Is there supposed to be another bed picture? Increase the size of the sconces and get a chandelier without any shade over it. Then install an art light above the painting to enhance it. Add new bedside tables when you get the new bed. They should arrive at mattress height. The blue is a good, calming bedroom color. Adjusting the lighting issue may be all you need to do.

The real culprit is that wall paint color. If the pendant gives out a warm color then I'd stick with that since you don't want your bedroom to have a white light (not relaxing).

I'd kept it simple and paint it white or cream. You'll find the white paint will reflect the light better. Also, those little sconces you have on the wall?

Fit them with white light LED bulbs. The contrast will be attractive against a white wall and you can read a book better.

Thanks guys. Decoenthusiaste--you think a chandelier more than something like an Akari paper pendant or Enoki linen pendant? I sometimes find a naked bulb has so much glare.

I agree very hard to get a feel for your style , and we do not see the pic of the new bed.You need larger sconces as they really are for reading beside a bed, the chandeleir is too small and the orange makes all the colors in the space off.Maybe when you post a pic of the bed you could also post more of the whole room. Bedding always makes a huge difference in a bedroom . I like the blue wallI find the drapes on the window seat very heavy looking

Thanks, all! Here is the bed, and here are a couple more pics of the bedroom. And then a few more pics to give a flavor for our style. We combined households but didn't have a lot of funds to redecorate as we're both in the arts :)

I actually adore these sconces! They actually provide an unexpectedly gorgeous light for how discreet they are. They're made by this artisan: https://www.etsy.com/shop/RoughLuckStudio

Bed:

Bedroom:

Foyer:

Living room:

Dining room:

The metal industrial pendant in the living room def has to go at some point ...

Are you sure that bed will fit? It looks like you don't have much room around your current bed and with the wide bed frame it might be tight. I would measure it very carefully and maybe even tape it all out on the floor to see how it fits.

i'd reframe the painting, a wide white mat would do as much as repainting the walls, and cost about the same with less disruption.

no matter the wall color you need a different ceiling fixture. and i LIKE the wall color.

Its a shame the window is blocked by that cabinet/armoire. Is it serving to divide up a studio apartment? What's stored inside and is it as wide as the planned bed? I'm betting we could do a killer re-configuration of your place but would need a floor plan.

Put a picture light over the art. Battery operated if you don't have a plug. If plugged,paint the cord cover to match wall.

following

Hi Decorenthusiaste! Thank you so much for the ideas. Here's a (loosely drawn) plan for the room.

One issue is my partner has a LOT of clothes. (His friends call him Imelda Marcos.) Another is that this bedroom has absolutely no closets at all. A final limitation is our budgets--ripping out and entirely replacing all these wardrobes would probably be out of range for us.

The bay window isn't as wide as the bed. We built in a pine cupboard beneath, which is very helpful for storage. But the window already ended where the top of the cupboard is.

my issues:

--the dresser doesn't really have enough drawers, but I'm not sure there's room for another dresser or how to match it

-- the clothes rack is awful

-- the bathroom has no door--just an open entry

-- night tables are mismatched

-- the faded small Persian laid over the jute rug isn't my fave

What would you do? Especially if you only had the budget to replace three things or so (like the pendant, the bed, and add a cupboard; or rug and nighttables and add a bed bench; etc). I'd like to put more plants in the room but it feels a bit tough to maneuver around already. I'm fixing the too-small curtains.

East wall:

North wall:

West wall:

South wall:

Rug situation:

One note--we are in the southern hemisphere (South Africa), so the north-facing bay window acts as a south-facing window would act in America.

Can the wardrobes be moved? I think it would feel much less claustrophobic to have the largest one on the west wall facing the bed. You could then bring the dresser over to the right side of the bed and use it as a nightstand. Is there any place else in the house where clothes can be stored? Is your partner willing to really go through his clothes and pare down a bit?

Instead of a low platform bed, I'd look for a bed that has drawer storage underneath. https://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S79129608/

Hi, this is Kim, not Jim. I think it is a very cute room. I love the window seat that you guys created. Some ideas, according to small budget and your list.

1. Purge any and all clothing that you don't really wear. If he can't part with it...put in storage somewhere if possible--shed, garage, attic, or under the bed. Then remove the clothes rack and ladder. ( or just put what is rarely used on the rack and ladder and move them to the attic, etc) You could then move the dresser to the wall where the clothes rack was and have better flow into the room. And put up some other artwork on that far wall--you guys hopefully have some pieces that you have done that you can hang up--or now you have a new project!

