Not So Bashful Boudouirs: Bedroom Interior Design
The bedroom is the most personal, private sanctuary within a home. Some envision this room as a place of restful tranquility, a place to sleep and dream. Others see it as an escape, a quiet retreat from the outside world, somewhere to read or catch up on the news uninterrupted. It's universally acknowledged as the go-to destination for romance and passion.
Center stage to every bedroom is the bed, the design of which will set the stage for the rest of the room. Beds range from sleek and spare, low to the ground, to dreamy and romantic, surrounded by yards of drapery. To one or both sides usually sits a nightstand or table to receive a book, glasses and other paraphernalia we keep bedside. The “matched set” is no longer de rigueur, and unexpected objects can be "adaptively misused” to serve the purpose of night tables. The style and character of these pieces set the personality of the room. Seating and storage provide additional opportunities to set the stage. A bedroom interior can be simplified with built-in storage, or closets can be replaced with distinctive armoires and intriguing chests. Seating can include a chaise for napping, a comfortable reading chair and a sturdy place to put your socks on.
Flexible electric lighting and dimming systems are essential to bedroom design as we'll want to alter the mood in the room according to activities. (See "lighting".)Window dressings are another essential element in bedroom lighting as they control the daylight and provide privacy. Sheers and translucent treatments diffuse natural light, and can be quite evocative. Equally dramatic, draperies opened fully let in bright sunlight, a breeze and a spectacular view. Window treatments also provide privacy at night when the majority of light is within the room, or black out all light for sleeping past dawn.
ASIAN INFLUENCES INSPIRE A 1952 WOODLAND RETREAT
Reminiscent of Japanese shoji screens, closet doors flank one wall of this bedroom. Moving shadows from the maple trees outside are projected on those doors every morning adding to the asian inspiration. An antique Japanese tonsu chest, (behind the bed), houses folded clothing. A block of 4 paintings, Chinese naïve eroticism smuggled out of China, complete the composition on the back wall. Bolsters on the bed were made from silk scarves purchased in Thailand. The rug (which set the color scheme) was woven in Afghanistan. The platform bed, an African design, and small chest are made of salvaged, recycled wood. The eclectic mix of unexpected colors, patterns and cultures give this room it’s distinct personality and rich character.
A PRIVATE SANCTUARY
Endowed with 6 large windows looking out onto lush greenery this master bedroom was a “natural” for a nature theme. Lush natural fabrics, silks and velvets, are the luxurious materials upon which are patterned leafy and water motifs. A Laotian rain drum serves as a table. The wool carpet was custom designed to mimic the "grasses" on the drapery trim. The organic theme is reiterated in the fer forge hat and mirror stand. In contrast, the geometric headboard and custom nightstands in dark wood with stainless steel pulls give focus to the room. The walls and tray ceiling are painted a celestial blue giving the room an ethereal quality.
Two antique chinese ancestor paintings remind us that this is a private sanctuary for a man and a woman.
WATER WORLD
Limited color, lots of white and a collection of carefully chosen rustic antiques implement our vision of this room as a space of restful tranquility. Light sparkling on the water is the artwork. The bed with it's woven headboard floats in the room, not against a wall; the tall headboard providing support. Custom bedspread pattern is reminiscent of sea urchins. Ceiling-hung pendants provide light for reading and are controlled remotely from the bed.
GARDEN GETAWAY ON 24
24 stories above Chicago’s Millenium Park is a garden that one couple considers their getaway. A luscious floral needlepoint rug underfoot is the canvas upon which this room is painted. Bold splashes of pastoral green and passionate red, complementary colors that excite one another, express the dual nature of a bedroom. Lush velvets and delicately floral pattern express the luxurious and verdant feel of the space. A custom headboard stretches nearly from wall to wall providing the background for a pair of nightstands and visually elongating the room. Out of image is a handsome amoire housing television and other entertainment devices.
DREAM WHISPERER
We imagined this room as a dream. Delicate, almost-not-there colors wrap this space in quiet. The walls were airbrushed in fragile pink and subtle eucalyptus green to establish the dreamy, hushed, unworldly atmosphere we were aiming for. The hydrangea pattern on the bedding is ethereal. Upholstery fabrics on seating are woven blends of the pastel pink and green. Soft light permeates the space filtered through open weave window treatments adding further to the illusion.
In the renovation of this home, far more space was allocated to the master bedroom than necessary, especially considering that 2 (his and hers) ample walk-in closets are just adjacent. The challenge here was make the ample square footage feel spacious, but not empty. The entire room is set on a diagonal by building in a triangular headboard and upholstered seating area across from one another. Setting the chair and ottoman in the bay and the early 18th century chest, an exceptional antique show find, at the opposite angle completes the implied inner square.
