So have you heard about this heatwave? Wow, what a week it has been. Temperatures up in the mid-90s and with hardly any rain to follow. This can make our own homes, feel like ovens that we’re just sitting inside, baking away. We can even feel trapped and claustrophobic in our own home because the heat is making us want to jump out of our own skin. Home during the winter can be made comfortable by adding things. But can you take things away from your home and really make it better in the summer? Well, there are some interior design schools of thought that say no, you don’t need to. Let’s see what their solutions are.
Linen saves the night
If you are in need of a hero to save you in the night, linen is his name. This knight in shining armor breathes better than cotton or wool. Linen is a very lightweight but strong material, made from plant-based material. The fibers that are used are coarsely woven, making them the best choice to be used for a bed in the blistering heat of summer. Linen is the best option, because it’s also very cheap, compared to wool or cotton.
Linen can be used to make men’s high-end fashion suits, women’s dresses or even sofa covers. Linen sheets are also used for dining tables. But this a material that you should buy for your bedsheets, pillowcases and your covers. Linen curtains are also great for your bedroom because they will help you to keep them drawn but allow the breeze to come inside too. The sunshine will be kept at bay and you’ll feel cooler.
Remove your floor decor
If you have an area rug, it’s time for it to go. Area rugs are generally used for large open spaces, but mainly on wooden floors only. Surely you don’t have an area rug on a carpeted floor, do you? Even if you do, you should remove it as soon as you can! Area rugs are used for autumn and winter, as their role is to capture heat and spread the warmth throughout the room.
Leave your wooden floor bare, so the heat won’t latch onto another surface. Wood is great for summer days because it can absorb heat slowly and it releases relatively quickly. And because hardwood floors are thicker than the average floor, the heat will also spread wider and thinner, so you won’t have a hot home in just the span of an hour.
If you have a welcome mat inside the house, move it to the outside. It too can absorb heat and make life really tedious. If you have a bathroom mat, sorry, but that’s got to go too. A rubber mat can be okay but even then it’s going to absorb heat. Just dry the soles of your feet before you step out of the shower and you should be safe from slips.
Shutting out the light
Sometimes during a heatwave, the absolute worst thing you can do is to open up the windows. If you’re in the midst of a heatwave, you won’t have any kind of gust flowing outside. It’s just muggy, murky, humid air which lingers and causes the general temperature of the air outside to rise. Do not open your windows. Instead, you need to shut the heat out!
Speak with shutter professionals about what kind of design and or material to use for your home. These shuttercraft window shutters are very stylish, lightweight and easy to use. You won’t be standing around twisting the handle or stick, over and over, waiting for the slow rotation of the shutters to complete. You have four different and unique options.
Bay window shutters – This is for window sill bays, that have an indent into or out of the home and need to have shutters that are for each different side of the window structure.
Full height shutters – These are for tall windows, normally found on the ground floor. These are great for shutting out the sun from both the top and bottom of the window, individually.
cafe style shutters – these shutters are very contemporary. Great for windows that split vertically and or, can be pushed upward to be shut or opened.
Tier on tier shutters – four different shutters, which can be independently used. This allows you to modulate the level of natural light in the home and remain very stylish.
Wool has to go
If you have wool in your home, it has to be moved aside in favor of cotton. Wool is tremendous material, but it’s true calling is winter, not summer. So, cotton should be used for your sofa cushions, pillows, dining table covering, and things like throws or outdoor hammocks. Wool can be used for many things, but it doesn’t really breath as well as cotton.
You should consider doing these following things.
- Replace your sofa cushions with cotton stuffing rather than wool or synthetic.
- You should also replace your dining table covering of wool or silk, with cotton. Better yet, remove the covering altogether.
- Use a cotton throw for your living room. Egyptian cotton is by far the most popular because it breathes and yet, it’s not too light and airy, like linen.
- If you have a patio, you can remove your sofa cushions in the same manner and use cotton cushions instead.
- If you have a woollen hammock hanging outside, replace it for a cotton hammock and or a linen hammock.
Add more plants
Plants sap water out of the air, so your hot and humid home will become cooler. With less water in the air, there will be less heat lingering in the home. More plants the better!
Consider adding a sunflower in your home, which is a larger flower and has a huge face from which to absorb the water. You can also add plants like areca palm plant, a snake plant or a fern which is very popular in New Zealand.
Don’t have a fall out with your home this summer. You don’t have to live in an oven, it can be cool both figuratively and literally, with all of these techniques.