Do you know how to Hygge?
Do you know what Hygge is?
I didn’t know what it was, and didn’t realise we were doing it. That is until I accidentally came across a YouTube clip about a year of living Danishly (which is a great play on words, don’t you agree?).
We have been practising the art of Hygge here at Chez Wright for many years.
There just isn’t an English word for it that sums it up in quite the same way as the Danish.
Hygge is a great word – by the way it’s pronounced “heu-gah” not “hug-ga’ as I have been calling it since falling in love with the term – but I kinda like my way of saying it!
And if you are still not sure what I am talking about, then hopefully this definition (which I love) from hygge.co may help:
Hygge (“heu-gah”). The art of building sanctuary and community, of inviting closeness and paying attention to what makes us feel open-hearted and alive. To create well-being, connection and warmth. A feeling of belonging to the moment and to each other. Celebrating the everyday.
Hygge happens when we commit to the pleasure of the present moment in its simplicity. It’s there in the small rituals and gestures we undertake to give everyday life value and meaning, that comfort us, make us feel at home, rooted and generous.
We all hygge – around a table for a shared meal, beside a fire on a wet night, making coffee together at work, in the bath with a single candle, wrapped in blankets at the end of a day on the beach, sheltering from the rain at a bus stop, lying spoons, baking in a warm kitchen, alone in bed with a hot water bottle and a good book.
In our overstretched, complex, modern lives, hygge is a resourceful, tangible way to find deeper connection to our families, our communities, our children, our homes and our earth. It’s an uncomplicated, practical method of weaving the stuff of spirit and heart into daily life without sentimentality then taking time to celebrate it on a human scale.
Hygge is a kind of enchantment – a way of stirring the senses, the heart and the imagination, of acknowledging the sacred. (Source hygge.co)
There’ll be much more about hygge here in the weeks to come, because this is the year of the hygge for me and mine.
We will be looking at improving how to hygge as well as finding more opportunities to practise the art of ‘hug-ga’.
I learned about hygge years ago, from a website called hyggehouse. She doesn’t post very regularly now, but it’s well worth looking at ! Think it’s hyggehouse.com. Am liking forward to your posts about it! Pennyxx
Dropping the link in so others can take a look too – I had heard of this site 🙂
http://hyggehouse.com/
Love this! Thank you so much for sharing this & more in the future.
Thank you Sharon 🙂
Greetings from Finland – I´ve been reading your blog few years now.
We have family members in Denmark (my sister in law + her family), and – according to them – hygge is, for example – family-size pizza in front of tv, all of us just relaxing together. (We did lot a of hygge last summer when they visited us!)
It might also be shopping together and going to smoothiebar afterwards, listening to music together…
I tried to understand what hygge actually is, and as far as I did, it is nearly whatever done together with loved-ones <3!
Spending and enjoying time together. Cosyness (is that a word?)
‘cosyness’ is indeed a word 🙂 and a lovely one at that!
Last night we sat and played a board game together by the fire – that’s hygge…
p.s we have just booked to come to Finland once again (I love your country)
Wellcome!
I hope you enjoy your stay in Finland!
I love all the talk I’ve heard lately about Hygge! It seems like a new, trendy concept here in the U.S., but I think maybe it’s just a lost art around here. I know for me personally, even though the word Hygge is new for me, I’ve been practicing it for years! It’s what helps me get through the days! Our winters are so long and dark (not as dark as Scandinavia, but still!) that coziness is the only way to manage! I’ve been a candle addict my whole adult life, candles everywhere! And there’s nothing like cozy socks, a crackling fire, a hot cup of tea or coffee, or a hot toddy or whatever… there are so many ways to make things cozy and comforting! But no matter what, coziness and togetherness is the goal!
Oh and another thing 🙂 Something else I love about Hygge is the choice to embrace/enjoy the Winter, rather than complaining about it’s difficulties. One quote I love is, “There is no bad weather, only improper clothing.” (or something like that) I live in the Midwestern US and I can’t stand it when the people around here complain all winter long about the cold and the snow. It’s sooo tiresome.
My mother and aunt are the worst. They gripe and moan through half the year about how unbearable the cold is and how much they hate the snow, and about how they will be so happy when winter is over. I just wonder why they can’t try to be happy anyway? They’ve chosen to live in this climate, so if you hate it, then in my opinion, there are two options: Move away to where it’s warmer, or decide that you’re going to stop griping and try to enjoy it. Bundle up warm when you go outside… the weather is much more tolerable if you wear proper outerwear! If it’s freezing and snowy, then of course a warm coat is a must! along with gloves, a scarf, proper boots, etc. But many people dress as if it’s much warmer than it actually is, don’t put on the proper gear, and then grumble about how cold they are and how they can’t stand to go outside. It’s such a pet peeve of mine!