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Your Perfect Bedroom: Calm and Airy or Moody and Dark?
Take a Mini Tour of Light-to-Dark Bedrooms and See Which One's for You
My husband and I live in a 1950 ranch-style home a few miles west of Madison, Wisconsin. When I'm not working, I like to do projects around my house, get out in my solo canoe or go camping, read design and psychology blogs and work on mixed media art.
My husband and I live in a 1950 ranch-style home a few miles west of Madison,... More »
After living in my first house for almost 2 years, I am still quite hesitant to show anybody the master bedroom. The walls are a hideous beige with terrible faux beadboard and ugly decorative trim. It's definitely going to take some work to turn it into a space I will enjoy. While I can certainly change the color whenever I want, I haven't taken the leap quite yet because I keep getting hung up on one detail: Do I want to go for calm and airy or moody and dark?
Through those words alone, the answer may seem obvious. But when I look at dark bedrooms, something pulls me in and I am back at square one. In an effort to get my act together, I decided to create an ideabook highlighting the various feelings conjured by such different spaces.
Through those words alone, the answer may seem obvious. But when I look at dark bedrooms, something pulls me in and I am back at square one. In an effort to get my act together, I decided to create an ideabook highlighting the various feelings conjured by such different spaces.
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| Okay, let's start on the crisp and bright side. This bedroom is like a breath of fresh air. Whenever I look at this photo, I feel calm and at ease. I think this is what it would feel like to live in the clouds. And stepping onto the soft, plush rug each morning would be reason enough to crawl out of bed. |
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by French Larkspur
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| Furniture painted in a color range that differs slightly from the rest of the bedroom helps keep it from feeling too stiff. Much of today's furniture is straight-lined and boxy and makes places feel a bit jarring, which is something to keep in mind when planning your bedroom.
Tip: Older furniture seems to be the way to go if you are after this effect, due to the more ornate styles that can be found. |
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| A quilted headboard and view of the sea keep this bedroom on the soft side. Layering various white textures is a good way to be sure that your room won't seem too clinical. |
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| Warmed by beautiful hardwood floors, this bedroom retreat is kept from being cold and stark. If you find yourself drawn to airy bedrooms but need something more than just white, a different color for your floor is a good way to set the tone. |
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by Habachy Designs
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| Shades of pale blues help things stay on the airy side in this blissful sanctuary. Another cozy rug along with the bedside lamps keep this space from slipping into the cold side. |
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| All right, so now we'll move into a more neutral feeling, perfect for those of us (like me) who can't make up our minds. This bedroom seems to be a nice balance between dark and light. By deepening the blues and increasing the temperature of the whites, the space feels rich and warm. |
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by Ian Engberg
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| Through the use of dark floors and bedding, along with an accent wall above the bed, this room falls in the in-between category as well. With the help of a glossy floor and wall that reflects light and color, this room is able to avoid any feelings of potential stuffiness. |
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| One last room that falls somewhere in between moody and calm, this bedroom uses contrast to the highest advantage. By alternating dark and light colors, nothing seems to get sucked in or disappear, which is important when designing dark spaces, especially if they are low on natural light (which this room is not). Notice how the contrasting colors are used in a way that keeps everything crisp and clean. |
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Okay, now we're going to venture into the darker, moodier side of things. Although this bedroom is pretty bright during the day, it will take on a much darker nature once the sun sets, because of the dark wood and deep blue walls. I imagine that the room feels quite cozy at night.
Tip: When designing your bedroom, think about when you will use the space the most. Morning loungers may appreciate the softness of white, while evening relaxers may enjoy the comfort of a darker room.
Tip: When designing your bedroom, think about when you will use the space the most. Morning loungers may appreciate the softness of white, while evening relaxers may enjoy the comfort of a darker room.
| This swanky and rich bedroom looks great during the day — I can only imagine how posh it must look at night!
Tip: Some of the best advice I've ever heard when it comes to designing dark spaces is to incorporate items that are shiny so it never looks daunting during the daylight hours. I think the mirror, shiny wood floors, leather chair and metal light fixtures prove that point quite well. |
| This room would be quite dark at night, which would make for a comfortable environment to hang out in and be done with the day. The only thing I would add to darker space like this is more lighting, especially if you like to read in the evening. |
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Take advantage of a bright nearby window when designing a dark bedroom. It brings out any contrasting colors and keeps the richer hues from bleeding into each other during the day.
What does your perfect bedroom look like?
Next: Browse photos of bedroom designs
More color guides:
Chic and Moody Bathrooms
Cool White Spaces
How to Pick the Right White
How to Pick the Right Gray
What does your perfect bedroom look like?
Next: Browse photos of bedroom designs
More color guides:
Chic and Moody Bathrooms
Cool White Spaces
How to Pick the Right White
How to Pick the Right Gray
Ideabook updated on June 19, 2011.
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Warm...dark...moody rooms always brought out the cocooning side of me. It seemed harder for me to want to get out of bed and get on with the day. A room that had light colored walls with some great pops of color seemed to be more invigorating. A lot of the "mood" depended on the amount of natural light that the room offered. The more natural light, the happier the mood.
In retropsect, color really did affect my perspective on how the day begins. If you love color, may I suggest keeping the walls a soft, light shade that makes you feel upbeat and add your color bursts, be they deep and intense to bright and cheerful, in interesting bedding or other details. I happen to love all shades of white. It allows me to be a chameleon of change with all the other details from the color of the furniture to the draperies and the accessories I feel at the present time....be that seasonal, emotional or simply contrary.
Dark rooms are sensuous and mysterious....and maybe even a bit trendy....but if you find that you're not a "morning" person, this will make you want to burrow instead of get up and go. It's tough to lighten up a room with dark walls but it's easy to add lots of warm touches to a room that is grounded in neutrality. I'm ready to change my robins' egg blue bedroom back to white. It's happy and fresh....just the way I like to greet my day!!
I like both as well but i thought to go for light and airy since the rest of the house is on the darker side, dark floor/furniture so opting for a light room is a change and makes it easier to choose in light of the rest of the house.
There are so many great points made here. My favorite is the idea behind how we want to feel when we wake in the morning. I have to say, I was up pretty late reading these comments last night and they made me smile. When I woke up this morning, the first thing that I asked myself was what I wanted my bedroom to look like when I opened my eyes. Calm and airy was the immediate answer.
The best part of going this route is that it solves my other dilemma...which is determining the feel I want for our library. I think I've decided- dark and cocoon like in the library, crisp and bright for the bedroom. Best of both worlds. :) Thanks, everyone.
I tend to make a switch come winter.. We pull out a darker shade of comforter with black sheets and deep red pillow for that dark gloomy cuddle up effect...and once spring comes its the big change to a light taupe with sea glass colored sheets/pillows etc...for energy and and calming at the same time!
although i love rich colors, especially dark ones, and don't like white walls much at all, i need light in my house. I don't want my bedroom's colors to be so light or bright that they keep me awake at night, nor so dark that they are depressing in the Winter. But give me a neutral walls that are not white or gray, and accent them with dark woods, creamy white trim, and vibrant colorful accents and i'm home.