More than a few St. Cloud residents see the first days of January as annual invitations to invent (in the lexicon of self-help gurus) “a new you.” A concerted effort to follow through on a New Year’s resolution is one way to prevent falling prey to the darker moods that winter’s shortened daylight hours can foster in many people. Another approach—one with St. Cloud real estate implications—was offered in an ABC News article authored by Drs A. Zellmer and J. Lius last week. It promoted a New Year’s resolution that more directly targets the sunlight deficit: “Practicing hygge can help you beat the ‘winter blues’: Here’s how”.  

St. Cloud real estate followers will recognize the “hygge” term from a half dozen years ago when it became popular as a movement championing home interior designs that foster a cozy, comfortable ambiance. Hygge (pronounced ‘HOO-ga’) is a Danish word that describes an approach to living that prioritizes affection, togetherness, and slow living in general. As applied to St. Cloud residential real estate, it means everything from swapping bright fluorescents for warm lightbulbs in lamps to, as one (non-ABC) media has it, “all the coziness, kinship, and candles of a thousand Hallmark movies.”  

It’s no coincidence that the concept originated in Denmark, one of the Scandinavian countries with pronouncedly deep, dark winter months. In the U.S., one fellow at the American Psychological Association cites the comforting effect lighting and aromas can provide: “Research has shown that the smell of lavender and vanilla is particularly relaxing to the population at large.” Especially when the weather turns nasty, some American stagers recognize that a dash or two of hygge could be just what a house needs “to make a tired winter buyer feel warm and fuzzy enough to make an offer.”

Whether or not you resolve to add a ‘dash or two’ of hygge to your own home environment, for you, your family, and all of our St. Cloud neighbors, here’s wishing you a most prosperous, healthy, and altogether successful 2023!   

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