Tag Archives | master bedroom

Room Guide: Master Bedroom Ideas and Designs

I’ve written a lot of mood board posts that go into detail on a lot of the different master bedroom ideas and design sections below. I hope you don’t mind bouncing around a bit to the other posts on the site – the different mood board posts will really help give you some good design ideas and more photos.

The Color of The Room

What paint color you use on the walls is really a matter of personal taste. But if you want to make the bedroom feel bright and spacious then go with a light color. If you have a large bedroom and want to make it feel cozy, romantic and secluded, go with a dark color. For a range of master bedroom colors and paint ideas have a look at my post here: Bedroom Color Ideas: Paint Schemes and Palette Mood Board. And here is a collection of the different bedroom styles I’ve posted about (from Bohemian, to Vintage and Shabby Chic): Bedroom Style Ideas.

Designer Lighting Ideas

Lighting plays an important role in any bedroom. It can turn an ordinary looking room into a designer one. In a master bedroom you have more space to play with, making lighting even more important. Here are some lighting ideas to consider:

For elegant lighting ideas, have a look at cove lighting just like in picture (1). This creates a soft glow, adding a luxurious touch in a master bedroom. To find out the specifics on what cove lighting is, ideas on how to use it, and for more pictures, have a look at my mood board post here: The Beauty of Using Cove Lighting: Design and Ideas
Another lighting idea that is ideal for the master bedroom, is a chandelier or a mini one.
Dimmer switches are always great to have. They allow you to switch from more cozy and romantic lighting, to brighter lights instantly.
Take inspiration from hotels when it comes to bedside lighting. Instead of having a table lamp, look to fit lamps to the wall and have the light switches fitted into the wall. Having lights on both sides of the bed helps frame the space in the room, and by having them on the wall you save bedside table space and get rid of the wires.
If you live in a cold climate, a fireplace in the bedroom is a luxurious touch. For more dream features have a look at my post here: Dream Bedrooms: 6 Amazing Features.

For other relaxing bedroom lighting ideas have a look at my mood board here: Relaxing Bedroom Lighting Ideas.

Furniture Ideas

The Bed

The bed is the main focal point in a bedroom. This is because of how much space it takes up. So the style of the bed you have, and even the bedding you use, will play a big role in the styling of the room. So pay attention to the style of the bed, even the color of it. For a romantic and grand looking bed go with a canopy (2) or four poster bed:

Romantic Ideas: Canopy Bedroom Designs

There are also modern looking beds, with clean lines. But for more decorative, and larger bed frames, there are French styled and sleigh beds:

Other Furniture Pieces

Have a bench at the foot of the bed just like the bedroom in picture (3). This will help make changing clothes a lot easier. And if you have a bench that opens up, it can also be used for storage.

Full length mirrors are a must have in a master bedroom. It is another item that will help make changing clothes more convenient.

The Benefit of a Master Bedroom: Closet Space

One of the benefits of a master bedroom is the amount of closet space you’ll have. If you are doing a complete remodelling of the bedroom, or are constructing your home – see if you can build in a walk in closet. Yes it is a luxury to have, but it also gets all the closets out of the bedroom – making for a more relaxing space.

Even if you have closets in the bedroom or a walk in, adding lights to the shelves is a nice touch. Relying on a ceiling light usually doesn’t cut it, as the light won’t reach each shelf. Having lights added to the underside of each shelf, or even at the back makes everything a lot more convenient (Closet Lighting Ideas: From Wireless to Walk In).

What To Do With Extra Space

If you have a lot of space in your master bedroom then why not have your own little nook. This can be a reading nook overlooking a window, a sitting area (4) (5), or space for a daybed. It is a relaxing space that you can use in the day. Creative Bedroom Ideas: From Reading Nooks to Hanging Chairs.

Divide up the layout of your bedroom if you are tight on space in the rest of the house. You can have a home gym , nursery, or even a home office in the bedroom (6). The key is being able to close off this space and hide it when it is not in use, to keep the bedroom a relaxing place. One way to do this is to use DIY room dividers like curtains or book cases – have a look here for more ideas: Ideas Mood Board: DIY Room Dividers. Area rugs also help define different sections in a room.

For home office ideas in the bedroom have a look at my mood board here: Bedroom Office Ideas, Tips, and Designs. There is also the option of turning a closet into a home office space: Creating a Workspace At Home: Closet Office Ideas. 1/2/3/4/5/6

Romantic Ideas: Canopy Bedroom Designs

Traditionally, canopy beds would just be a bed with a frame around it. These types of beds are great for larger bedrooms, as they a) create a focal point in the room, and b) make the bed area feel more secluded and intimate. You can take these types of beds and style the room in so many different ways. You can even recreate the same romantic and secluded feeling without a canopy bed.

The easiest way of adding drapery to a canopy bed is just like in picture (1) – by hanging them over the top of the frame. Another way is to have them hang down and use tie backs to curtain them off (2). You can also turn the drapes into curtains so the bed can be open and airy during the day, and closeed off at night – just like the queen size beds in pictures (3) and (4). Picture (5) shows a normal king size bed, but curtains have been attached to the ceiling to create that canopy effect.

You don’t need to have a special canopy or poster bed to create that secluded feeling. Another way of creating that intimate and romantic mood is to hang a canopy just above the headboard (6). Or go for the bohemian look in picture (7) and use a hanging net to create the canopy. Pictures (8) (9) and (10) show drapes and a bamboo mat hanging over ordinary beds and furniture.

