As we evolve, our homes should too, and new research carried out by leading paint brand, Valspar, is proving exactly that. Of course, we know by now that many of us (23%) work from our newly coined ‘hybrid-living’ rooms and even bedrooms (13%), but how else have we adapted our homes, and what elements impact our happiness at home the most?
The research that surveyed 2,000 adults in the UK was conducted as Valspar launches its new Premium Walls & Ceilings paint with Life-Kind technology. Over the past two years, over half of us (52%) have altered a room in terms of its traditional purpose – but the data shows that our living rooms are not the only multi-purpose areas we’re spending time in.
A quarter of Brits (25%) play and entertain in our bedrooms, with over 18% of us eating in there too! 17% of us exercise in the boudoir, with 13% of us using our bedrooms for our favourite hobbies. When it comes to other multi-functional spaces in the house, 10% of us find joy in singing in the bathroom with 6% of us using the bathroom, or rather, relaxation station, to meditate. 8% of Brits can be found dancing in the kitchen, while 18% entertain in the kitchen, or choose to unwind or relax there (13%). Over the last two years, 45% of us spend more time doing hobbies at home, half of us (50%) spend more time cooking meals from scratch, and 46% of us watch more TV together as a family than we did before!
The research revealed that 31% of Brits spent more money on their homes than they did in the last two years, which makes sense seeing as though 69% of us have done some form of home improvement over that same period. Getting creative with our decor has a significant positive impact on us, with data showing that 79% of Brits feel glad after painting a space in their home, 75% of us feel a sense of achievement after painting a room, and 73% of us feel happier in general.
With hybrid living spaces and many of us spending more time at home, it’s fitting that improving our home aesthetic is becoming more important to us as a nation. Furthermore, it’s more important now than ever, to embrace clean and eco-friendly products in the spaces we’re increasingly spending more time in. Not only is this beneficial for our own health, but for our surroundings as well.
Tobie Lewis, Senior Brand Manager at Valspar Paint says: ”Knowing that we’re spending way more time at home and becoming more house proud, we wanted to offer our customers a paint that was not only high-quality, but a safer and healthier product too.
The new Life-Kind formula has ultra-low VOCs, which essentially means there are minimal volatiles in the air as the paint dries, seriously reducing the impact on indoor air quality when decorating. In short, it’s a family-friendly option for every kind of life – including the 8 million British people who have asthma[1] and the 1.6mn with eczema[2]!”
Replacing Valspar’s current top range v700 product, Premium Walls & Ceilings with Life-Kind is now accredited by Allergy UK and The Eco Institute has also analysed and approved the level of heavy metals in the new formula, certifying it safe for both pets and children.
This is apt, because when asked about the top things that make us happy at home, 36% of Brits rated having pets as one of the top 5 most important factors. The other elements (rated as the top 5 most important) included: Cleanliness (64%); A quiet Street (51%); Natural light (58%); Good neighbours (44%); Views of nature (34%); Nice smells (37%) and Nice wall colours (32%).