2. I, too, like the color of the room, but the 2 wardrobes look a little yellow--while the trim is white. Perhaps paint the wardrobes a crisp white, similar to the trim in the room. But of course if you really dislike the blue then pick a color that you do like--a bit lighter and perhaps a shade warmer would make you feel less gloomy. Put the new lighting in BEFORE you pick your paint color, because just doing that may change your feeling about the color.

3. I don't think that the new bed will fit comfortably in that room. Save your money and instead buy a door for the bathroom! THIS should probably be #1 on the list!

4. I think the gray curtains and throw don't add to the room. Changing one or both may help. (of course according to what you can afford--but if you aren't going to purchase that new bed, then a new colorful throw and some pillow covers/cases might be in the budget.) If you can get away with having only the white sheers, (i.e. your window doesn't face the street so your neighbors will see you naked) then just remove the heavy gray curtain. That would be great for the budget. If not, then perhaps add a printed curtain that coordinates well with the color from the wall/bed may be pretty.

5. I think how you light a room can be key to your enjoyment of it. Decoenthusiest had great suggestions for the lighting. I think changing out the pendant light and not hanging it so low would go a long way to changing how you feel about this room.

6. I agree that rug on rug doesn't make a lot of sense. That one is an easy fix--separate them--put the Persian rug somewhere else in the house. The other seems to fit better in the space and is very neutral with your flooring.

Hope this helps give you some ideas--most of us don't have extensive budgets for decorating. Good luck! I think it's a cute space! Make fun art for the other walls!!!!

Love this! Thanks Kim!

The issues with the curtains are 1) I'm very light-sensitive, so the heaviness comes from a blackout panel behind sheers; and 2) we live in Johannesburg, which gets very cold in the winter but no rooms have central heating. A heavier curtain--while I don't like them--can really help conserve heat at night.

This is the clay chandelier I currently have in the dining room (where it isn't really working). Think it would work in this space? (This is an online pic.)

For your budget: lighting fixtures at a second hand shop. I like the one in your dining room for your bedroom, something like that. That's the kind of item you can buy (here in the US, anyway) second hand. Paper, seagrass, etc, not so much. For furniture, when I was first married and on a tight budget, besides second hand, I bought unfinished wood furniture and finished it myself. You could see that the wood was good quality, and it is much cheaper. No carpenters in the family, but I can paint, stain, varnish, etc.

another Eve

Do you have a second bedroom? We once lived in a house with a very tiny bedroom (8'x10') and we had our bed in that room and kept our clothing in the other, slightly larger bedroom, along with the desk/office stuff.

Since you have at least warm and cool seasons, consider raising the bed on bed lifters (risers) and using rolling bins to store the off season clothing. That will allow replacing the clothes rack with one of the armoires if you consolidate and get rid of anything that hasn't been worn in the past year.

I'm not sure if your style, but after seeing that picture, right away, I imagined a Sputnik light with it. As for wall color, you could lighten it up with any shade. If you want the keep it neutral, grey or a greige would be nice. You could add color in you linens, pillows and accessories.

Hi Eve, Kim here again. So I do like the chandelier that you already have-fun and a little funky...It's something that may be worth trying in the bedroom, and the price is right! You may ask if anyone has suggestions on how high or low it should hang--that will probably be important. I am thinking you definitely don't want it as low as the current pendant in there.

If you are really light sensitive, you may try uplighting with LED strips above the wardrobes. Or get a shelf with a lip on it, and place it higher up on wall with LED light. I have some stained glass pieces that my father made, that are displayed along a wall in my home in this way. The shelf sits a little more than a foot from the ceiling, because each of the pieces are a foot high. Often it is the only light we use in there. It's very serene. If you had glass pieces, you would light from behind, but if you had opaque paintings/photos you could light from the front with a slightly different effect.

I'm also a fan of "fairy/Christmas/Italian" lights--I've heard them described this way. Lanterns and battery powered candles are also inexpensive and add ambiance to the room.

So keep the curtains you have--they are providing you with a much needed function. You can get color in other ways--throws, pillows, art and if you decide to, then you paint the wall as well.

Have fun with this. Show us some photos when you make your changes.

Hello Eve! Have you checked out West Ninth Vintage fixtures? We create a variety of fixtures that would look great in your home. Take a look at some of our ideabooks for inspiration. Let us know if we could help!

Is it possible to move one of the armories to the west wall? It looks like the one with three doors would fit easily. If you did that then you could have the window accessible again.

I think a change in bedding and going for lighter colors
might really help brighten up the room!