4 Japanese tricks to boost happiness in the bedroom, personally tested and proven effective

Fox recently rearranged the bedroom layout,

and found that just a few touches

send happiness soaring,

so I've summed them up to share with everyone.

Not counting the bathroom, this bedroom

is 4.7m x 3.5m = 16.5 sq m.

Source of happiness 1: Sitting on the floor to read

The most important goal of Fox's layout change this time

was to free up space beside the bed for sitting on the floor to read.

Though sitting for a long time gets tiring,

after sitting bolt upright at work all day,

the freedom of sitting on the floor

is a sense of ease that even a sofa can't match.

This time I foolishly forgot to take before photos,

so I only have some low-quality snapshots from long ago.

But you can see that earlier, between the bed and the armchair,

there was no space at all.

This time I slightly changed the positions of the bed and the wardrobe,

which freed up a large open area.

The Desirable Life Study Group mentioned earlier too

that placing large furniture along the walls saves the most space.

asappang@ins

Japanese bedrooms basically all have a space where you can sit on the floor.

You can also sit on the floor to eat late-night snacks and watch movies,

without worrying that shifting position will block the projector.

via ___shome___@ins

Even if the room is really small,

you can still sit on the floor leaning against the side of the bed.

By the way,

the biggest regret in Fox's bedroom is buying a first-class sofa,

not because it takes up space,

but more importantly because low sofas or armchairs

make the view feel more open.

Source of happiness 2: The view outside the window

The reason Fox bought a recliner sofa

is mainly that the bedroom window is several tens of cm above the floor,

so you can't sit on the floor and look at the view outside.

A few years ago, Fox visited a mentor's home.

The mentor had lived in Japan for several decades,

and had a tea table along the window.

Outside the window snowflakes danced and all was a vast white expanse,

while inside the window tea fragrance filled the air and warmth curled upward.

Right then Fox made up his mind

that the table along the window must have a window.

The bedroom desk is also placed along the window.

As it happens, at first Fox asked a custom design company

to make a custom bay window design,

but perhaps because the job was too small,

the design proposal they gave was not satisfactory at all.

Custom companies always try every way to add storage, bookshelves and other functions,

while the most crucial sitting and lying down get little thought.

So in the end I chose a single armchair.

via YUH@roomclip

The window must let you see the sky,

and natural changes like morning and evening glow,

which, set off against the warm lights inside the window,

will be an important source of happiness.

Source of happiness 3: Lighting

A bedroom shouldn't have too bright a ceiling light,

in fact it's best not to have a ceiling light at all,

but instead to use table lamps, pendant lamps and the like at varying heights,

placed near plants or decorations,

on one hand the faint light helps sleep,

on the other it creates layered light and shadow.

The lighting in Fox's bedroom still has much room for improvement.

For example, if there were an indirect light beside the plants,

the shadows of the leaves would be clearer,

and the whole room would have more atmosphere.

via milleam0ur@ins

For example, indirect lighting behind the headboard

can easily bring rich layers of light and shadow to a room.

via sarami_i@ins

One advantage table lamps have over ceiling lights

is that their light and shadow are richer,

creating a calm and happy atmosphere.

via ___ruu___@ins

Also, on sunny days, draw the double-layer curtains,

and the flowing white sheer curtain lets sunlight through,

keeping things bright without making the bedroom too harsh on the eyes.

But Fox is rarely in the bedroom during the day,

so the curtains were left unchanged.

Source of happiness 4: Functional layout with partitions

via a___l__e_@ins

This case, like Fox's,

uses a bedside table as a partition,

separating the two zones of bed and sofa.

A partition seems unremarkable,

but it makes the functions of the whole room clearer,

and living in it feels smoother.

(By the way, under the bed you can store a carry-on suitcase of about 20 inches)

via reroom.jp

A grid cabinet can also be used as a partition at the head or foot of the bed.

At the same time it has some storage function.

via rohirohi8@ins

One key point of room partitioning

is a sensible layout of functions.

For example, the desk placed at the head of the bed

faces the same direction as the sofa and the head of the bed,

so you can eat while watching TV.

After Fox's wardrobe was moved,

it stands side by side with the filing cabinet,

making the walkway a natural partition.

The projector is stored in the filing cabinet.

A little gap is left for storing the travel suitcase.

via namytone@ins

In Japan, grid shelving is a popular way to partition and store things in bedrooms,

because it can both hide and display,

and as long as items are arranged in orderly heights,

it won't look cluttered.

Finally,

some people may be curious

whether placing the bedside table at the foot of the bed

makes it inconvenient to use day to day.

Actually the phone still charges at the head of the bed,

and Fox's bedside table originally had an important function of storing remote controls,

but now the remotes stick magnetically to the wall beside the bed and the door.

This is more sensible than keeping them in the bedside table.

As long as you stick magnetic patches on both the remote and the wall,

they're both easy to fix in place and easy to take down!

In the desk storage article, Fox mentioned using magnets to hide power adapters,

but power adapters are too heavy,

so this kind of lightweight magnetic patch won't work; you need strong magnets.

This article is original content by the Desirable Life Study Group.

Please indicate the source when reposting.

Follow the Desirable Life Study Group

to learn more about desirable goods and Japanese-style lifestyle ideas.

Desirable Life is now collecting travel essentials.

From now until September 13 at 24:00,

Share any "travel essential,"

and add the #travel# hashtag,

whether it is a portable travel item or something that improves the travel experience,

Fox will carefully select 5 shares,

and give away any one item such as a waterproof zipper pouch, a toiletry bag, or foldable flip-flops.