Bedroom makeover - 10 simple tips to create a sanctuary for relaxation and a good night's sleep
Bedroom Makeover - 10 simple tips for designing a stylish bedroom sanctuary for comfort, relaxation and a good night’s sleep.
By Liz Clarkson
Sweet dreams are made of this - Implement these simple design ideas to create a beautiful sleep sanctuary that dreams are made of!
Our bedrooms really have become our sleep sanctuaries over the last 18 months. In today’s busy world, we all need somewhere to relax and recharge our batteries away from the stresses of daily living.
If you are thinking about a bedroom makeover, this article gives you the science behind a good night’s sleep. It also provides design tips for achieving a beautiful bedroom sanctuary for comfort, relaxation and the all-important good night’s sleep. Here we talk about:
- Common factors that impact our sleep: Lockdown and Menopause
- Good Sleep Hygiene and finding the perfect balance in our sleep environment
- 10 Top Tips for designing your bedroom sanctuary with comfort, relaxation and sleep in mind.
Why it’s so important to get a good night’s sleep
According to the UK’s Sleep Council, 40% of the population suffer with sleep issues.
Good quality sleep really does have a positive effect on our emotional and physical wellbeing. But poor sleep can have negative effects on your hormones, immunity, performance, brain function and can also cause weight gain.
So, what is keeping us awake at night and how can we improve our sleep patterns?
The impact of lockdown on our sleep
There’s a close relationship between sleep and mental health. The Sleep Charity estimates that of those with long term sleep issues, 4 out of 5 will suffer from low mood.
Insomnia was one of Google’s trending searches for 2020. According to this sleep study by Kings College London, lockdown has had a negative impact on our sleep. Half the population say that their sleep has been more disturbed than usual. This tends to apply more to women than men.
Stress has undoubtably been a factor in the change in sleep pattern, but lockdown also necessitated a change in the sleep environment. For many people, their bedrooms also became their office space, and this made it very difficult to relax at the end of a long day.
Sleep and the Menopause
Disturbed sleep and poor sleep quality can be a real problem during menopause. A decline in hormones results in difficulty regulating heat, meaning that women find it difficult to find a comfortable temperature throughout the night. The Menopause Charity is a great source of advice for women suffering sleep issues and other symptoms throughout menopause.
Good Sleep Hygiene and finding the perfect balance in our sleep environment
Good Sleep Hygiene is about optimising your sleep environment and practising healthy bedtime habits so that you can fall asleep more easily and stay asleep.
To achieve the perfect balance in our sleep environment, it’s important to design for our senses. External noise and light, smell, bedroom temperature and even the way our furniture is arranged can impede our ability to feel comfortable and relaxed.
Biophilic Design focuses on creating a calming space by connecting our senses to nature and improving our health and wellbeing. In this article we’ll look at designing a stylish bedroom sanctuary by connecting with our senses and feeling closer to nature.
10 Top Tips for designing your stylish bedroom sanctuary with comfort, relaxation and sleep in mind.
Plan your bedroom makeover with a Mood Board
Putting together a mood board is a great way of visualising your finished scheme. It also brings all the colours, furniture, bedding, soft furnishings and accessories together in one place.
Creating a Pinterest board for inspiration is a great way of planning your own look. In this example I’ve used a Canva template to create a simple, calm and modern bedroom scheme.
Choose a colour scheme that’s restful on the eye
When designing your own stylish bedroom sanctuary, think about using colours from nature that are restful on the eye.
Inspired by the sky and the sea, blues and teals have an incredible serene and restful feel. Their cool undertones are perfect for a sleep environment, helping to make the room feel cooler and helping you to sleep.
Blues have a fabulous ability to act as a neutral or an accent colour. Think about adding shades of blue into your furniture, bedding, cushions, rugs and accessories.
Add a focal point for your room and organise it well
Every room needs a focal point and in a bedroom, it’s usually your bed and the wall behind it.
Consider having a feature wall then dress your bed with beautiful linens and cushions. Decorative bedside tables and chests of drawers can also complete the look and bring individuality to the bedroom scheme.
Make sure you have lots of flexible storage to keep the room organised and easy on the eye.
A well organised room with symmetry and harmony will make your bedroom sanctuary feel calm and restful.
Design with a Handmade / Artisan Touch
Support skilled, independent artisans and craftsmen by choosing handmade bedding, soft furnishings, ceramics and furniture. Unlike their mass-produced variations, they are often natural, ethically sourced, lovingly created and unique. This feeling will emanate through your room and make it feel beautiful and personal giving you a sense of wellbeing.
Commission your own beautiful bespoke furniture to reflect your individual style.
If you really do want to make your bedroom completely unique, consider a furniture commission. Working with a designer enables you to create something that reflects your style and personality
At Liz Clarkson Interior Transformations, I’m passionate about helping interiors lovers to create beautiful unique designer furniture centrepieces for their home. Furniture that truly reflect their personality and the way they live their lives.
