There are these rules of bed arrangement that - spoken or unspoken - apply to almost every bedroom. You know, place the bed so that it faces the door to the room, allow space on either side of the bed, don't block windows with the bed. But these bedrooms break those rules and I still like them:
When you live in a tiny place with limited choices regarding furniture arrangement, you sometimes just have to break the rules. So, if you bedroom has you backed into a corner (literally) don't despair! These examples show that going against the grain can work with a little ingenuity and unapologetic creativity.
- 1: A headboard defines the end of this bed even though it's up against a window. The headboard is nicely finished and would look just fine from outside the window, too.
- 2: This bed is in a corner and blocks two windows. Yet it works because its headboard provides a place to rest your head instead of leaning against the window. Artwork and lighting are arranged around the corner to help work the bed into the corner instead of feeling smacked up against the wall.
- 3: This bed is up against a wall, but lighting is still provided to both sides thanks to a hanging pendant. A quilt on the wall softens the wall along the side of the bed that's in the corner.
Images: DecorPad, unknown via Centsational Girl, Kyle Freeman
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#2 seems like it would be really awkward in theory, but it works really well!
I have a very small spare bedroom that I planned on turning into a guest room soon. I think I will go ahead and push the bed against the wall in front of a window. The flow of the room would be much better if it wasn't centered.
These all appear to be very small rooms, in which case, this is a fairly common design dilemma for many people. While I still don't care for this juxtaposition, the rooms still look nice, and it appears that effort was made to maintain as much balance as possible.
In my last home I placed my bed in front of a window and I loved it. Yes, you do really need a headboard. Mine was a spindle style, so i could see through it, and in the summer with the window open, the breeze and fresh air could come in through it. I put up a thin white curtain to cover only the bottom half of the window, for privacy. It was really nice.
In our last apt. we also put the bed right in front of the window. It was where the fire escape was, so you couldn't use a headboard because the window grate had to be able to open. But, the window well was almost a foot deep and at the exact height of the mattress so we used it almost like a bed extension and an extra place to keep bedside table items. I personally love sleeping right next to a window for the air and light in the morning.
ours is in front of a window because the room is tiny and there is no other way it could fit. it actually works nicely to be able to lay in bed and enjoy the scenery. in nyc this is prob the norm!
One of our early bedroom set ups had the bed in the corner with the feet against the wall and our dresser at the head (imagine a king sized daybed). It was cozy and comfortable and I'd do it again if the room allowed for it.
#2 really works. I grew up with windows beside my bed, and is so nice to catch the breezes and watch the world go by.
#1 I don't have a problem with either.I've often had this arrangement in small apartments.
#3 is the situation that I'm likely going to face with in my current apartment, except that the window is one of those useless one high in the wall. But I will be incorporating the pendant lamp idea.
Our bed is up in the corner currently. I hesitated to do it for a long time even though the room was small, but once we moved it there, it opened up a lot of space and I think it has been worth it. However, we might have to move it back or trade places when our baby comes in June - I don't want to have to crawl over hubbs to get to him every few hours!
I'm kind of in the same boat as the 3rd picture, but I hung a floor-to-ceiling curtain the width of the bed to disguise the lack of balance. When I open up the windows, I pull the curtain to one side, and the window itself kind of balances with the swath of material. Not ideal, but ok. Definitely need a headboard.
Our guest bed is in front of a window without a headboard, and I still think it works. Guess I'm a rebel.
My middle daughter's bedroom has a door, a window or a radiator in the center of each wall. It's not a small room, but there is no way to arrange the furniture so the bed isn't in front of something. I don't love having her bed in front of the window, but I don't mind it as much as I would have thought.
Realistically, most people don't have the luxury of choosing where the bed goes. Most people I know just don't have that many options.
However, since I've always lived in the US here in the US, we always put our beds away from windows in case of late night tornadoes or wind/rain storms.
I don't think any of these work well; they all look awkward and uncomfortable. If you have a really tiny space you might not have any choice, but I'd exhaust all possibilities before settling on any of these options.
The spammers have started early today, haven't they?
Our bed right now is against the windows which I prefer cause I like the breeze close. But I do have a large room so I will be able to rearrange as I feel fit.
