Top 10 ways to make your care home room feel like home

Moving into a care home can be one of the most difficult things they do in life. But there are many ways you can make your care home room feel homely.

Personalising your room can make the big step of moving into a care home a little smaller and helps you keep your identity. Making your room as homely as possible through decorating and furnishing can bring comfort, help you settle in and adapt quicker to living in a care home.

For many people, moving to a care home is a very positive experience as they may have felt very isolated living at home and residential care enables them to socialise and eat good, nutritious meals.

Below we have compiled a top 10 list of ways to make your care home room more homely.

Pictures help with reminiscing

Putting up pictures of family members and friends, holidays and special occasions is an easy way to make you feel at home and puts a personal touch on your room. Pictures can greatly help with reminiscing, keeping memories alive help you feel close to the ones you love.

Pictures also provide a talking point for visitors and staff and remind you that you are loved. Don’t hesitate to put new pictures up as well, you can create new memories in a care home too.

Give your room a homely smell

People strongly associate smells with their homes and memories.

Replicating the smell of your home using scented candles or air fresheners can bring comfort and help with reminiscing. Bringing items from home that hold familiar smells adds to the homely feel and is a great way to personalise your room.

Bring items of emotional value

Ornaments and family heirlooms can hold great emotional value and create a real sense of home.

Many collect items over the years that hold personal value, such as gifts from family members, trinkets and treasures from travels or postcards and placing these around your room gives it a personal touch.

Furnishing creates a familiar environment

If the care home allows, bringing pieces of furniture is another good way to personalise your room and make it more familiar. If you have a favourite chair or chest of drawers, it is a good idea to bring these as they can hold sentimental value.

Keep in mind any furnishing needs to be fire retardant for health and safety reasons.

Replicate a space from home

One idea is to replicate a space from your home to make the new environment familiar.

For example, if you have a chest of drawers with framed pictures on it at home, it could be an idea to recreate this in your care home room.

Sleep well with your own bedding

Bringing your own bedspread or other bedding, if the care home allows, can turn your new bed into your own, making you feel safer and more comfortable at night.

With your own bedding, you can also make the room more vibrant with colours of your liking.

Colours create vibrancy

Decorating your room in your favourite colours helps you create a home from home. This can include personal items of value as well as furnishing.

Painting the walls to match your bedroom at home can be a great idea too if the care home allows.

Flowers that make you feel at home

Having your favourite flowers adds a welcoming touch and personality to your room.

Fresh flowers can also bring a lovely smell, but be wary of allergies and bacteria. Dried or silk flowers may be an option for bringing a little life into the room.

Music for the senses

For many, music has been a big part of their lives and people’s memories can be strongly linked to a certain song or album.

Bringing a radio, a CD player or other music devices can enable you to go back in time and re-live precious moments.

Bring things that help you maintain your independence

Moving into a care home is a big change but doing the things you used to can help you feel more at home.

This can include material for hobbies or a kettle to make a hot drink for yourself or when family members come to visit.

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