Restorative Recharge Room Designers

What is a recharge room, restorative space or wellness room?

A set-piece interior space focusing on occupants’ mental wellbeing typically deploying some combination of:

• wellness lighting (dimmable light levels, Circadian lighting in tune with our 24 hour internal clock, coloured LEDs)

• sound wellness therapies and soundscapes (water features, nature sounds, sound masking strategies)

• acoustic materials to reduce outside sonic distractions that could cause low level stress

• thermal comfort (sun-exposed outdoor spaces or carefully shaded areas, comfortable indoor temperatures)

• ergonomic seating arrangements (movable light weight chairs, floor cushions, yoga mats, blankets or soft sofas)

• biophilic design (calming natural colors, patterns or textures as well as living or preserved plants)

• visual privacy (in order to complete internal practices such as prayers, meditation or a power nap)

• healthy, non-toxic materials to avoid indoor pollutants that negatively impact air quality

• restorative audio-visual content delivered either in real life or in digital format (meditation, mindfulness, sound baths)

• scent (via essential oils) can be infused into the room to calm, refresh, invigorate or restore

Concept design for an eco-friendly Zen Room in a student accommodation development

A safe, nourishing cocoon in which to take a quiet moment, either alone or in small groups, away from the pressures of the outside world.

Clusters of air-purifying plants combine with healthy, non-toxic materials for enhanced indoor air quality.

Acoustic ceiling panels, acoustic partition wall insulation and acoustic curtains in each corner isolate external noise.

LED lighting nestled into the plants below and ceiling panels above follows the body's natural 24-hr rhythm, adjusting with the seasons.

Residents have digital access to sound therapies, gong baths and guided meditations streamed via surround sound speakers and a wide screen.

Meditation cushions, blankets and floor pillows invite a 'shoes off' experience.

Suitable for small workshops and holistic classes.

Our wellness room concept design for a tech company office

This sustainable interior design concept was based on a modest 30m2 room with no natural light. We took into consideration all the senses in our design concept, from sight, sound and scent to touch as these are fundamental in creating an immersive experience that can have a tangible impact on a range of mental wellbeing markers for those who spend time here.

For our office quiet room we used healthy non-toxic materials, biodesign lampshades, acoustic wall panels made of mycelium, air-purifying plants, bio-based coffee tables and biophilic design floor rugs combined with forest phytoncide aromatherapy and biophilic sound recordings from a nearby park blended with binaural beats.

be sure to click the play button on the image above first!

nature inspired restorative wellness room design

For this wellness room concept we used upcycled wood panels on the lateral walls supporting two plant wall panels with addition high-lux lights suspended from the ceilings to provide the plants with the light they require to thrive long-term.

A dramatic cork wall feature is carefully illuminated to highlight its intricate curves and creases while a fully biodegradable, turf-life rug with a dense pile and subtle undulations underfoot is intended to provide the sense of walking on grass in a field.

A cluster of pendant lamps are made of bio-based materials such as coffee grinds and orange peel, maintaining the overall colour palette whilst enhancing the overtly eco-conscious interior design, aiming for minimal environmental impact and maximum wellness benefits for users of the room.

Luminaires replicate natural daylight in tune with the seasons before fading to softer amber tones after dark so as not to distrupt sleep patterns.

Acoustic sound insulation in the walls removes outside distractions and we then pipe in nature sounds with user access to a curated playlist on a tablet.

mental fitness space for office workers

This mental wellness and cognitive performance concept was designed for Goldkern in Munich, Germany. The intention is to provide a place for office workers to recharge, refresh and return to work with boosted productivity, creativity and cognitive function.

We do this via a combination of biophilic design, natural non-toxic materials such as cork flooring and sustainably made yoga mats, as well as an in real life component of led meditations and coaching sessions by the Goldkern team.

Gentle stretching, ground movements and drills that engage coordination skills, balance and proprioception / body control compliment these elements by stimulating motor neurons in the brain - better than an espresso we say!

biophilic wellness rooms for students at medical university

We refurbished and converted a small 30m2 office space within the Health Promotion Unit at the Karolinska Medical University in Stockholm, Sweden.

Complimenting the existing ‘white room’ and yoga room, the purpose of this space was to provide an uplifting and energizing space for students to have a quick 10-20 minute ‘movement snack’ during the day, perhaps not a full workout but at least something, which is always better than nothing.

By integrating the space fully into the university and breaking down the walls between a gym space and the rest of the university, we invited a less formal and structured attitude, instead of ‘working out’ this is a place to play, experiment, balance, juggle, do a few pull-ups, push-ups or squats and stretch a little.

On the assumption that many students never make it to the university gym, we took the gym to the students and tried to make it experiential with a Swedish moss forest floor concept, lots of plants, equipment made of solid wood and none of the typical gym equipment they might usually expect.

By creating an element of surprise and removing any stigma about changing into gym gear, this space was in its own way, quite revolutionary, largely thanks to the progressive vision of the university staff.

We designed an environmentally-friendly ‘quiet room’ for the global headquarters of a Swiss health food business featuring a recycled carpet tiles in grass green, smart lighting systems designed to follow the body’s circadian rhythm, organic cotton loungers for power naps during the workday, FSC certified wood furniture for a lunch meeting or deep work session, and an air purifier for added health benefits.

We then added in forest aromatherapy and nature sounds to encourage staff to make use of the space whenever they feel the need.

See the case study for our work at the Hero Group offices here.

In MIND feature V07 of the WELL healthy building standard the focus is on providing restorative environments that promote mental wellbeing by reducing stress and mental fatigue. This could be in an office environment or indeed a student accommodation building, hotel or yoga studio.

Wellness design features here will include lighting, sound, thermal comfort, seating, nature, colours & privacy. The standard also specifies signage and/or educational materials to help communicate the room features - this could be via a QR code or printed material available in-room at all times.

The space has to be at least 75 sq ft in size but anything up to 2000 sq ft seems reasonable, depending on the context and levels of anticipated demand, group size and so on.

Dimmable lighting, nature sounds, shade from direct sunlight, biophilia, comfortable ergonomic seating arrangements that encourage relaxation, natural colours and materials, visual privacy, and then the all-important question of audio-visual content to bring the whole space to life accessible either on demand or delivered automatically on a 24hr cycle for example.

In early 2018 we created a nature-inspired recharge room or ‘restorative space’ in a waterfront greenhouse for real estate developer EcoWorld Ballymore in London’s Canary Wharf business district, bringing in scientists from the University of Essex (UK) to assess the impact of the biophilic interiors on our visitors during their busy (and likely stressful / high powered) work days. See the full case study for this research project here or see below.

Wellness rooms in the workplace, a.k.a office recharge rooms, are special rooms designed to enhance the working conditions in offices, with the goal to increase employee productivity and wellbeing while also allowing space for rest and mental recovery. A wellness room at work is a space where staff can recharge, focus and return to their desk feeling revitalized.

To recreate a wellness room at work, we introduce key biophilic principles and biophilic features such as:

• Indoor plants & biophilia

• Wellness & circadian rhythm lighting

• Forest sounds & aromatherapy

• Organic textures & materials

• Air purifier & humidifier

A total of 108 local office workers spent an average of 60 minutes with us, benefiting from restored energy levels, a renewed sense of calmness, improved mood and greater cognitive function, thereby proving the positive effects of biophilic features on wellness rooms in the workplace..