Spring greens to refresh your workplace
Despite the wind and rain in the past few weeks in the UK, Spring feels as though it’s just around the corner. It might just be time to open the windows, revel in the early sun and refresh your work environment.
Green in colour psychology
Green is the obvious choice to bring the outside indoors with its association with nature. Colour psychology looks at the effect of colour on mood in a variety of environments. Findings from a 2016 review of colour psychology studies in the workplace conclude*:
‘Green evokes the most positive emotional responses and is associated with relaxation, calmness, and happiness'(Kaya et al., 2004)
An article on hrdive.com looking at colour theory in office design supports this, with green described as calming and relaxing.
You can wheel our ThinkingWall Freestander anywhere – take your meeting outside!
Adding a touch of green
You don’t have to get the paintbrushes out and re-do a full wall. It’s easy to add some touches of green colour, like these end panels on our ThinkingWall Divider. This brings some colour to an otherwise neutral toned office. At the same time it isn’t distracting when the whiteboard is in use, as the writing surface is plain.
Or how about these Magnote magnetic notes, for use on any magnetic receptive surface and available in packs of all green or mixed colours? We can make custom shaped magnets too, like these green stars.
Coloured writing surfaces
Coloured dry wipe boards can have some advantages over standard white. Not only can they contribute to a brighter, fresher colour palette but they also help create a more inclusive work environment. Studies suggest that coloured surfaces rather than white can help people with visual perceptual distortion.
Biophilia
Increasing the number of plants in the workplace can have positive effects on the wellbeing of workers. As well as this though, according to Kenneth Freeman of Ambius writing in WorkDesign Magazine:
‘When deployed sufficiently throughout an office space, plants can improve air quality and help with noise reduction’
Office interior specialists such as Vantage Spaces use plants at different heights built into their overall design. This allows them to become part of the overall floorspace without being obtrusive.
Moss walls such as this one by Office Reality are low maintenance and have a natural ability to absorb sound. A moss panel would make a great alternative to the standard acoustic material in our ThinkingWall mobile acoustic whiteboard as well as adding colour.
Green sounds
You can even incorporate fresh ‘green’ sounds by running one of many nature sound videos in a breakout space. We recently completed a project that combined a whiteboard room divider with a TV unit, perfect for providing screened private area that can also double as a casual meeting spot.
*The Effects of Colour in Work Environment: A systematic review by Nattha Savavibool, Birgitta Gatersleben and Chumporn Moorapun
