Join us for a conversation with Sharon Lillywhite, Founding Partner of the multi-award-winning architectural interior design studio Oliver Burns, as she shares how to design a calming, relaxing bedroom.
The bedroom remains one of the key spaces in the home. A calming bedroom environment creates a relaxing personal space, which is essential for resting and recharging. With that in mind, we couldn’t think of anyone better than Sharon Lillywhite to talk us through how to design a calming bedroom and what the key elements are to consider when purchasing a new bed.
Savoir: Firstly, what role do you think the bedroom plays within the home?
Sharon Lillywhite: Since we spend around a third of our lives asleep, the bedroom has always been a key space to consider in a home's overall design scheme. The bedroom is more important than ever before. It’s a place to rest, recharge and dream, and as such will always remain a cherished space in the home.
At the top end of the market, our clients want this space to be highly personalised to meet their individual needs. The master suite will usually occupy an entire floor of the home. Within this space, there will be his and hers bathroom and dressing area, a separate or communal living area. Occasionally, we may also work with clients to create separate bedrooms.
Since we spend around a third of our lives asleep, the bedroom has always been a key space to consider within the overall design scheme of a home.
We continue to see the desire to transform the bedroom into a cocooning environment. How do you create a space that not only feels cocooning, but also light and spacious?
Our clients love Savoir’s luxury beds as they provide the ultimate comfort. To create a cocooning environment, we recommend investing in sumptuous, high-quality bed linen to ensure your bedroom feels inviting. The key is to choose high-quality fabrics that feel luxurious but are also practical and durable. We love to incorporate bamboo carpets into our bedroom design schemes. This soft and sensuous material feels sumptuous underfoot and is also highly sustainable.
Another two elements to transforming the bedroom into a cocooning environment are storage and lighting. A decorative bowl on your bedside table is a great way to conceal any clutter and ensure the space feels ordered. Likewise, ambient lighting is crucial to creating a relaxing environment. We love incorporating voice-activated technology into our luxury bedroom designs so you can control everything from the comfort of your bed.
At what stage of designing a bedroom should we consider the bed design?
The foundation of good design is space optimisation and careful planning. As the largest piece of furniture within the bedroom, we always consider the bed at the beginning of the project. In addition, the style of the bed you choose will likely shape the overall design direction you take with the space.
As it’s the largest piece of furniture within the room, what are your recommendations to incorporating the bed within the space?
When designing a bedroom interior scheme, we like to think of the bed as the focal point of the room, with the bedside tables as the perfect bookends framing this key feature. If you have high ceilings, an oversized headboard can create a stunning design statement.
Good design starts with space optimisation and careful planning. As the largest piece of furniture within the bedroom, we always consider the bed at the beginning of the project.
Once we’ve decided on the size and style of the bed, what should we be mindful of when it comes to colour?
Colour psychology always plays a key role when designing luxury bedrooms, as it has a direct impact on our mood and energy levels. Since a bedroom should be a place of complete tranquillity, the colour palette should reflect that. We would always recommend a classic neutral palette for the bedroom. We suggest shades such as grey, taupe, white, and cream for their timeless, calming appeal. Otherwise, blue is a good choice because of its soothing qualities.
Bold accent colours can then be woven in through accessories and soft furnishings to add visual interest. We also like to add in colour and interest via a statement headboard. We work alongside specialist craftspeople to create amazing, one-of-a-kind headboards that elevate a space from ordinary to extraordinary.
Tactile and textural designs continue to be plentiful, how can this trend be translated into the bedroom?
Layering luxurious textures and fabric will not only add depth to the room but it will also allow the individual to tailor the bed to their specific needs. We recommend playing with layers of sumptuous bedding to create a space that is rich in textural interest. For instance, the bedroom is one space within the home where our clients love to have a sumptuous rug or carpet underfoot. This helps to warm the room and make it feel more inviting.
We know that the ideal sleeping environment is dark. However, which bedroom components should you consider to ensure the space works both day and night?
Lighting plays a key role and should be adaptable to different moods and times of day. First, configure your bedroom layout so your bed faces or sits close to a window, giving you maximum natural light and views when you wake up. Bringing the outside in is also important, as it can help develop a stronger connection to nature, which has been scientifically proven to improve sleep quality.
We always begin by incorporating a statement light as the centrepiece within a room. The most commonly used lighting is likely to be task lighting. So, either opt for stylish pendants on either side of the bed or traditional bedside lamps. To conceal natural light whilst creating a warm atmosphere, the best combination is black-out blinds combined with curtains. An alternative option is to add sheers behind the curtains. This creates a more classic feel and lets daylight in during the day without being overpowering.
Lastly, are there any key elements you personally think will help design a calming bedroom?
I’m lucky enough that where we live in the countryside, there is a beautiful view of the surrounding fields from my bedroom window. To make the most of this view, I’ve positioned a comfy chair by the window to read a book. Maintaining connectivity to nature and the outside world continues to have an impact. This can be achieved by making the view a key feature of the space, which has the added benefit of maximising the natural daylight a room receives. Lighting is another important element in creating a relaxing ambience in the bedroom. I always recommend having adjustable lighting with different settings, so you can alter the lighting to reflect your mood or the time of day.
Lastly, the finishing touches can make all the difference to how inviting a bedroom is. I love layering sumptuous bedding and having a soft rug underfoot to make the space feel ultra luxurious. I always make sure I have flowers and my favourite candles on my bedside table as a joyful thing to see when I fall asleep and when I wake up.
Sharon Lillywhite is Founding Partner of multi-award-winning architectural interior design studio Oliver Burns, who thoughtfully designs the world’s finest homes. Discover their recent projects at www.oliverburns.com.
For more advice and ideas on a guide to choosing a bespoke bed, visit design page.
