Last Updated on May 21, 2024 by Kimberly Crawford
Are you finding your bedroom difficult to sleep in? Many of us do. Sometimes it doesn’t feel relaxing enough and sometimes the layout just doesn’t seem to work.
However, there are a few simple tricks you can try to improve the look and layout of your bedroom, starting with the bed itself.
Moving the bed
Whenever you’re trying to improve the layout of a bedroom, the best place to start is with the bed. Some people find it hard to sleep with it facing the door, but one thing that makes a difference to everyone is the bed’s relationship with the window.
If the bed’s crammed underneath a window, it can leave you feeling hemmed in and can make it hard to retain a nice, even body temperature – especially if the radiator is underneath the window too. However, having your bed facing the window can bring benefits, including helping you wake naturally in the morning and giving you a peaceful view outside.
In most cases, it makes sense to position the bed as centrally as possible. Not only does this make the bed easier to get in and out of but it gives you space to put tables on either side. So, it’s certainly practical.
Improving the bed
Improving your layout in this way also provides the opportunity to make the bed the focal point of the room. For instance, you can frame the bed by putting a large rug underneath.
Ideally, you want to make sure that at least a third of the rug stretches out past the bed. This helps to make the room look bigger as well as drawing the eye to the bed. And using a rug with vertical stripes can elongate the space further.
A rug also increases the cosiness and warmth of your bedroom, helping you to sleep better. You could also upgrade your bedding to promote better sleep.
A three-in-one duvet will allow you to adjust the top of your bedding to suit the seasons and your body temperature. And good quality linen will help boost the comfort of your bed.
Solving layout issues
Moving the bed seems like the obvious way to improve the look and layout of your bedroom but there are a few practical reasons why we don’t do it.
Firstly, we like to have the convenience of plug sockets nearby for bedside lamps and phone charging. But often there are only one or two sockets in the room, limiting where we can put the bed. And running an extension lead across the room can be unsightly and hazardous.
So, if this is the only reason for not moving the bed to a better position, it’s worth getting extra sockets installed in the room.
The good news is that new plug socket prices aren’t as hefty as you might think and installation costs typically start at around £55. And you can use the opportunity to upgrade the face plates of your sockets and switches to more expensive-looking gold or bronze and perhaps add in dimmers and USB sockets to boost the practicality of your bedroom.
Upgrading storage
Of course, moving the bed can throw up other problems, especially when bedrooms are small or awkwardly shaped. Sometimes there’s a lack of space to rotate the bed.
There are a few ways to deal with this but top of the list is upgrading your storage to reduce the amount of furniture in the room. This not only enables you to rejig your bedroom layout but also helps you achieve a more relaxing bedroom experience.
Fitted wardrobes are typically the best way to save space and keep things organized. But even a freestanding wardrobe that runs from floor to ceiling will increase storage and bring a better feel to your bedroom – wardrobes that only reach two-thirds of the way up the wall can make the ceiling feel lower.
Make sure your bed is fulfilling its storage potential too. It’s a big piece of furniture, so make sure it’s pulling its weight by picking one with underbed storage or buy some wheeled drawers, baskets or storage bags to create some. You can also get headboards with hidden storage to increase the capacity without making the room feel cluttered.
Decluttering
Decluttering doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t decorate your bedroom with homely accessories, but you do need to do this in a considered way. Too many little knick-knacks are going to look cluttered but they’re also going to make the bedroom feel messy and hard to sleep in.
So, it’s better to carefully curate a few nice, larger pieces on shelves. For instance, you could place a few attractive hardback nature books beside a big vase of flowers and a botanical art print on your shelf rather than fill it with lots of random bits and bobs.
It’s not just about what you can see though. Clearing out your wardrobe and drawers makes it easier to put things away and stops clutter from spreading out across the room. Once you’ve paired down your stuff to a manageable level, it’s a good idea to utilize racks and boxes to help you keep everything organized and easy to find. Afterall a tidy bedroom always feels more stress-free and serene than a messy one.
