Q: I live in a Chicago apartment with the typical dark, small and narrow bedroom. I can fit my furniture comfortably, but only if I place my bed in the corner against the wall. I've been trying to come up with a creative design idea to make the bed the focal point of the room, without making the asymmetry look awkward.
Do you have any suggestions? Any help or advice would be appreciated!
Sent by Ashley
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You could do a wrap-around headboard, like this
http://pinterest.com/pin/257268197433534191/
pretty easy DIY. Just wood, foam, and fabric
I was going to say something very similar to caseyinto - get rid of your headboard and arrange a bunch of bold print or colorful pillows at the corner, so the focal point becomes the corner. I would also paint the dresser and side table a color that blends in more with your wall color - the black/dark brown is too much of a contrast against the light walls, making that furniture stand out.
I would say paint (if you can), use vinyl decals, or hang some big art/fabric above/behind the headboard to attract attention to that corner. I'd worry about doing a bigger or solid headboard since it will make the room look a little more cluttered and thus smaller. But some bright fabric or curtains hung floor to ceiling will allow you to focus the eye on a vertical line.
I'm in a similar situation in an apartment in Lincoln Park, and I painted the wall behind my bed a deep reddish purple, the rest of the walls bright white. It really makes the room look bigger and attracts attention the way I think you want.
you could remove the current headboard and build one, like these people did:
http://pinterest.com/pin/190699365441656117/
http://pinterest.com/pin/89086898849016702/
or, this person hung a little collection of artwork:
http://pinterest.com/pin/80431543314601004/
it looks like this person just painted a faux headboard:
http://pinterest.com/pin/165155511304469388/
(thanks pinterest)
ooh I need these suggestions too! I am faced with exactly the same problem in the house I just moved into this weekend
I'd echo Crosberg's suggestion of painting the one wall an interesting color and leaving the other walls more plain.
You could also go for a floor-to-ceiling headboard, like these:
http://pinterest.com/pin/135248795029960884/
http://pinterest.com/pin/37999190576015263/
http://pinterest.com/pin/73887250106038802/
http://pinterest.com/pin/9640586672562894/
I'd suggest a bold color, print and/or design - that would definitely draw the eye to that corner of the room.
Good luck!
I've just recently moved my bed to the corner as well, and I really like it. I've arranged my pillows toward the corner, and I tend to sleep diagonally. It's like my little nest of relaxation. I'd suggest hanging some great art above the headboard, and maybe adding a fun pendant light from the corner above the bed. If you make it look like you wanted the bed in the corner, then it feels less off balance.
I was going to suggest a canopied daybed look using drapes, if you prefer a softer look but having seen those wraparound headboards I'm thinking they are a stunningly brilliant idea.
Keep the bed in the same position but center it under the window and have small night stands and lamps on either side of the bed. Kinda like a short bed. No headboard.
I was going to suggest something similar as Caseyinto. I was checking out one of the Martha Stewart/KB model homes once and one of the rooms had a corner bed with a headboard like this, except it didn't go all the way down the bed on the long side and it was bright orange. It was very cool looking (and might keep stuff from falling between the bed and wall. I bed you could DIY one fairly easily.
Bold duvets are a good way to draw the eye to the bed. Some ideas:
http://www.allmodern.com/DwellStudio-Peacock-Citrine-Duvet-Collection-DWL2080.html
http://www.allmodern.com/DwellStudio-Draper-Stripe-Persimmon-Duvet-Collection-DWL2546.html
http://www.allmodern.com/Bedding-Sets-by-Missoni-Home-C232781.html
My bed is in the corner of my room. I put a floating shelf about 16" above the top of my headboard with two wall lights underneath. I purchased a fairly large, and super colourful, art print on canvas and I have it sitting directly on the shelf. I also have a bold print duvet cover that is black, grey and white, and some fun colourful pillows.
what about a short loft - or a captains bed - two or three drawer height dressers under the bed - can it fit horizontally along the back wall... and have the dressers under it ... put curtains in front and create a builtin bed... like an alcove...
or do the same but in the corner ... raise the bed to get it a different level from everything else and storage underneath allows you to get rid of the unit against that opposite wall and have more space and the illusion of a bigger room
Hang pictures above the bed! We did this in our bedroom and it immediately pulls your focus there.
I had similar issue in a tiny Lincoln Park bedroom. I used a wall decal that looked like a headboard from Etsy. It was super cute and you could choose 2 colors.
I think it would be nice to get rid of the night stand and get a smaller side table with legs so it looks a little light and airy, move that table lamp above the dresser and get a swing arm lamp for the wall above the smaller table and lastly either a piece of art above the bed or an oval or rectangular mirror!
I've used artwork in a particular pattern based around the corner of the head of the bed to great effect. I didn't even need a headboard for that. I've also used draped fabric in various angles to make the headboard, too. To do that, I used tea-cup holders in the middle of the ceiling to hold a small drapery rod, then I gathered the material as it approached the corner and let it drape down the corner. It looked very boho!
Check out how I handled the bed in this teenager bedroom. Someone already linked to it on pinterest above, but here's an article written about the room. I'd love to hear your comments!
http://carlaaston.com/bedroom-design-project-064
http://pinterest.com/pin/191121577907095375/
and I love Sogalitnos idea about a short loft with dressers underneath the bed,the bed put horizontally along the back wall.
A higher headboard could help. I want to say do an L-shaped headboard around the bed, but then I noticed the window. Since the room is small, a bookcase-style headboard could be nice for extra storage.
The bed is the biggest thing in the room, and the other furniture is not distracting -- it's hard to see how the bed could avoid being the focal point. A bright or patterned duvet would ensure the bed's status. I disagree with all the calls for bigger or more elaborate headboards. Having a window (tall and interesting) and a higher headboard (tall and interesting) right next to each other would emphasize the asymmetry and throw the room further off balance. Instead, embrace the bed's lowness, and make it into the soft, low island in the center of other tall things. This means hang some curtain panels on the window to give it more verticality, leave the walls bare above the bed, and heighten the skyline of the dresser by hanging art over it or putting a tall palm-like plant or two on it.
Yes, hang a lamp.
I took my headboard up to the ceiling to make the corner bed tie into the space better... http://newfancyblog.wordpress.com/2011/08/06/the-guest-room/