That third one looks like whoever sat up on that side would bonk right into the pendant lamp.
i don't have it set up that way now, but i always liked having my bed set up against the wall. i thought it was very cozy. as a force of habit, i guess, i still only get out of bed on the side with my bedstand on it, even though the other side is closer to the door. :)
I want to put our bed against the window, but it's the only window in the room and the AC unit goes in there in the summer. :(
@hernandohouse--i think it works nicely too. the window is your headboard.
HATE HATE HATE a bed shoved up against a wall!
My son's bed is not facing the door, because when it was, his tv was on our shared wall. When he had friends over, we could hear the xbox or prison break at 3 in the morning. Sometimes you gotta do what you've gotta do.
well if it is not against a wall, where do you wanna put it? in the very middle of the floor? hehe not spamming, just curious???
Good inspiration for my future condo, which I anticipate will be under 500 sf.
we have our bed jammed between and radiator and a window. so far, it fits perfectly...but it's also just a large mattress on the floor.
when we have a custom bed built, the drawers underneath won't open on the side with the radiator, so our only option is going to be the bed under a window.
we have an 11x13 bedroom with a bedroom closet door, bathroom door & 2 inward swinging french doors, so there aren't a lot of options.
In regular sized older homes (mine is 1913 and my sisters 1905) I find there are typically windows or doors on every single wall, to place a bed larger than a twin without being in the corner or blocking any windows is virtually impossible. Seems to me this can only be avoided in newer homes where room are bigger than your standard old 11ft square, and there is a lack of windows.
In my old apartment, I didn't have a choice when it came to placing my bed in front of a window - my room was a sunroom with french doors! I made it work, placing my bed just about to the wall on the side of the room with the radiator.
Waking up bathed in sunlight for half of the year was a special treat.
Lived in a Chicago-style bungalow with my parents for about a year right after high school. My room was so, so tiny, and the set-up was exactly like room #2 featured above. I loved it. It was cozy and I hung sheer curtains that would flutter across my bed when a breeze came through. While I would never choose to put a bed in that spot if avoidable, it looked and felt lovely in that tiny space.
I always like to have my bed facing the door AND against the window. Theres no headboard so it's not actually BLOCKING it. I just figure it's the only real use for a window to be able to lay in bed and look out of it during storms and what not.
Unfortunately, our bed is longer than normal so having it facing the door means there's a little less room to walk around. Sometimes it annoys me but I don't think it would annoy me nearly as much as having the bed facing in some other direction!
A bed against the wall is by far worse than a bed back against the window. In my current bedroom, I've got both situations... I liked the idea of a hanging pendant (but this close to the head!) and a quilt (or anyth like it) on the wall to minimize the problem; but instead a haedbord, I've built a wooden modualr unit that goes along with the headbord line of the bed, working like one!
I love beds against a wall or in a corner -- mine is (and thinking about it, it has been for my last two apartments, too!). Somehow it just feels a lot cozier and safer to me.
I can't stand anything that blocks the window, though. Underneath the window, sure -- but not covering up part of it!
i'm confused ... what are these taboo bed placements you speak of? is that something they teach in design school? to people who don't have to live with the arrangement & can fantasize 'the perfect space'? because most people put the bed where it makes the most sense. if there's something taboo about that ... i don't get it.
I recently changed the placement of my bed in order to have more room on each side. The headboard is partially under a window. It is not symmetrical but I love it: having room on either side of the bed rather than having to squeeze in or out feels luxurious. My chest of drawers is doubling as a night stand now, and that, too, feels luxurious. I do have concerns about the window because of earthquakes so I'm considering carefully taping the windows tin a pattern to (perhaps) prevent shards of glass from falling on my head.
I live in a studio. It's 300 square feet. My bed faces the door, is in the corner, and is against a wall. I don't see why this might be taboo. In fact, it looks a lot like #3.
I've always felt like having the most open floor space was crucial (couldn't say why, though.) So I've always had beds shoved up against the wall. Once I finally realized I wasn't using that open floor space in the bedroom, I started leaving space on both sides of the bed. Hallelujah! No longer a nightmare to make the bed!
Obviously, in a small room, you gotta do what you gotta do.
Still, if there's 2 in bed, having the side up against the wall is awkward. Even leaving 18-23" of space between the bed and the wall helps a lot, I find.
Used to hate having head of bed against windows due to drafts - cold climate, old buldings, loose, rattly, single pane windows.)
