A designer’s guide to styling your bed
Design: Time & Place Interiors / Photo: Gloria Kilbourne
If you travel frequently or work a rigorous schedule, you know how good it feels to come home at the end of a long day. Especially to a serene, relaxing bedroom.
But an unmade bed, left messy while rushing out of the house, won’t be an appealing greeting. It’s a sad sight, even if no one else is looking.
Your bed doesn’t need to be overly fussy to look great. A few nice textiles — whether they’re retail or custom — styled with a good touch, are what you’ll need to make a bed that looks both attractive and inviting to climb into.
So, here are my interior designer tips for a bed that’s stylish but doesn’t take too much work to maintain on the daily:
1) Good linens: Indulge in high quality sheets. They’re a luxury you’ll enjoy every day. Thread count is over-rated, but always use natural fibers like percale cotton. Linen is another great choice for its breathability and casualness which can be left naturally wrinkled, for a lived-in look.
2) A nice coverlet: A single coverlet, flowing down over the bed frame, is sleek. Tuck it under the bottom edge of your sleeping pillows for a uniform look. Even simpler is a wrinkled linen duvet cover, with matching sheets. Bonus tip: upsize your bedspread so it hangs generously on either side of the bed (e.g. if you have a Queen bed, use a King size bedspread).
3) Beautiful accents: You don’t need to recreate a department store-like display with a mountain of cushions. One long lumbar pillow, or a couple of 20x12 inch cushions, usually does the trick. For dimension, use a sham in beautiful texture like alpaca, cashmere, or silk. And unless you’re allergic, go for down/feather inserts: these should be two inches larger than the sham. Finally, if you opt for a throw blanket, ensure it’s long enough to drape across the full width of the bed.
For your inspiration, here’s a roundup of stylish bedding design ideas from my portfolio and other interior designers.
- Ksenya, founder of Time & Place Interiors
I paired a Portuguese textured coverlet with a set of Peruvian alpaca cushions for an earthy look. Design: Time & Place Interiors
An empty linen duvet drapes generously in a Brooklyn townhouse bedroom. Design: TBo with Hovey Design / Photo: Jonathan Hökklo
A serene Bed-Stuy guest bedroom in monochromatic pink tones envelops the senses. Design: Shapeless Studio / Photo: Kate Sears
Fluffy neutral textures make this bed temptingly nap-worthy. Design: Olivia Stutz / Photo Sean Litchfield
Serenity through Zara Home linen bedding, a Carpathian wool blanket, and a Moroccan runner rug. Design: Nikki Amodio / Photo: Joyelle West
Pillows by Thomas O’Brien and a mohair throw by Spanish textile fabricator Mantas Ezcaray bring out the colors of the Persian Afshar rug in my guest bedroom. Design: Time & Place Interiors / Photo: Gloria Kilbourne
Layered throw blanket textiles in contrasting patterns but similar color palettes add interest. Design: Julie Hillman / Photo: Simon Upton
Perfection through textures: A wool throw on the bed, a sheepskin draping a leather campaign chair, and a Moroccan rug. Design: Lisa Jones / Photo: Richard Round-Turner
An eclectic Hamptons guest bedroom has a matching upholstered headboard and window shades, with an artisan quilt to complement the design. Design: Patrick McGrath / Stephen Kent Johnson
Sometimes a beautiful linen coverlet is all you need, like this one in a Hudson Valley cabin. Design: Post Company / Photo: Adrian Gout
Ready to get your perfect bedroom set up?
Time & Place Interiors crafts home environments that feel both relaxing and personalized. Founder Ksenya Malina’s specialty is pairing handmade artisan designs with vintage heirlooms to create layered, elegant comfort. Use the link below to schedule a free 20-minute information call with Ksenya to talk through your design needs:
