3 min readBy leaning into design that reflects nature, we can create calming spaces that put our minds and bodies at ease. It’s why in a design industry increasingly focused on wellness, biophilic design has become the fast track to serenity at home. But for the uninitiated, it can be an intimidating prospect. That’s why interior designer and licensed therapist Anita Yokota created her Biophilic Blueprint: to reduce decision fatigue.
“We look at nature as a plethora of landscapes, and don’t know how to do ‘biophilic’, besides adding plants,” Yokota says. In her new book, Grounded Living, Yokota reveals her paint-by-numbers approach to biophilic design. By leaning into the four seasons and different climates, she came up with a matrix that acts as a starting point for your mood board.
Here’s how it works. First, select one of four landscapes that you feel emotionally connected to: Meadow, Ocean, Mountain, or Desert. Once you’ve done that, choose the season that best suits your aesthetic: winter, summer, spring, or fall. Follow that combination to find your biophilic blueprint, and follow Yokota’s matrix towards your first few design choices.
Specific biophilic design choices become much easier once you’ve found your nature archetype. If you’re a fall ocean, for example, weathered metal, stormy blues, and distressed leather chairs would be right at home. A winter mountain, by contrast, comes to life through charcoal gray, suede, and checkered upholstery.
If you’re not sure how to find the landscape that calls to you, Yokota recommends asking yourself the following questions:
- Where in nature do you feel most at ease?
- Where do you feel most like yourself?
You don’t have to launch a full-scale renovation to adopt the Biophilic Blueprint, either. Small, accessible changes to your home decor can bring your landscape to life. Simply introduce new colors (muted coral for the desert-dwellers) and materials (a lace table runner for the meadow-lovers).
Because you’re designing from a part of nature that makes you feel at home, if you need to make changes in the future, you can to do so with ease. “The beauty is that whether you’re choosing a pillow today or renovating a kitchen two years from now, you have the same underlying compass,” Yokota says. “And it can evolve as you do.”
The Biophilic Blueprint can also guide larger renovations and new builds. Start incorporating it into your biggest design decisions: the paint, lighting, tile, and flooring. Add natural stone floors for a Spring Mountain or frosted glass windows for a Winter Ocean. Remember to make sure it suits the room’s purpose; designing a home office for focus is different than creating a bedroom to rest in.
Yokota’s full biophilic blueprint matrix is published in her book, Grounded Living. And don’t think you need to overload on seashells for an ocean bedroom, or stock up on cacti for a desert kitchen.
“The goal isn’t to make your home literally look like the ocean, meadow, desert, or mountains,” Yokota says. “It’s to understand what you respond to in those environments and translate those qualities into a home that helps you feel more grounded, connected, and at ease.”
