Creating a Home Yoga Studio

Step 3: Yogi Badge

Doing yoga at home is a special kind of satisfying. There is nothing like contorting your body into new shapes in the privacy of your own home. Home yoga is even better when you have everything you need for a yoga session at your finger tips.

As Elizabeth and I were working on our Yogi Badge I realized I was missing something that could really up my yogi game. A dedicated space to practice yoga right in my own home! A quick search gave us lots of inspiration and we were ready to create yoga spaces in our own homes.

A dedicated yoga space is a great way to increase your yoga practice. Not only is a home yoga space more convenient than a 30 minute drive (in a snowstorm) to a studio, but it can also be tailored to fit your needs and preferences. Join us as we learn about creating an inviting home yoga studio. Then, we’ll implement what we learned in our own homes, transitioning both a large and a small space into home yoga studios.

In Step 1 of the Yogi Badge we researched the ancient history, types, and terminology of yoga. Read all about it here. We also dove into the benefits of yoga and basic poses. In Step 2 of the Yogi Badge we focused on the practice of yoga and completed a 30 Day Yoga Challenge. Most recently, we made yoga mat bags! If you’d like to earn the Yogi Badge, check out the information in the gray box below.

Earn the Yogi Badge

If you are interested in earning the Yogi Badge yourself, you can see the Yogi Badge Guide, or “recipe” for the badge here. Each Badge Guide contains three steps to be completed in order to earn the badge. These steps can be done on your own, but we encourage you to grab a few friends and learn together!

Step 3 of any badge is to take action and/or create something. We decided to create a dedicated space in our homes to do yoga!

Creating a Home Yoga Space

BeYogi offers a few ideas to consider when setting up your space:

A small space is really all you need. It’s okay if the space is multipurpose.
Use scent. Aroma can be a powerful and easy way to transform a space. Consider using candles, essential oils, incense, or sage.
Create space for you gear. This can be as simple as a natural basket on a shelf. Keep you mat, blocks, candles, blankets, bolster, straps and socks nearby and in a convenient location.
Make the space appealing (to you). A beautiful space will call you to it. Remove clutter and fill the space with beauty. Consider creating an alter. An alter is different for everyone. It often contains meaningful small objects such as candles, pictures, crystals or other things from nature.
Bring Vastu to your space. Increasing the energy in a certain location is the science of vastu. Vastu is similar to Feng Shui. A space with Vastu should be: comfortable, pleasing to look at, and spiritually satisfying. Symmetry is key when accessorizing your space.

I also considered ideas from Yoga Journal when creating my home yoga space:

Declutter-limit distractions.
Choose Calm Colors.
Consider Lighting-install dimmer switches and use dimmable lamps. Filter sunlight with light drapes or curtains.
Add Accessories with Meaning– scented candles, aromatherapy, items from nature (plants/rocks/crystals). Find a unique way to store your gear in the space (antique trunk, beautiful basket).
Add a Focal Point-look for an interesting sculpture or piece of art to add to your space. Consider a window as a focal point. Observing the seasons change as you practice cultivates awareness (I love this).

K’s Home Yoga Studio

Transitioning a large space to a cozy home yoga studio

I have a large multipurpose room in my walkout basement. Half the room is used for movie watching and has two cozy couches facing a built-in TV. The other half of the room contains a wall of bookshelves and our extra dining table. This part of the room is used perhaps 10 times per year when our daughters host get togethers with their friends. As I am about to become an empty nester I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to turn this space into a room for me.

I started by emptying all the bookshelves and sorting through the books and knickknacks that have lived on the shelves for many years. I had a huge pile to give away (yes I thanked each and every one for their service). I then replaced the books and items I was keeping in a more pleasing way. I tried to include more nature and soothing art pieces. I also attempted to hide some of the less appealing items in baskets. This included mismatched photo albums and scrapbooks. I also included a basket for my yoga gear.

Next, I moved around furniture that was in the space that I did not find conducive to a soothing environment. This included my daughters doll house (which was relocated to the other side of the room), a popcorn maker and stand (which was donated), our kitty condo and my husband’s really gross trophy fish. Another very important change for me was including a heat source. Our basement is rather chilly in the winter. I felt strongly that in order for me to feel welcomed in the space I needed to be warm. For the time being we added a ho-hum space heater. We may upgrade this to something more stylish later.

Thinning out the bookcase and furniture made a huge difference. The space felt much calmer and more inviting. We turned the table and then moved it to the side of the room to create floor space for two to three yoga mats.

From my home studio research I reflected on where to put my focal point. Because my home practice usually involves watching a YouTube video placed in front of me I decided to make my focus my alter. I put several items on a tray that could be moved from the shelf and put on the floor next to my mat when practicing. I included several candles, a plant (that is my daughter’s and makes me think of her), crystals and a beautiful tin to hold matches. I love how it turned out and look forward to many yoga sessions in my new space.

E’s Home Yoga Studio

Transitioning a small space to a convenient home yoga studio

My house is pretty small. With under 12,000 square feet to work with, my office does double duty as my home yoga studio. There’s only room for me and my furry family members to do yoga in my office, but I’ve made it feel like the perfect sized space to do yoga. It is also undeniably convenient to roll out the mat and do some yoga when I’m working at my desk and feeling tight or stressed.

Features of my home yoga studio that I love:

My easily transportable clay plate with candle and crystals that I take off the bookshelf and put at the top of my mat.
My “yoga drawer.” A bottom drawer in the dresser pictured in the image below holds my yoga blanket, block, and strap. I can even reach it mid-yoga practice if I need to grab a prop on the fly.
Large windows that look onto large trees in my neighbor’s yard. I can watch the trees bud, then see leaves grow and fall from my yoga mat!

I made this “inhale exhale” print by typing the words into a Word Doc and then changing the fonts. I printed it out a viola! Instant yoga art. I love it paired with the colorful “have more fun” print from A Beautiful Mess.

Do you have dedicated yoga space in your home? What does it look like? What makes it especially zen? We want to hear from you! Message us on Instagram or Facebook or drop us a line here.