say that this principle can be applied to how we spend time at home and to our home decor.

‘The concept dates back to the Heian period, between 794 and 1185, when it appeared in poetry and court diaries as a way to describe moments of deep personal satisfaction. Rather than a single overarching goal, ikigai is really about the daily realisation that life is worth living in the present moment,’ explains Gini Lin, founder of Airy Fragrances.

‘It is found in small domestic pleasures: the first sip of warm tea in the morning, the way afternoon sunlight hits a wooden floor, or the satisfying feeling of preparing a simple meal. It is less about what you achieve and more about how present you are in the small rituals that make up your day.’

How to apply ikigai to our homes

Considering ikigai centres on finding meaning in everyday life, it is perhaps natural that this principle lends itself well to our home lives. It’s a useful practice to follow if you’re looking for ways to make your home feel happier.

‘The home is where ikigai is most naturally expressed, and most consistently overlooked. We spend enormous energy designing homes that look considered, but far less on making them feel considered. The two are not the same,’ says Gini.

‘It starts with one question about every object and every ritual in your space: does this add meaning to my day? It doesn’t photograph well, nor is it on trend, but it gives me something when I am actually living inside it. A chair placed to catch morning light. A surface cleared of everything except what belongs to one activity. A scent so tied to a particular room that walking into it feels like arriving somewhere.

‘In Japan, this way of thinking about domestic space has been practised for centuries, built into the genkan entrance that separates the noise of the outside world from the calm of home, the single seasonal flower changed with the months, the ritual of removing shoes before crossing the threshold. The home is not a backdrop to life. It is where life is actually lived.’

What does ikigai look like in practice?

In practice, ikigai can be as simple as appreciating your favourite candle scent or reed diffuser in your bedroom, opting for specific materials that feel good on your skin, such as linen bedding.

‘For me, it comes back to creating spaces that feel comfortable, welcoming and personal. I like rooms to have a sense of character rather than feeling too perfect, and I think surrounding yourself with colours, patterns and textures that you enjoy can make a real difference to how you feel at home,’ says Debbie Leigh, design manager at ILIV.

‘I also think there is something to be said for creating small spaces or moments that encourage you to slow down, whether that is sitting down with a cup of coffee, reading for a while or simply enjoying the natural light coming into a room.’

Gini’s approach would be to start with the five senses, which ensures you don’t only address things in your home which you can physically see.

‘Scent is one of the most direct routes to the limbic system, the part of the brain that processes memory and emotion. It arrives before rational thought, which means it shapes how a space feels before you have consciously registered anything about it. A room with its own scent has its own identity. It becomes somewhere specific, somewhere that belongs to you. That is a form of ikigai built into the architecture of a space,’ she says.

‘I would also introduce objects that invite you to slow down: a hand-thrown ceramic cup you love the feeling of holding, a decorative glass piece that catches the light in a particular way, a reed diffuser that makes you feel good the moment you walk in. These sensory anchors create a pause between the pace of the outside world and the pace of being home.

‘Personally I am a minimalist, and I think that instinct is deeply connected to ikigai. When a home is full of things that have stopped earning their place, the mind has nowhere to settle. Removing the unnecessary is not about aesthetics. It is about clarity.

‘A clear surface, a corner left empty, soft warm light rather than harsh overhead brightness: these create the conditions for the atmosphere of a room to actually be felt. Japanese spatial philosophy calls this yutori, breathing room. You cannot notice the small meaningful moments of daily life if there is too much competing for your attention. Yutori is what makes noticing possible.’

Is this a good philosophy to live by?

For our experts, ikigai is a good practice to live by simply because it doesn’t ask too much of us. All we must do is appreciate that the simple things make life worth living.

‘I like the idea that there doesn’t have to be one big source of happiness or purpose. It can be found in the small things that make everyday life feel good. The same can be true of our homes. They don’t need to be perfect or follow every new trend. They should make sense for the people who live in them and support the things that bring them pleasure, comfort and connection,’ says Debbie.

And Gini agrees, stating: ‘For the home specifically, this is a profound reframe. The home stops being a place where you recover from your life so you can go back and live it again tomorrow. It becomes the place where your life is actually happening. Every small ritual, every considered object, every scent that makes a room feel like yours: these are not decorations. They are the thing itself.’

How I practice ikigai

How do you practice ikigai at home?

Joanne McNally uses this playful colour as her ‘red thread’ and it beautifully ties her maximalist decor together – interior designers reveal how you can do it too

by Furnishly | Sep 28, 2026 | Design Inspiration

There’s nothing I love more than a snoop around a celebrity home, and the latest to catch my eye is comedian, writer and actor Joanne McNally, whose recent house-moving video on Instagram revealed her brilliant technique of using pink to anchor her maximalist decor.

Those with stylish homes will know that having a ‘red thread’ running throughout your space ties your home together coherently for a finished look that feels as considered as it is stylish. Examples include Victoria Beckham, who has pops of pistachio green tying her home’s interiors together.

Now you can add Joanne to your list of celebrity inspiration. Her gorgeous, maximalist home decor is neatly tied together by a repeated pink colourway. Here’s how you can do it, according to interior design experts.

In a recent Instagram post, Joanne vlogged her recent move into her home and amongst all the packing and subsequent unpacking, I noticed that pink featured heavily amongst her homeware. She had a pink rug, chairs, mirror, storage unit, lighting and artwork, too. While there’s no doubt pinks proved a colour trend with staying power, what Joanne’s use of pink does is give her home a considered, finished look.

‘Joanne’s pink home accents are a great way for her to inject her personality and personal brand into her home. Pink is such a naturally uplifting colour, helping to keep a space feeling fun, positive and full of character,’ comments Natalie Evans, founder and CEO of home styling and staging company Little Barn Door.

‘Using a ‘red thread’ colour throughout a property is a great way to make a bold choice feel cohesive. People often assume that if they introduce a strong colour, they need to use it heavily from room to room. In reality, following a simple 5% rule and repeating small touches of the same colour throughout can maintain personality and connection without the scheme feeling overwhelming.’

A red thread can be anything from a paint shade, material or pattern. Joanne’s use of pink works so well because it matches the bold, characterful nature of her interior design.

‘When you have lots of shapes, colours and individual pieces competing for attention, a recurring colour gives the eye something familiar to find. Pink provides that connection while still allowing each piece to have its own personality,’ says Kunal Trehan, interior designer and founder of Touched Interiors.

‘Joanne uses pink with real confidence. It feels playful and personal, especially alongside her sculptural furniture, colourful art and unexpected accessories. I love that she hasn’t treated pink as something that has to be delicate; it can hold its own among much bolder pieces.’

How to get the look

‘Choose a colour you genuinely love, then repeat it in different ways: perhaps a chair in one room, a detail in an artwork in another, and a lamp or cushion elsewhere. Vary the scale and the shade, and let the rest of your home evolve around it. The aim is a sense of connection, not a matching set,’ is Kunal’s advice.

When considering the best accent colour for your home, consider the palettes that genuinely make you happy. Do you have a favourite colour you wouldn’t mind seeing in every room? That makes a great red thread. If you want to reflect a bolder, playful home pink is a great choice, meanwhile a soft green can be used to evoke a sense of calm.

‘It’s also a clever way to embrace a bolder colour without making a huge commitment. Accessories and smaller decorative pieces are relatively easy to change, so if Joanne’s tastes or trends evolve in the future, the overall look can easily evolve with them,’ adds Natalie.

Shop pink home decor

If you love maximalist decor, but aren’t sure how to make sure it flowers in your home, opting for your own ‘red thread’ can help tie it all toether. It’s up to you which colour you choose.