Our bedrooms perform one of the most important functions in our daily lives: a space to get a good night’s rest. Without quality sleep, we perform worse at work, get irritable more easily and have low energy and mood all day long. The way we decorate and furnish our bedroom can make all the difference to the quality of sleep we achieve there. It is essential that you consider all elements of your bedroom when trying to enhance your sleeping environment.
There is more to a good night’s sleep than a quality bed and bedding – though this is also crucial. Here are some of the most important elements that can help you get better quality sleep.
Have A Place For Your Electronics
Using electronics in the hours before bed can have a detrimental impact on your natural sleep schedule. This is because the blue light emitted by phone, tablet or computer screens suppresses melatonin which is the hormone that makes us sleepy. Ensuring you have a space in your bedroom to put your electronics away before bed can be crucial. It is best to avoid using screens during the two hours before your bedtime.
Choose Relaxing, Muted Colours
The colour scheme of your bedroom can have a significant impact on the quality of your rest. It is best to leave the bright, vibrant colours for elsewhere in the home and instead choose relaxing, muted and neutral colours to encourage restfulness. Cool colours like green and blue can often be the most effective at ensuring relaxation and getting a good night’s sleep.
Invest In A High-Quality Mattress
You will need a good quality mattress to get the best night’s sleep. You should aim to replace your mattress at least every eight to 10 years and more frequently if you notice it is becoming lumpy or sagging. It is best to go in person to try out different mattresses and find out what kind of mattress works best for you.
Use Mirrors To Create Extra Space
Having a bedroom that feels bigger and airier can help improve your quality of sleep. If your bedroom is on the smaller side, you can achieve this by adding mirrors to create the appearance of additional space. This is best placed in a part of the room that is currently unoccupied.
Change Your Bedding Weekly
There is no set best time to change your sheets, but most people usually do so every fortnightly or monthly. Of course, you should always change your sheets more frequently if they get dirty or sweaty, but few people change their sheets every week. Doing so can be a great way to improve your enjoyment of your bed – after all, who doesn’t love the feeling of getting into a freshly changed bed? Taking the time to change your sheets weekly can be the perfect way to help you relax at night time.
Reduce Clutter By Using Good Storage
Clutter is the enemy of relaxation and can even cause stress and anxiety. Ensuring you have the right amount of storage to keep your belongings tucked out of sight can be crucial. You should ensure that you have good under bed storage, dresser space and a well-fitted wardrobe.
Getting a made to measure wardrobe can be an excellent way to ensure you have plenty of storage, even in the smallest bedroom. Have a look at the fitted wardrobes by Online Bedrooms for an idea of how you could benefit.
Consider Blackout Curtains
Blocking out daylight and unnatural light from lampposts and cars can be crucial in helping you get a good night’s sleep. If you live on a busy main road, blackout curtains can be perfect for helping keep your sleep space dark and relaxing. It can also be beneficial during the summer months when the days are long or if you have to work night shifts and sleep in the day.
Mix Bright And Soft Lighting
A good mix of bright and soft lighting is crucial for the bedroom. When you are getting dressed and ready for the day, you will need brighter light to help you see and get ready, but at night time, dimmer warm light is better to help get you in the space for sleep and relaxation.
You can achieve both easily through the use of overhead and lamp lighting. Lamps can be the ideal way to light the room while you relax in bed before going to sleep. You could also consider installing a dimmer light and switch so that you can choose the level of brightness you require at different times.
Keep Chores Out Of The Bedroom
Often, we end up carrying out all kinds of chores in our bedroom. While cleaning the bedroom cannot and should not be avoided, it is best to relegate all other tasks to different parts of the home. This can ensure that your bedroom remains a space dedicated to relaxation and sleep and doesn’t become associated with day-to-day tasks. For instance, do your ironing and fold clothes in the living room rather than the bedroom.
Try Out Different Scents
The scent of your bedroom can have a positive impact on your relaxation. Scents such as lavender, valerian and cedarwood can be the perfect choice for the bedroom. You can bring scents into your bedroom in a variety of ways, including burning scented candles, using room or pillow sprays, and reed diffusers.
Bring The Outdoors Inside
Plants are excellent for improving relaxation and making a space feel calm and serene. There is plenty of scientific evidence to back up the positive effect on our mental health that houseplants and flowers can create. You could consider getting some fresh flowers from the local florist or supermarket and trying your hand at making your own arrangements or find a few low maintenance succulents to place around the room.
Hang Soothing Artwork
It is important to add decoration to your bedroom to help give it character and put your own stamp on the space. You should look for artwork that feels soothing and relaxing to look at, particularly if it will be in eyeshot while you get to sleep. As with your bedroom’s colour scheme, it is best to choose artwork in neutral and muted shades to help keep the room relaxing.