Wrapping string lights around the frame of a canopy bed is a romantic touch (11). If you use modern LED string lights, which produce less heat than normal ones, you can even wrap thin fabric/drapery around them to create a soft glow. 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11

September 27, 2013 in Bedroom

Flooring Ideas for the Bedroom

Yup, there are a ton of different materials you can use when it comes to bedroom flooring, everything from tiles (stone, clay), woods (teak, koa, bamboo), cork, marble, laminate to concrete and carpeting. The best flooring option for your bedroom will be based on these few criteria: cost, durability, and heating needs (tiles are better for homes in hotter climates – laminate can be a better choice for bedrooms that will need under floor heating). In this post we are not going to talk much about what material to choose, but instead we’ll go over creative flooring design ideas – like arrangements and using different shades of tiles or wooden planks.

One thing to remember when choosing the style and color of the floor that you want to have laid down, is that it will play a big role in the overall color scheme of the bedroom. Having dark walls and dark flooring will create a cozy intimate feeling room for example. Light colored walls and light colored flooring will create a bright and spacious bedroom. Have a look at some of our bedroom color scheme posts to see some color combinations.

Going With Tiles: When it comes to tiles there are the simple, rustic designs. You can even get tiles that mimic hardwoods (1) (2). Then there are decorative and patterned designs which give a more vintage and traditional look (3).

There are a few things you can do with tiles to create a more unique floor design. One idea is to use different sized tiles to create the layout – like mixing square and rectangle tiles. Or how about laying out a border to break up the floor design? Another great look is if you were to use two slightly different shades, for example a brown and a slightly darker brown – this creates a timeless patterned look.

Designing with Concrete: A finished concrete floor is one of the more cheaper flooring options. This doesn’t have to be the sterile and industrial grey texture that it is known for. You can make it look more modern by having it polished – it can even be stained to create a color (4). Concrete can also be stamped to resemble hardwood planks and tiles.

Under Your Feet: Modern Flooring Ideas

Wooden Bedroom Flooring Ideas: When it comes to laying down wooden flooring, the go to design is to lay long planks in a parallel formation – which is a simple way of going about it. Then there are parquet floors, where a mosaic arrangement is made with short wooden pieces. The most famous parquet pattern is the herringbone (5). Other patterns include the ones seen in pictures (6) (7) (8) and the more chevron style seen in picture (9).

The patterned arrangements mentioned above can be done with a single shade of wood, or you create a even more patterned effect by using two or more different wooden shades (10).

Rugs: One last bedroom flooring idea to put to use are area rugs (11). These can help soften cold floors (and soften the floors of kids’ bedrooms), and they can also add a pop of color or add to the color scheme of the bedroom. 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9/10/11

March 23, 2013 in Bedroom

Relaxing Bedroom Lighting Ideas

In the bedroom you want to have lighting that is soft and relaxing:

A Relaxing Ambiance: Some mood lighting ideas include fitting lights behind the headboard as seen in picture (1), or hooking up your ceiling lights to a dimmer switch lets you control the brightness and the mood. Check out our How to Create a Romantic Bedroom: Pictures, Designs and Decor Ideas post for some cozy lighting and decor ideas.

Some other relaxing lighting ideas include having flameless battery powered candles, or if you want a more whimsical feel – hang up some string lights (2) (The Free Spirit: Bohemian Bedroom Ideas).

Focusing on the Bed: You want to focus the attention to the bed. You can do this by putting a lamp on each side of the bed (either wall or table lamps), creating symmetry (3). These are also ideal for reading in bed.

Ceiling Lights: The most common ceiling lights found in modern homes and bedrooms are recessed lights (4). These lights fit into a drop down ceiling and all of the hardware is hidden away. You’re left with a clean sleek look. Flush mount lighting is when the light fixture sits just below the ceiling and usually has a cover to diffuse the light. And then there is track lighting (where you have 3-5 lights on one track). Usually you will only need one light outlet in the ceiling for these, and you can angle the individual track lights to different areas in the bedroom.

For luxurious and grand master bedroom lighting designs check out cove lighting (5) (6). This is when lights are fitted into the ceiling and bounce light off of the ceiling and back into the room. Another way of fitting cove lighting is to use crown molding as seen in picture (7). Here crown molding is fitted onto the wall a few inches below the ceiling. This allows space for rope lights to be fitted above the crown molding. What you are left with is a wonderful glow of light that spans across the room.

For high ceiling bedrooms some lighting ideas include using pendant light fixtures or a mini chandelier (8) (9). You can easily convert recessed lights to pendant ones without doing any wiring by using a pendant light adapter. These hanging lights just screw into any normal light socket. 1/2/3/4/5/6/7/8/9

One last ceiling idea to check out are solar tubes. These are tubes that bring daylight through the roof and into the bedroom. Free lighting! There are some versions that will have a light fitted around them so you can use the same fixture at night.

For a beginner’s guide to home lighting design, have a look at my post here: The Simple Guide: Home Lighting Design Basics.

For large bedrooms, using some wall lighting would be ideal: Designer Home Wall Lighting Ideas.

For some kid friendly bedroom lighting ideas and tips, like soft toy night lights and portable battery powered lanterns, have a look at our post here.