Bedroom interiors can be tricky beasts when it comes to interior design and decoration, especially when there’s more than one person inhabiting the room. A couple with very different tastes, and lacking the right direction, can end up with a room that neither of them enjoy.
The first thing that ought to be considered when renovating or decorating a bedroom is the way you want it to work with your home as a whole. It’s very important to carry a theme across your entire home, whether it be an era, style, colour, texture, or something a little unusual (such as having a particular artist’s work throughout your home). I remember reading something the other day about making your home a large tapestry of different but connected spaces, rather than a cluster of rooms. I think this is fantastic advice, also because you don’t want the house to feel too matchy-matchy. It’s all about balancing those elements.
Deciding on a theme for your bedroom itself should not rely on the latest trends either; your bedroom interiors will be dated in several months time. And unless you are ultra-wealthy, you probably can’t afford to renovate your bedroom every couple of months (though with my constantly changing sense of style, I wish this was possible for me!). Pick out elements of trends that you like or suit you, but do not rely on the one trend to set the theme for your entire bedroom. Unless it’s truly your heart’s desire.
Taking your time and planning your design never hurts either – this will give time to budget and then save for more expensive, longer-lasting pieces. Throwing the bedroom together at a weeks’ notice probably isn’t the best idea.
A lot of people traditionally choose the colour of the bedroom first before picking what bedspread or quilt-cover they’ll dress the bed with. This can lead to problems later when you go to pick your quilt cover; finding something you absolutely love which matches your colour scheme perfectly is nearly impossible (when you do find this, it’s in the wrong bed size!). Going into a manchester store with a predetermined idea of what you want is a recipe for disappointment.
Begin your project with an open mind, and use the internet to your advantage – look up all of your favourite manchester companies and see what their latest collection includes, and get a feeling for what trends are big this season (and therefore what to expect). Research can only help!
When it comes to online shopping versus physical shopping, I cannot recommend the physical shopping enough. When looking for manchester, the physical product needs to be seen and felt before purchase. Some quilt covers are made from very cheap poly-cotton mixes or with very low thread counts, and these will feel (and look) like cardboard. So while the internet is a fantastic resource and research tool, if you’re buying anything for your bed, you need to see it and feel it beforehand.
Before you go traipsing around the homemaker centres though, do a spot of research on the terms used in this field. Having an understanding of thread-counts and the different types of fabric and cotton on offer (and example of the uses of this knowledge is that Supima Cotton is actually a far higher quality over the more famous Egyptian Cotton) means that you’ll understand what the shop assistants are talking about. Feel free to ask as many questions as possible, and most stores will open up the quilt covers so you can see and feel them (just remember to be gracious about this, and don’t open every packet in the store). Often manchester companies, such as Kas or Linenhouse, will have an entire collection, not just the quilt cover, so always ask if there’s more matching items (this might make your life much easier!).
A note on bedspreads: The manchester industry has headed strongly towards quilt-covers in the past decade, and as a result of this, the bedspread population has decreased significantly. Only few companies produce them anymore, and the range is very small.
Similarly, the most popular size in quilt covers is a queen, and this is a the guaranteed size you’ll find most quilt covers in – most quilt covers made in a double are for kids, low quality, or are designed as “spare room” covers. Kings are a little more popular, but you’ll find them more often in very high quality, more costly brands.
So once you’ve found the quilt cover of your dreams, along with the perfect bed and furniture, it’s time to decide on your walls. With paint there’s a lot of options out there; you can keep it classic by picking a light matching colour (I have a real soft spot for steel blues), mix it up with differing textures like a suede, or go for something a little more unusual. Friends with an artist or handy with a paintbrush yourself? A mural can be stunning in the right setting, and can strongly set a flavour or tone for how you’d like your room to appear.
Paint isn’t your only option however – wallpaper might have been daggy once, but it’s coming back, and in a big way. Check out these wallpapers by Funky Wombat Textiles;
I’ve never considered myself a wallpaper girl but I’m now enamored by these, especially the Bo Peep design. There’s some pretty cool independent design companies out there at the moment, making original wallpaper, wall-art, furniture and homewares, so keep an eye out for these innovative and cool items. Wallpapers or some unusual art will add that extra level of your own personality into your bedroom.
With decorator items I find people often make the mistake of buying them all from the same store. While the Visual Merchandisers make some beautiful displays in stores, they’re not instantly transferable into the home. Having every item on your dresser from the same brand can appear a little hokey or soulless – the art is throwing in something with a bit of history, whether a vintage or antique, or a family heirloom.
I’ve also heard that every room needs one tacky trashy item to give the design some tension. So while a leopard print ottoman may not be for you, a spot of glitter or plastic can add to the general design.
I find also people fall down a slippery slope with candles – you start with one then before you know it your bedroom has 24 different candles, all from Dusk and all with conflicting scents. Candles are lovely and add that extra dimension to the room, but be aware of over-doing it (or looking like a candle shop!).
Building up the decorator items in your room should be always a work-in-progress – you never know what you’ll find at the local markets, what grandma will unearth from her wardrobe, what you’ll find while travelling or something special a partner gives you. So always keep your mind (and eyes) open to new ideas and new pieces in your room. Your personality and style are constantly changing, and so should your bedroom interiors with them.
P.S. For more home decoration options, head over to our bedroom furniture section, or take a peek at our other interior design sections.
