12 Stunning Bedrooms That Show How To Put a Bed in Front of a Window
Most people will do anything to avoid situating their bed in front of a window. After all, if there’s a view involved, you want to be looking at it from bed, not have it be behind you— but it needn’t be such a negative arrangement. In smaller bedrooms and rentals with awkward spaces, sometimes this layout is unavoidable.
Here’s how to put a bed in front of the window — and make it look like it was meant to be there.
Is it Okay to Put Your Bed in Front of a Window?
According to Sarah Barnard of Sarah Barnard Designs, “placing a bed in front of the window works well in situations where other locations can create conflicts, like blocking doorways or furnishings or creating an odd or uncomfortable space division. It’s also a good solution if there are multiple windows in the room or if the placement or height of the bed doesn’t interfere with the window’s function, so there is still an opportunity for natural airflow.”
Here, Barnard shares some of her favorite tips for placing a bed in front of a window:
- Treat the window like a decorative headboard.
- Place the bed so it is framed by the window, creating a similar effect to a decorative headboard.
- Decorative elements like open draperies, flanked artwork, or plant life can help visually extend the window’s width to create more balance.
- Windows treatments that relate to the bedding can also help integrate the bed with the window.
Here are several rooms that make a bed in front of a window look not just doable, but desirable.
1. Take advantage of double-corner windows.
A major downside of putting your bed in front of a window is that you can’t look through it. However, if your room has double-corner windows like this tiny Santa Barbara, California cottage, putting the bed in front of one of them still lets you take advantage of at least one view while you’re lounging. (And we imagine that view is pretty stunning in Santa Barbara.)
2. Make your bed a focal point.
While every detail of this Los Angeles bedroom is picture-perfect because it was decorated by the professional home stager resident, your eye can’t help but be drawn to the bed. The bold auburn shade and the dazzling curvature of the headboard make the bed such a focal point that you don’t even realize it’s placed against the windows.
3. Go with sheer curtains.
Sheer curtains are great for providing privacy while still letting in natural light. They can also bring attention away from the window behind your bed by making it look like a large, ambient light, as seen in this San Francisco studio apartment.
4. Use a wrought-iron bed.
This beautiful, bright, black and white bedroom in this Louisiana ranch house features a bed in front of a window, but it doesn’t cut down on the amount of light in the least. That’s thanks in part to the fact that the bed itself is wrought iron instead of having a huge headboard. But the white walls and decor certainly help keep this room crisp and bright as well.
5. Turn the bed sideways.
A different way to fashion a bed in front of a window? “Turning the bed sideways allows you to keep the visual of the entire window and allows for all of the natural light to come through into the living space,” says Isfira Jensen, CEO and Principal of New York’s Interior Designer at Nufacet Interiors. “Additionally, with this layout,” she says, “there is free and easy access to the window and you are not subject to the more varying temperatures sleeping directly in front of a window.”
The bed in this tiny Brooklyn studio is a perfect example. It is situated in front of the window, allowing for an open space in the middle of the room, but sleepers can still see out the window.
6. Try a lower bed.
If you’re forced to have a bed in front of the window but you’re concerned about blocking light, try a bed that’s low to the ground, which Jensen says allows the window to frame the bed and act as a visual headboard.
The floor bed in this eclectic New Jersey loft is a brilliant solution to this space-saving issue. “The view and natural light offered by the window enhances the openness of the space,” says Jensen. “This window scape combined with the bed becomes a harmonious focal point in the room.”
7. Use double windows.
If your bedroom has two windows instead of just one, try situating the bed in front of both windows instead of one. This gorgeous green-hued Maine bedroom does just that, and the results are stunning.
8. Raise the curtains.
Avoid looking like a bed in front of the window is blocking the whole window by hanging your curtains higher. “Raising the curtains as high as possible also draws the eye upward, thereby giving the illusion of higher ceilings,” says Jensen. “This small, yet effective trick, elevates the look of the entire room.”
Here, Emily Henderson placed her curtain rod all the way at the ceiling in order to create the illusion that less of the window is covered by the bed. Of course, a metal bed frame helps here as well.
9. Use contrasting curtains.
In an ideal bed-meets-window situation, this is what we’d all be dealing with: a large window, centrally located in a room. Take your cue from The Decorologist and pop the bed underneath, add some blinds or curtains for style and practicality — bam. Couldn’t be simpler (or lovelier).
10. Use curtains to trick the eye.
Let’s say you have a smaller window where your bed needs to go. That can look great, but if you’re after a more formal look, use curtains to visually widen the window, extending them to just slightly wider than the bed itself as shown in this Brooklyn apartment.
“Using curtains to trick the eye is an old trick used by the pros and serves brilliantly in this example,” says Jensen. “Using this tip serves to give this area of the room a cohesive look, ensuring the bed placement, window and curtains look intentional.” You can also use this trick to make a just-off-center window look like it’s centered over the bed.
11. Keep things artfully off-center.
Another way to go about this is to put the bed in front of a window that isn’t in the center of the room. This San Francisco apartment shows how cool this can look; the bookcase next to the bed is shorter than the bed, which allows plenty of light to enter the room despite the close placement of the bed to the window. While the space is admittedly pretty busy, you have to admit it’s expertly balanced.
12. Use a window ledge as a bedside table.
When a bed needs to go beside the window, the look is almost always more casual, though it has a relaxed charm. If you can make use of the windowsill as a bedside table of sorts, it almost becomes a feature. “This is a clever option because not only does it capitalize on the view from the window but it eliminates the need for extra furniture, maximizing available floor space in a small setting,” says Jensen.