Bedrooms: design & decoration
Bedrooms often get overlooked when it comes to designing a home. Unlike the public rooms in a house - the living space and kitchen - they are less likely to be scrutinised by others, and can consequently fall to the bottom of the 'to do' list. Yet we all love the treat of staying in a boutique hotel, or harbour nostalgic memories of being snuggled under a floral eiderdown in granny's cosy spare room, so it's worth taking time over the bedroom, to maximise its potential for comfort and sensuality. Each of us spends a great deal of time in the bedroom, but most of it asleep - by the age of 50 we will have spent more than 16 years asleep. But the bedroom is still the first and last thing we see each day, and a well designed space can do much to ease us into the day and soothe us off to sleep each night. When carefully thought out, it can also be much more than a place to sleep and store clothes, becoming a relaxed haven, somewhere to read, potter, work, or just gaze out of the window. The private nature of bedrooms also offers great decorating opportunities. This is the one room of the house that can be completely personal. There is a chance to experiment - why not try that dramatic wallpaper or deep-pile carpet? - and to play around with materials, textures and colours that would not work as well in any other room.