With the festive season now firmly over for another year, we are now faced with the dull and dreary months of January and February. We have been thinking about how we can cheer ourselves and our homes up during such miserable months. But we are faced with one hurdle; we are on a very limited budget due to spending our life savings on far too much festive fun during December.
Due to the miserable weather and financial restraints we often spend most of January and February stuck indoors. The surroundings in which you spend most of your time need to be warm, bright and cheerful as different places or atmospheres will affect our own personal moods. A miserable environment will cause a miserable mood.
Below are some tips we have compiled on how you can beat the winter blues on a budget!
Switching to LED bulbs
Switching to LED bulbs is another way to brighten up your home whilst living on a strict budget; LED bulbs will not only save you money, but will also brighten up your home! An LED (a light emitting diode) is the latest in lighting technology, in a world where eco-friendly is no longer a craze and has actually become a way of life. We are all becoming more energy efficient, cost conscious and environmentally concerned, whilst the government continues to roll out initiatives to help secure the future of our planet.
The efficiency of LED lamps is significantly higher than that of traditional (incandescent) bulbs, thus for the same level of power in, they emit more light. Unlike traditional bulbs, they don’t have a filament that will burn out or get particularly hot. Their illumination comes solely from the movement of electrons in a semi-conductor material. This means that LED’s produce a spectrum of colours easily and brightly while using very little electricity to do so, therefore they both save money and brighten up any room.
Revamping a room with affordable accessories
Accessories can instantly re-vamp a room and create a whole new atmosphere and ambience within seconds. Changing the accessories within a room is a much more cost effective way of sprucing things up as opposed to completely redecorating. When it’s dull and depressing outside, one way to brighten up your home is by adding brightly coloured accessories. Warm bright colours are known to often evoke feelings of happiness, optimism and energy – instantly boosting your mood.
Lighting is one of the most flexible ways to completely revamp any room, updating a room with a different style light is an easy and affordable way to add both light and decor at the same time. It is a necessity for any home to get the lighting right, In addition to the aesthetic and mood-enhancing benefits of lighting, it also has a functional role too, illuminating task areas such as the kitchens, desk areas and bedside tables. Choosing a brightly coloured ceiling light, floor lamp or table lamp will enable you to revamp and brighten up any room in seconds, whilst still being on a budget.
Combatting the effects of seasonal effectives with a SAD PAD
Feeling down during the winter months is a rather common feeling and can often be dismissed as the ‘winter blues’; however it is also a recognised medical condition, known as seasonal affective disorder, which affects over 17% of the UK population.
There are several methods to help combat the feelings associated with this disorder, one of the most cost effective and proven ways is the use of light therapy, which is conducted through using a MiniSun SAD PAD. A MiniSun SAD PAD works by providing a summer light which when directed onto the body produces the correct levels of Serotonin and minimises the production of Melatonin (the hormone produced when our exposure to natural daylight is reduced) helping to alleviate symptoms. Simply use the MiniSun SAD PAD as an additional light source in the home, it is proven to work if you use it for just 60 minutes a day, for around 7-10 days.
Alice Felton is the Marketing Manager for Iconic Lights, a lighting retailer offering great value cutting edge lighting designs and energy saving solutions.