I offer you the opportunity to purchase beautiful unique hand-finished furniture from my shop. You can also work with me to design and create that statement piece of furniture as part of your scheme.
My Stag Minstrel Furniture is perfect for a bedroom sanctuary. The sleek design lends itself to a beautiful makeover, whilst its great craftsmanship means it's built to last and is sustainable too.
Stag is modular in nature which means that pieces can be mixed and matched to form great flexible storage combinations. Custom refinishing creates a fantastic unique and stylish look for your bedroom.
If you’d like more information on commissioning your perfect bedroom furniture, check out my Design and Commission Process.
Invest in luxurious, natural breathable bedding – The Dohar Blanket
The temperature of our bedrooms and more importantly our beds, plays a huge role in how well we sleep. We may be experiencing a heatwave, having difficulty regulating our temperature during menopause or just simply want to find bedroom linen that suits the seasons.
But how do you marry all those needs with designer bed linen that coordinates with your bedroom scheme and looks beautiful too?
The Sleep Council estimates that by simply upgrading your bed and linen, the average adult will get 42 minutes more sleep per night
Layering your bed with different fabrics, sheets, quilts, cushions and throws is a great way of adding interest to your bedroom scheme. Layering with natural, breathable, soft fabrics is also the best way to regulate your temperature in bed.
Shades of Cool London have the perfect solution to make you feel comfortable in bed, whatever the weather. Their Dohar Blankets form 3 layers of high quality, super soft, 100% finely layered woven cotton.
Hand made in India and new to the UK, they were popular with Indian royalty as a way of keeping cool in bed.
These elegant, hand blocked, artisanal dohars feature nature’s flowers and botanicals. They are the perfect weight, allowing you to move freely under the covers. Air is trapped between 3 layers of cotton, keeping you cool in summer and warm in winter.
Pairing them with a coordinating quilt and cushions enables you stay the right temperature from Spring to Autumn. Sleeping with your dohar and regular tog quilt will keep you warm in winter too. They are a fabulous addition to your sleep sanctuary.
Seen here, the Jay Feather Comfy-Bed Bundle co-ordinates beautifully to create a stylish bedroom sanctuary. I can also vouch for its comfort, quality and sheer softness too!
Choose beautiful soft furnishings, rugs and curtains
Pull your whole bedroom scheme together with some beautiful soft furnishings, rug and curtains.
Curtains will frame your window and the view and bring softness to the room. Ensure that you use blackout materiel in the lining to avoid being woken up too early. Consider an opaque blind to filter the light.
Good use of soft furnishings and layered window treatments will also reduce noise, helping you to sleep better.
Bring nature in with lots of greenery
That feeling of being close to nature has a powerful impact on our sense of wellbeing. Bring the outside in with plenty of indoor plants and greenery. Their absorption of carbon dioxide and release of oxygen assists with breathing and can help with getting a good night’s sleep.
Add personal touches to your bedroom sanctuary
One of the final ways of adding personality to your bedroom and making it feel like your sanctuary, is the personal touch.
Art, pottery and glassware are powerful ways of showing your style. Add comfort and glamour to your bedroom makeover with a display of your favourite items: Perfume bottles, candles, vases and bowls.
Calming scents and awesome botanicals
As a calming scent for your senses, you can add candles and diffusers to your scheme. You can also add bath bombs, botanical bath salts & whipped soaps or body scrubs made of essential oils your bedroom routine. Taking a bath can be a relaxing experience, try running a bath with Lavender Himalayan Botanical Bath Salts, the Lavender can help to promote relaxation, which will in turn prepare you for a goods night sleep. Complete your bedroom routine with a Sweet Dreams Whipped Soap or Sea Salt Body Scrub and inhale the sweet scents of Lavender & Bergamot as you drift off to sleep.
The Sweet Dreams handmade Holistic Skincare range from Awesome Botanical are packed full of Lavender and Bergamot Essential Oils, for a great night’s sleep. Sweet Dreams really are made of this!
.
In summary, you really can design a beautiful stylish bedroom sanctuary that will help you sleep better. Above all, remember that your bedroom makeover is all down to your own personal taste and style. Putting together a mood board can help you put your scheme together, but as long as you love it, it’s right for you!
What are your tops tips for styling a bedroom sanctuary? We’d love to hear from you!
Liz Clarkson is a vintage furniture upcycler, passionate about working with clients to design unique, bespoke, sustainable, modern furniture UK wide. She loves all things Art Deco and in her spare time she can be found sipping a craft gin from one of her fabulous cocktail cabinet creations. Follow her transformations on Instagram @LizClarksonInteriors or shop beautiful furniture at Liz Clarkson Interior Transformations