Then I tried it in my last place to make the bedroom look bigger when I sold it. Found I really liked it - have similar placement in current place. Still felt/feel drafts (even with double-paned replacement windows), but it was/is Ok because there were/are 2 windows with a wall space in-between, and I can handle it if my head is centered so the wall is directly behind my head, not the window.
Headboard has slats - not solid. Not sure I could handle drafts in winter if my head was in front of window - maybe with a solid headboard.
Why is it taboo to not have the bed facing the door? In our house, the beds in all of the kids' rooms are against a wall - they would need huge rooms for this not to be the case.
It always takes me work and editing over time to take a bedroom from feeling too small to comfortable. Rules are made to be broken. On the other hand, an advantage of not having a bedside against a wall is that my husband doesn't bump into the ceiling fan-light.
The first time I didn't have the bed against the wall was when I was in high school. I was old enough not to want to spread out on the floor, and I needed space for a desk, keyboard (piano style), and my dresser. That opened up enough wall space so that moving around the bed was tight, but I could make it more efficiently. I could also put my guitars out on stands instead of packing them up and having them lose tune all the time.
I'm fine with the bed against a window, provided it is centered. Off centered things really bother me.
Lucky for me the window in our bedroom is off center on the wall, so we could center our bed on the window and still have room for a dresser.
One thing I cannot handle is sleeping against the wall. I'd rather sleep on the floor.
Why not try and put the bed facing the window leaving room on three sides of the bed and using a tall wardrobe as a headboard. It will work as a room divider and noone has to sleep against the wall. You won't be able to see the window from the door but instead walk straight into a walk-in closet and have the smaller secret bedroom be truely private.
The bed against the wall is common in children's rooms but I've never seen it in an adult room. It seems impractical as one person loses their side and they have to shuffle to the end or crawl over their partner to get out of bed. One of our daughters rooms has the bed against the wall and we dress it up like a sofa during the day so it's practical.
Against the window isn't aesthetically displeasing but in most older homes it's not practical as windows have less insulation.
ploefff, I did something similar to what you're suggesting. Instead of a tall wardrobe, though, I used wide, low bookcases -- about 40 inches high, six feet wide. The backs of the bookcases are finished, so they work as a headboard.
When you walk into the room, you see the bookcases, and a bank of windows beyond -- the large bank of windows is why I chose something low. You can't see the bed. The bookcases face a fireplace, and I have a chair there.
When you're on the bed, you look out the large windows. The top of the bookcases serve as a very roomy nightstand.
If you don't have furniture with finished backs, you can staple fabric to their backs.
This is a great layout when you have room significantly longer than it is wide (mine is 18 feet long, about 14 feet wide). I like it so much I plan to do it again, even when I'm in a room without windows or fireplaces on every wall!
My bed is in front of window partially and in a corner. I like it (rules are or those who need to be told what to do) it feels cozy against the wall like a little nook.
the last one is the worst. if there are two people in bed, yes, you need to skootch down to get out.
reminds me of someone i dated once. he had his bed against a wall (with windows). seemed almost kiddish. should have been a red flag ;)
I am currently living in the smallest bedroom I have ever had in my life. The bedroom dictated the placement of my bed: in front of my closet. My sliding closet doors serve as my "headboard". What's more, it's also wedged in the corner. It was the only way to preserve any sort of floor area. I guess I've gotten used to it (it helps that I have another hallway closet to house my "in season" clothing - the blocked closet is all off-season items).
I don't mind how a bed looks against a wall but it is so irritating to try to make up a bed that is shoved against a wall!
I don't mind crawling over my husband to get into bed...we kinda like each other, after all. The wall-side person can always get in bed first and out last if needed, of course. We never have had dedicated "sides" for ourselves anyway; I'll go a while sleeping on the right and he on the left, then we'll switch for no apparent reason.
However, it IS such a pain to make a bed against the wall. My technique has been to arrange the bed away from the wall even just 6 inches or so, just to have room to squeeze alongside and tuck the blankets in. A wall ledge or floor lamp could be used if you need something to full that gap where it kind of feels like a nightstand should go, or if you need the functionality of one.
I love having my bed against the window and preferably against the wall. Right now the head of the bed is against the window, where the radiator is and I set my book and cup on the non-vent part of the radiator.