Simple Ways To Create Your Dream Bedroom

Because Your Bedroom is your Sanctuary

According to the 2017 Houzz & Home Report, the bedroom was the second-most made-over room (right behind laundry rooms) last year.

You can turn the boudoir into a relaxing retreat simply by swapping out some furnishings, bringing in a little green and dressing the bed like a pro.

Oscar Bravo, who calls himself the budget-friendly interior decorator, shares his strategies for creating a sweet suite with very little investment and little to no DIYing.

Start Creating Your Dream Bedroom…

1. Pick multifunctional furnishings. Rethink the traditional nightstand. Opt instead for a small bookcase, a round accent table, even a writing desk. “You’ll appreciate the space you have to place books, electronics and decorative objects,” Oscar explains. Height is important, so when selecting a sidekick, choose one that is no more than six inches taller than the mattress.

2. Invest in – or make – an upholstered headboard. A headboard gives the bed a presence in the room and makes the room feel finished. An upholstered version provides additional coziness and a touch of luxury. Oscar says that there are plenty of places to find fabric-covered headboards locally and online. “But it’s also a very easy DIY project,” he says. “I used particle board, batting, a glue gun and velvet to make one for my son.”

3. Dress the bed to the nines. Look for 100-percent cotton sheets in something over the standard 250-thread count with a sateen finish for a nice, soft hand, Oscar says. Add both a coverlet and a duvet cover—folded nicely at the foot of the bed—two shams, two pillows to sleep on (hidden behind shams) and decorative pillows.

4. Go green. 

Plants help purify the air inside the room. Oscar recommends a palm tree that thrives in indirect light. Try the slow-growing parlor palm that prefers low-light, shaded areas in a home or rooms with bright filtered light. Besides houseplants, fill a vessel regularly with fresh blooms (Oscar likes monochromatic carnations) and place it on the dresser, nightstand or in the en suite bathroom.

5. Let there be soft light. 

Ditch any bare bulbs in the room in favor of table lamps with shades that diffuse the light. Layer in candles (without competing—or overpowering—scents) to create a warm, calming glow.