THE MEANING OF IKIGAI:

Ikigai, pronounced “ee-kee-ga-ee”, originated during the Heian Period (794 CE to 1185 CE) in Japan and has since been intertwined with the cultural basis of Japan for centuries. Ikigai stems from the Japanese words iki (life) and gai (which means worth and is an alteration of kai). Together these words formed the new cultural concept of Ikigai which encourages you to live a life that you find valuable.

When we consider the meaning of Ikigai as regarding our life’s purpose, we tend to focus on our purpose which expands over our entire lifetime. In this interpretation, Ikigai can feel overwhelming, especially due to the ever-changing nature of our lives. In Japan, there are two different words for a lifetime (jinsei) and daily life (seikatsu), and Ikigai relates more to everyday living. Ikigai is a concept that can be embraced in your daily life and encourages you to find worth, fulfilment, and purpose in every day. When you focus on embracing Ikigai daily, your life as a whole becomes a purposeful and joyful experience effortlessly.

In Western culture, Ikigai is usually demonstrated using a Venn diagram which links passion, motivation, profession, and vocation. Ikigai is achieved when there is a harmony between what you love, doing what you enjoy and what you are good at doing, and improving the world around you. In Japanese culture, Ikigai rarely incorporates profession and vocation into Ikigai, but due to the personal nature of Ikigai, whatever brings value into your life can be included in this concept.

 

The definition of a valuable life differs among every person. Essentially, a life in which Ikigai is embraced should result in your awakening every day with excitement and contentment. Ikigai leaves you feeling empowered to move beyond the mundane rituals of everyday life or find joy in simple moments. Ikigai is essentially a practical guide towards embracing simplicity, happiness, and satisfaction daily.

Embracing Ikigai in your life and home is a personal journey filled with continuous change and empowerment. Ikigai creates the opportunity to take action and explore the unique value of your life and start intertwining your passions, work, and what the world needs into a balanced and fulfilling experience. Ikigai is a sustained evolution in which you become enlightened to your unique passions and motivations and willingly act to pursue these.

HOW TO EMBRACE IKIGAI IN YOUR HOME:

Ikigai is not a design style but rather the journey of instilling balance in your life between what you love, what you do, and the world around you. Your home is your sanctuary which allows for you to craft the perfect equilibrium of rest, growth, work, and fulfilment, and is, therefore, the perfect space to embrace Ikigai. We highlight the ways that you can embrace Ikigai in your home along with the benefits that it will bring to your space and lifestyle in your sanctuary.

1) PURPOSEFUL SPACE:

Ikigai encourages pursuing and acting on your passions. Ikigai emphasises the uncovering of what fills you with joy and happiness and then acting practically towards the intertwining of your passions into your daily life. When you pursue your passions as inspired by Ikigai, everything in your life and your home falls into place.

Your home is your oasis where you are free to explore and enjoy your passions. You may be passionate about music, art, or reading, or simply gathering around the dinner table with your family or watching your favourite series with your loved one at the end of each day. A purposefully designed home will allow you to embrace your passions in your home and embark on your Ikigai journey.

If your passion is cooking, for example, your kitchen will be the heart of your home in which you will intentionally apply your Ikigai design focus. Ikigai in design can include sweeping granite countertops that allow for you to prepare glorious dishes, wide windows which allow light to flood in as you prepare your favourite meal, or selectively chosen seating at the end of your counter which will allow your whole family to sit alongside you as you enjoy your passion. Purposefully crafted spaces in your home that are guided by your unique passions will reflect Ikigai in the design of your home.

A benefit to crafting Ikigai through purposeful spaces in your home is the achievement of balance. Purposeful spaces in your home allow you to enjoy both your passions and relaxation in a harmonious way. A purposefully designed home allows for you to achieve a sanctuary in which you can approach your life beyond the comfort of your home with contentment and joy.

2) GUIDING QUALITY:

Ikigai inspires leading a life of purpose, meaning, and worth. These principles then act as a guide when selecting your passions to pursue, your profession, and can be applied to the design of your home. When all these things merge cohesively, you achieve a life of quality, beauty, and continuous self-discovery.

 

The advantage of embracing Ikigai in the style of your home is that it offers guidance on how to furnish your home. A quality life can be inspired by the quality of the items you incorporate into the design of your home. Intertwining quality furniture pieces is especially important as high-quality furniture will offer you comfort, longevity, functionality, and sustained enjoyment. What better way to embrace a quality life guided by Ikigai than from the comfort of your home filled with quality furnishings.

