This week, as I’ve been designing bedrooms for a mature couple who have decided to modernise their home, so I thought I’d share some of my ideas with you because I’m frequently asked “Where do I start” and “How do I pull it all together”.

 

The first thing to consider is that you’re not only creating a stylish but also a healthy bedroom. The two ideas should be intertwined because a bedroom is one of the most important rooms in your home. Your bedroom nurtures and supports you so that you have a good night’s sleep, but it also energises you so that you wake feeling refreshed and invigorated.

HEALTHY BODY * HEALTHY MIND * HEALTHY HOME

A poorly designed bedroom can disturb your sleep leaving you feeling tired and groggy, disorientated and slow to process information, or irritable and gloomy.

 

A fantastically designed bedroom will help you sleep soundly, leaving you feeling awake and alive, refreshed and balanced, as well as energised and invigorated. A dream bedroom – y0our dream bedroom – is sensory and full of emotion. It’s not just a bed with a wardrobe and a bedside table… it’s the perfect bed that suits your personality, your body shape and your lifestyle goals.

 

So, spend a few moments taking stock of your room and tweak it to create your dream bedroom with my step by step process:

  • How do you want your room to feel?
  • How does the space fit your needs?
  • Any special requirements?
  • What’s your inspiration?

Here’s are my highlights broken down for each of the steps…

  • KEYWORDS

How do you want your room to feel is the first question to ask yourself when planning any room, but especially your bedroom.

 

You may think the obvious answer is peaceful and relaxing so that you can go to sleep, but you also need it to be invigorating and refreshing so that you have energy when you wake up.  For the bedroom designs I’ve been creating this week they also need to be creative, durable and flexible because they’re for young grandchildren of varying ages.

 

One of the children’s bedrooms is designed as a stylish room for the older children and also as a guest bedroom – it’s dual purpose. A good ideas is to jot down all of the activities for the room so that you can ensure you’ve covered all of the bases. Here are some example activities: teenage bedroom, guest bedroom, reading and relaxing room, office workspace, laundry or ironing room, sleeping area, dressing area,  play area.

  • SPACE PLANNING

Once you know your keywords then these will feed into your space planning because they will dictate the type of furniture required for your room. You can then assess the bedroom to see if it’s the best fit for what you want to achieve in the room.

 

For example: In the two bedrooms I’ve been designing, a fundamental change was to flip the bedrooms so that the square room changed to the guest and teenage bedroom whilst the rectangular room became a bedroom for the younger children. This enabled the square room to become a guest bedroom because it accommodates a double bed whereas the rectangular room is not very wide and can only fit single beds.

 

The long, thin, rectangular room lends itself to being segmented into different activity areas for the children.. a sleep area with a bed, a dressing area with the wardrobe and a relaxing area with a bean bag and fluffy rug.  The children are already loving the new layout, spending time together in the cosy relaxing area.

 

When deciding how to position your furniture, the initial step is to look at the walkways or high traffic areas in the room. You position the furniture so that you leave a path around the furniture with access to the door and window. Access to the window is essential to ensure you can easily open the window for good ventilation, which is another key element for a good night’s sleep and a healthy home.

 

For the bedroom that doubles as a guest bedroom I’ve incorporated ‘zip and lock’ beds that can either be used as single beds for the teenage kids, or put together as a double bed for the guests. However, for the single bedroom with younger grandchildren, I’ve incorporated a single bed with a trundle bed beneath it so that the room is flexible and can sleep several children. The bedrooms now accommodate the whole family for special events such as Christmas.

 

  • SPECIAL REQUIREMENTS

With any room, but especially a bedroom that is particularly tactile and sensory, I recommend you consider any special requirements. This might be anything from pure cotton sheets if you suffer from overheating, special pillows if you have allergies, rounded corners on furniture if you have young children,  touch sensory lights if you’re less mobile with your hands or even automated curtains if you can’t be bothered to get out of bed first thing in the morning.

 

It’s these design details that will make your bedroom personal to you and your individual requirements, helping you to relax and unwind, move about safely and also to feel safe and secure in your sanctuary, dream bedroom.

 

When creating bedroom designs for the children, a key requirement was storage and how their toys would be organised. For the teenage children, plenty of plug sockets are needed for their modern day appliances with a good reading lamp on the bedside table. For the younger children,  shelving is important for the board games but also a basket/box for each child to put their personal toys in when they visit. this makes each child feel special because they’ve been given their own identity with individual storage that’s unique to them.   As much as we’re told to share, and no matter how old we are, we all like some personal space.

 

  • INSPIRATION

So far I’ve been describing how to get the basics right because it’s fundamental to your delightful dream bedroom.

 

Now that you’ve got a solid foundation, it’s time to create the designer wow factor in the room by creating a bedroom that’s personal to you with individuality and inspiration. For the teenage bedroom, I’ve chosen a geometric patterned wallpaper with soft neutral colours, balanced with touches of grey. This will be modern for the teenagers and  stylish for the guests.

If you follow these steps then you will not only create a #gorgeous bedroom but also a healthy bedroom that will help you sleep soundly and energise you every morning.

 

If, however, you’re struggling to create your own dream bedroom and need advice or guidance then you know that I’m always here to help. x

 

I’m looking forward to sharing with you the finished bedrooms I’ve been designing this week because I know they’re going to be absolutely #gorgeous. Sign up to my Designer Digest newsletter if you want to be the first to see the transformation.

Gwendoline Alderton

BIID Interior Designer
House Doctor Consultant
Mindful Home Expert
Radio, Conference & Event Speaker

(M: 07841 519802)