VARIETY IS THE SPICE OF LIFE: HOMES THAT WILL NEVER BORE YOU

Thermal and Airflow Variability: The Biophilic Pattern (P4) That Will Keep You Guessing

Most of us have experienced restlessness that precedes the dreaded...boredom. What is worse than a mind searching for something stimulating? When our bodies also become bored, searching for something provocative. This doubling down often manifests in an overall sense of impatience with ourselves and anyone else who is unlucky enough to be in our vicinity. Unwittingly, we are often our own worst enemy because, in our pursuit of a controlled environment, we suck the spontaneity right out of a room. First world problems perhaps.

Regardless, through mountains of research, scientists are discovering that in our quest to improve, do better, and be better, we have edited out some essential characteristics to our wellbeing. In our Goldilocks crusade to consistently establish the perfect environment we have inadvertently turned our backs on one of Mother Nature's gifts, diversity. Experiencing a variation in temperature and ventilation is vitalizing for both the body and mind. It can keep our tactile senses entertained providing the space for the mind to focus, or relax, depending on one's goal. Imagine relaxing in hot bath, surrounded by cool air, occasionally experiencing a current of warmth from a fireplace. Delicious sensations.

Early studies in alliesthesia indicate that pleasant thermal sensations are better perceived when one's initial body state is warm or cold, not neutral (e.g., Mower, 1976), which corroborates more recent studies reporting that a temporary over-cooling of a small portion of the body when hot, or over-heating when cold, even without impacting the body’s core temperature, is perceived as highly comfortable. (Mower,1976 | Arens et al., 2006)

We live during a time when our environment is in conflict. Not only have many human behaviors contributed to its inhospitable shifting, solutions have been widely politicized. This leaves many of us feeling helpless to protect ourselves against pollutants and global warming. This is why Lynn Wallace, a kitchen and bath specialist in the Interior Architecture and Design industry, is on a mission to help people take some control back. Interior design has solutions that people can implement on their own, easily, affordably, and without needing to wait for politics. Our dwellings can become our personal Home-Health-Hubs. It is the one place that we can implement biophilic patterns, appliances and technology to improve and sustain our wellbeing.

Other than "entertaining" our senses, how does P4 benefit our health and wellbeing? Why should it be included in home improvement? Many of us feel bombarded by what we should be doing everyday to be a healthy individual. From adding vitamins to our diet to recycling everything we use in our home, we are told to incorporate multiple changes in our lifestyle. Including biophilic patterns in our home design helps us to take a holistic approach to creating a support system . It is effortless and passive. We don't need to set reminders or maintain a routine. We are able to increase our wellbeing by simply existing in our homes. With a biophilic pattern foundation we can set our minds to focus on more proactive changes. P4, in particular, focuses on "soft fascination".

Soft Fascination is a keystone of Attention Restoration Theory (ART). Softly fascinating stimuli creates a space in mental capacity that allows for reflection and rumination. This means that everyday activities can become regenerative instead of draining. For example, a walk in the park is a soft fascination that can leave us feeling inspired. Conversely, watching TV is actually a hard fascination that keeps us focused and can leave us tired or looking for something to do after a program is over. It has also been discovered that being surrounded by soft fascinating stimuli can increase or ability to focus and our productivity!

This is where the field of interior architecture and design plays a strong role. It can be overwhelming to know where all of the opportunities are for layering P4 into your kitchen or bath remodel. Designers like Lynn Wallace are trained to spot those opportunities and include them. It is really taking a close look at how Mother Nature provides this stimulus and creating a combination of inclusiveness. Sometimes the stimuli can be included naturally other times it needs to be simulated with technology, appliances, fixtures, or mechanical.

How might Lynn go about adding P4 to your kitchen or bath remodel? If the goal is to experience variations in temperature based on sunlight and airflow, passive solar and cooling would be the first step. Transoms are an excellent way to circulate air from the outside of the home and throughout the interior. HVAC that purifies the air as well as random distribution is another method. Fireplaces create currents of heat to walk through. Everything can be managed by an app that runs through a wifi hub like Alexa or Google home.

PASSIVE SOLAR AND COOLING: The extended roofline that we are familiar with in Palm Springs shades during the summer but allows the heat from the sun in during the winter when it sits lower in the sky. ENERGY.GOV describes it like this: Solar heat is transferred from where it is collected and stored to different areas of the house by conduction, convection, and radiation. In some homes, small fans and blowers help distribute heat. Conduction occurs when heat moves between two objects that are in direct contact with each other, such as when a sun-heated floor warms your bare feet. Convection is heat transfer through a fluid such as air or water, and passive solar homes often use convection to move air from warmer areas -- a sunspace, for example -- into the rest of the house. Radiation is what you feel when you stand next to a wood stove or a sunny window and feel its warmth on your skin. Darker colors absorb more heat than lighter colors, and are a better choice for thermal mass in passive solar homes.

TRANSOMS: Operable transoms used in both the exterior and the interior will help gently pull breezes throughout the home. From left to right: a transom window in the shower enabling steam to be vented and serves as an entrance for wind depending on the orientation of the house, three transoms in the laundry room allows for natural light and cooling, non-op transoms in the shower brings in natural light that shifts with the sun.

WINDOW COVERINGS: Hunter Douglas features a mid-century modern home in Palm Springs that allows for varying levels of sun and ventilation. For slightly more privacy the window coverings can close with door open allowing minor amounts of fresh air in without fully obstructing the view. Vertical blinds create architectural shadows that shift with the movement of the sun while filtering heat.

HEATING: Whether your source is the HVAC system or a fireplace, creating intermittent currents of heat can be a comforting environment. Just at the moment one becomes aware that they are starting to chill, along comes a current to provide contrast. This also serves as a reminder to take a break and move. Sometimes that is getting up to grab a blanket or just uncover one's feet. These simple short movements is the equivalent to refreshing a page on the computer.

ORIENTATION: Remodels are just as accountable to orientation on a lot as a new build. This is true whether you are building a casita or extending the footprint for an additional bedroom or more space for a master bathroom. How you orient the extension based on the sun path or a wind study of your lot can mean the difference between stale or fresh air flowing through your home. Each time we add an obstacle (such as a wall) to the environment, we create a micro climate. Designers can help determine what is optimal for enjoying warmth or staying cool. Orientation challenges can sometimes be mitigated with interior or exterior green walls.

Something to remember about biophilic patterns is, they are not a formula. This means that they are super flexible and can be tailored to your lifestyle. From air purification in doors or operable windows that let the outside in, technology and Mother Nature work in tandem to give you the optimal living conditions. If you have the time to do the research and discover where all of the opportunities are for elevating your wellbeing and quality of life, go for it! You will be amazed at how much these patterns, that we often take for granted, effect or physical and psychological well being.

If time is of the essence or this all seems overwhelming, a design specialist is your most efficient answer. The design phase of a project is where there is opportunity to save money and get the most amenities and "extras" out of the design. Push your home improvement to the maximum return on the budget. If implementing biophilic patterns into our kitchen and bath remodels saves money, protects us from rolling blackouts, improves our physiology, improves our emotional wellbeing, and makes us feel beautiful and invigorated when we use the space, isn't it worth looking into? Simple. Easy. Good for you and good for the environment.