3) MOTIVATING COLOURS:

Ikigai opens up the opportunity to discover what motivates you in your life, work, and home. Motivation is essential in the balance of Ikigai in your life and home as it enables you to act on your passions. Ikigai encourages mindfulness between the pairing of beauty and functionality to craft a space in which you can feel passionate, motivated, and fulfilled.

Both beauty and functionality can be blended into a source of motivation through the colour scheme of your home. Colours are deeply connected to eliciting emotional responses and can be a personal source of motivation in your home. For example, blues instil calmness, relaxation, and inspire feelings of safety whereas greens are associated with nature and thus invite sensations of prosperity, freshness, and stability. The colour you select for each purposeful space in your home will guide your relationship to the space and motivate you to pursue your Ikigai journey.

4) PERSONAL TOUCHES:

Ikigai instils a focus on purpose and balance to achieve happiness in daily life. One way to instil happiness in your home is to incorporate personal touches in the design. In Ikigai, there is no right or wrong way to approach instilling meaning in your life. In the same way, there is no incorrect way to add touches of your personality into your home. When you achieve a sensation of joy, happiness, and satisfaction when you walk through the door of your home, then you know you have accentuated Ikigai in the design of your space.

Being surrounded by personal and comforting items in your home allows for personal reflection. Through personal reflection, you can uncover what a meaningful, satisfying, and happy lifestyle looks like in your life, and thus embrace Ikigai wholeheartedly. By adding personal touches, like a collection of books passed down from your grandfather or a jewellery stand displaying your mother’s necklaces, your home will continuously bring a smile to your face. Crafting a space of happiness through personalised touches will then motivate you to seek happiness in all facets of your life in true Ikigai nature.

ABOUT LOUW ROETS DESIGNER FURNITURE:

Louw Roets designer furniture is a balance of beauty, comfort, and functionality. The elegant and simple designs of Louw Roets designer furniture embody subtle luxury that is crafted in a personalised and passionate manner. Intertwining Louw Roets designer furniture into your home or business will be the harmonisation between your space and sophistication.

The Louw Roets designer furniture collection encompasses a range of tables, chairs, lighting, and collectable artworks. From the Louw Roets Commodore Table to the Louw Roets Split Chair to the Louw Roets Nautilus Pendant, every designer furniture piece is crafted to inspire a connection between you and your personalised environment. In the same way that Ikigai inspires leading a fulfilling life, Louw Roets designer furniture inspires satisfaction and comforting design in your home.

Ikigai aims to instil a commitment towards leading a purposeful life. Louw Roets designer furniture is purposefully designed to encapsulate practicality and functionality. The simple and comfortable design of the Louw Roets Jardine Chair paired with the smooth flow of the Louw Roets Society Dining Table and all situated beneath the gentle warmth of the Louw Roets Beam Light is a demonstration of how each designer furniture piece is practically designed to function together symbiotically. When the purposeful design of Louw Roets designer furniture is paired with your unique uses of the furniture, a synergy is formed that enables a purposeful experience in your home.

A life of quality, value, and beauty that is embraced by Ikigai can be interwoven into your home with Louw Roets designer furniture. Louw Roets designer furniture is crafted using exceptional, natural materials and dedicated craftsmanship. The combination of the woods, metals, leathers, and glass with the skill and commitment of the Louw Roets artisan craftsmen ensures that every furniture piece is of the highest quality. Louw Roets designer furniture will provide you with satisfaction and sophistication throughout every moment of your Ikigai journey.

Louw Roets designer furniture is available in a variety of natural and organic tones that is balanced with select pops of colour. The soft and subtle bone wood tone of the Louw Roets Pareto Table can be elegantly balanced against the refreshing green in the Louw Roets Husse Chair or the striking red paper cord of the Louw Roets Society Stool. Selecting a colour style that instils passion and motivation in you is effortless with Louw Roets designer furniture.

To witness the artful combination of beauty, functionality, and comfort, you can visit the Louw Roets designer furniture showroom. Located in Somerset West, the Louw Roets designer furniture showroom is easily accessible from Cape Town and surrounding areas.

Embrace Ikigai in your home with purposeful space, passionate colours, personal touches, quality pieces, and Louw Roets designer furniture.