LAGNIAPPE: A guestroom
It wouldn’t take much more than this enchanting room to entice a guest to stay. Old and new elements combine with style and imagination. An antique sewing table (left facing) is (mis)-matched with a steel medical cabinet which serve as nightstands. (Great antique shopping finds along with the deco table lamp and the purple chair (re-covered). The bedcover, a modern color-on-color floral crewel, brings to mind the old chenille bedspreads. In contrast, the wood platform bed, Roman shades and small “smoking table” are stark and modern. The highly detailed antiques are shown to advantage against the clean, straight lines of the newer pieces. All is set against a canvas of two-tone lavender walls treated with an Arts and Crafts paint finish called “combing”. Custom bolster and pillow details pick up on the fabrics and colors of their surroundings. Wouldn’t you love to be a guest here?
SECOND TIME AROUND
The first time I designed this bedroom I was confined to the small existing space. The custom bed, desk and armoire were highlights of the first iteration.
Only after completion of the initial project did the clients decide to take the plunge and put an addition on the house that would increase storage (they had clothes hanging in the stairwell), provide a luxurious master bath (with separate bath, shower, 2 sinks…) and a comfortable sitting room.
The painting over the bed, which served as inspiration for the initial re-do again was central to the design. The custom pieces from round one were re-used. A comfortable sofa and chair from the living room, were re-upholstered in matching bottle-green leather and suede, and re-used in the sitting room. The subtle contrast of textures adds interest.
An entire wall of built-in closets added to the small existing walk-in provide ample storage. The storage wall, fabricated in matte bottle green plastic laminate trimmed in green stained oak, again makes a rich statement of textural contrast while saving substantially on material and labor costs.
Utilizing the most interesting part of the space, and minimizing the actual living area were two enormous closets (his and hers) in the original layout of this master suite. An easy remedy, the demolition of 2 walls, exposed the interesting angles previously hidden in the closets. Space was re-allocated to provide for an ample master bedroom with sitting room and office. A large walk-in closet now fills the area where a windowless office once was.
The custom upholstered bed is center stage upon entering the suite. To the right is a built-in office. Steelcase lateral files, custom painted, support a top, provide a kneehole and terminate in a floor-to-ceiling storage closet. Shelves above conceal lighting while providing space for books and artwork. A fabric-wrapped pin-up board above the work surface appears to be an upholstered wall until important papers are stationed there for immediate attention.
The custom sofa in the sitting room is a sleeper, additional sleeping spots for visits from kids and grandkids.
This carefully composed and edited master suite is the tranquil retreat for a University of Chicago professor and a Chicago Tribune writer. The no-frills simplicity of the design mingles Asian and Arts & Crafts aesthetics. The architecture and the clients’ cultivated tastes dictated this simple, unpretentious interior design.
FENG SHUI OR NAY?
It’s just not Feng Shui to sleep with your back to the door, but maybe this is an exception. The stunning sculptural headboard has to be seen and at 42”high, implies a wall. The angled placement of the bed provides the best possible view of Lake Michigan 31 floors above Chicago’s Lincoln Park and it conceals an often-unmade bed. Red pocket doors can enclose the bedroom, but are rarely used.
A light cove encircles the entire room and produces a restful ambiance and perfect no-glare night-time TV watching. Twinkling light from Chicago's skyline is subdued by the sheer drapery that also filters the daylight. Built-in closet doors and dresser wrap the corner. A 3" difference between floor and ceiling from one end of the room to the other required many adjustments to accommodate and conceal the variances. Custom dragonfly handles were attached seemingly at random imitating the way dragonflies behave in community.
CHANGING SCALE
The inspiration for this room was the Picasso-esque printed fabric that we quilted to exaggerate the pattern and render the bedspreads wrinkle free. The scale was enlarged in designing the unconventional wall painting, and changed again in the design of the headboards, nightstands and dresser. Visitors are enveloped in this conceptual space which wraps the entire room like a cocoon.
THE SKY IS THE LIMIT
Carved out of 1-1/2 of the original bedrooms, this corner master suite boasts 2 full walls of floor-to-ceiling windows 60+ floors above Chicago. Between two built-in vertical storage closets a niche was created to hug the custom upholstered bed and nightstands. The wall inside, also upholstered, becomes the headboard. The other alcove encloses a wall of dressers. The double-mitered drawer faces are concealed in the “frame” surrounding the cabinets. Mirrors reflect never-ending sky.
