Many people are spending  a lot of time in the house because of COVID-19, so they feel depression in daily life which unexpectedly changed, to the point where the word ‘Corona Blue’ which combines COVID-19 and blue were made. So that people make things hum in life and appease melancholy by giving new changes in the house through self-interior, tips for self-interior which becomes trendy will be introduced. I can get some tips from Choi Jong-myung, a professor of the Dept. of Clothing & Textiles at CBNU, and Park Ji-min, a professor of the Dept. of Residential Environment at CBNU and a head of Heights Design.


[Tip1 for Self-Interior: Choosing Color]

  The most important thing when you are doing interior design is choosing the right color. Johannes Itten, a painter of Swiss, said “Color is the energy that affects to people regardless of their consciousness, and it affects people’s emotions. Because a house is a place where people spend most of the time, people have to choose the color that affects their emotions greatly so that it has to be the most comfortable place psychologically. About the color for the interior, professor Choi said, “Ultimate gray and illuminating were chosen as the trendy colors of 2021 in PANTONE. Ultimate gray is dark gray color and illuminating is a dark yellow color. I refer you to using these colors when you are doing interior design. Gray and yellow have an eye-catching disposition at the same time because those are nearly complementary colors, so when you using all those two colors, your eyes may be hurt and feeling tired. We can feel an excessive sense. So, I recommend using white and soft gray color together or using white and yellow color together when you are doing interior design, not using just gray and just yellow in all.”
  When many people design interiors, white is being used as a basic color. White can give them a luxurious and neat feeling by the color itself. The gray color series can give us a luxurious feeling, too. However, when people design an interior with only a gray color series, it can give them a dull feeling. With the white and gray series which is the color of the year, you can give a trendy feeling and feel a narrow space wider. Therefore, it is recommended to use the white and gray series, if you want these senses.
  Yellow presents vitality, energy, youth, positive forms, a bright and warm mood. Because yellow is a color that gives people expansion, they can feel a narrow space wider. When using white color series in the interior, people can feel a brighter and warmer feeling. Therefore, if you want a fresh mood that is different from luxurious, it is recommended to use white and yellow.




[Tip2 for Self-Interior: Using Space Effectively]

  Not only color but also space is another factor that can affect strong people's emotions. No matter where people live in a wide space, the isolation effect can appear when people don’t use space effectively. The isolation effect is, at first, people feel stuffy and have a heavy heart, feel anxious, insecure emotion, and show violent behavioral reactions suddenly after. To diminish this isolation effect and keep people comfortable physically and mentally, space should be used effectively.
  Park Ji-min professor said “To use space efficiently, it’s most important to divide a room into a resting area and working area. Sometimes, some people don’t want to get out of bed, so do all things on the bed. They may think they have a rest, working on the bed for a while. However, it can never be at ease. Plus, space feels smaller if the resting area and working area overlap like this, and the rooms get messy quickly, which can cause psychological instability.”
  Currently, the importance of rest is being highlighted as ‘work-life balance’ has become a social issue. Then, how can we divide it into a resting area and working area to take enough rest? The answer is installing a fake wall.
  Installing a real wall with a lot of money can be an answer, but there are more efficient answers. They are using storage closets and curtains as the fake wall. It is comfortable to use the storage closets to save money and not have to produce a real wall. Also, the room looks neat, using the storage closets as a fake wall and keeping things. It’s important to select the height of the storage closets to choose them for the fake wall. It’s good to use high storage closets if the room is wide, but it’s recommended to use low storage closets if the room is narrow. Because if a high storage closet is in the middle of the narrow room, it may look stuffy and narrower.
  Curtains can be used as a fake wall instead of storage closets. It’s the advantage of the curtains that they are much cheaper than the storage closets and much easier to install. If the room is too small for the storage closet, it’s recommended to use the curtains to divide the space.




[Tip3 for Self-Interior: Choosing Accessories]

  Now that we have learned how to choose colors well and how to separate spaces, I’d like to introduce how to choose accessories well. The accessories are also important things in self-interior because they can change the atmosphere in the room. I’d like to introduce how to choose curtains and lighting, which are necessary things in the room.
  You have to install a curtain pole before choosing curtains, first. If you cannot install the curtain pole because you can’t drive a nail at home, using a compression pole, which can be installed without nails, or an adhesive curtain pole is recommended. It’s important to choose not only patterns and colors but also materials. Cotton materials are recommended if you want to manage easily and feel soft, silk materials are recommended if you want a luxurious atmosphere from luxurious shine, and linen materials are recommended if you want cool and natural mood.
  It’s important to choose the color temperature of lighting. Most people think that bright lightings, i.e. high color temperature lightings, keep their eyes and make their homes bright. However, it is said that using too bright lightings for a long time can cause fatigue in the eyes and reduce concentration. Therefore, it’s good to use low color temperature lightings when you rest, use high color temperature lightings when you concentrate, and use moderate color temperature daily. It is recommended to use a stand with high color temperature on the desk and mood light with low color temperature next to bed, because it may be difficult to install all the lights depending on the application. It’s good to decorate a room using plants or paintings besides curtains and lighting. Because plants or paintings can become point accessories and create a various atmosphere in a plain room. However, the room looks narrow and messy if there are a lot of accessories in the room. It’s best to minimize unnecessary things to secure clear and wide space in the narrow room.

By Ahn Min-joo l mj40@cbnu.ac.kr
By Kim Ji-min l jimin41@cbnu.ac.kr