Few would argue that, for each of us, our bedroom is equivalent to a castle: it is the most important space you possess, because it is the only one that is uniquely yours. Every other room in the house is of necessity a compromise in that it must fulfill needs involving others, whereas your bedroom has an unequivocal right to express YOU, and only you. All family members and friends will grant your bedroom that right, even if your taste differs widely from theirs. The good news is that it need not be a COSTLY castle in order to reflect the diverse aspects of your personality.

Whether you’re male or female, young or mature, enjoy colorful clutter or minimalist tidiness, calm colors or dynamic ones, there is a wide range of elements you can introduce, every few years or every season, to ensure that the most valued domain in your life keeps up with your changing tastes and moods. Experimentation is the very simplest way to discover what you find pleasing and to develop a personal style, so play around with the following ideas to inject new energy into your valued, private domain.

Your Bed

Let’s begin with the most important item in the room, your bed. Simply change its position.

• Test it alongside different walls. Move it away from all walls and try it positioned in different, loose-standing spots.
• Now imagine all the other changes you can make: superficially, you can opt for an entirely new style/look by introducing fresh colours, patterns and textures into your bed linen, by adding or dispensing with cushions, throws, the duvet.
• If you’re prepared for a bigger leap, consider changing its shape, even its height. Kick out the old and opt for a futon, or for a round bed, even.
• Consider any other desired shape in the form of a mattress on the floor. Explore new options as bedside tables. Decide whether or not a headboard is to your liking. If it is, design your own.

Headboard

An existing work of art can replace your conventional headboard, or you can create one of your own, as depicted above. If you’re prepared to express the creative side of your personality, there are many options.

• Why not paint a headboard of your choosing directly onto the wall, or get it done for you? Or you can mount any board on the wall and paint your own design onto it.
• Create a novel one with simple pieces of wood or bamboo, and then incorporate as many other elements as your imagination can muster: craft wire onto which you can string beads, hang photographs, drape dried flowers or arty pieces of jewellery, or any other element that possesses a pleasing shape or texture.
• For ideas as unique as you are, open all your drawers and unearth those quirky or odd personal belongings which hold valuable memories for you, and add them to your headboard. Turn them into a statement of art, a statement about you.
  
  
  

Your Walls

Changes here can be remarkably quick and inexpensive and yet yield dramatic results. Simply commit to a new wall paint colour.

• Be adventurous and introduce wallpaper instead, even if only onto one wall or sections of wall. In sections, areas of wallpaper can be treated as works of art in their own right, especially if you are inventive with combining strips of different colours and patterns, and incorporate other decorative elements, as suggested on your headboard.
• Scarves or shawls can be used as backdrop for important mementoes, keepsakes and trinkets; photographs, art prints and posters are an effortless way of expressing you; and a stroll through any craft shop will summon up ideas with which to enliven your walls.
• Suggestions for aesthetically pleasing and original photo galleries also abound. Even a blackboard on which you can draw or any board onto which you can pin changing visuals, will provide the window for change when you desire it.
• Wall hangings come in so many sizes, fabrics and designs and are easy to mount. Equally a simple or elaborate wall mural can enhance the creativity or mood of your bedroom.
• And, lastly, resorting to nature seldom fails: hanging plants or collages made from driftwood, pieces of shell, feathers, dried flowers or any object of interest found on a walk, will bring the outside in and enrich your space.
  
  

Your Lounging Area

Even if your bedroom is small, it should be possible to create a corner where you can relax without being on your bed, whether you’re on your laptop or simply reading a book.

• A hammock chair or pouf is perfect for just such a space, or foam on the floor can be cut into any desired shape, covered in durable fabric and softened with draped mosquito netting or other gauzy drapes, and colourful throw cushions.
• Your choice of lighting options matters especially here. Diverse and beautiful design in lamps has become an art in itself, and the use of dimmers gives you the freedom to opt for strong, functional light or moody, softer hues at any given moment.
• Incorporating a rug into that area will help give it an individual mood and delineate it as a separate space.
• Any small coffee table of your choice can finish it off this relaxing lounging corner. Providing you have the space for them, acquire interesting old stools or benches as alternative seating.
  
  

Above all, remember: what your bedroom says about you is not dependent on any of the latest, must-have designer trends – nothing should dictate do’s or don’ts, other than what makes you feel king or queen of your lovingly self-styled castle, and in which your preferences reign …

Jack Antonoff puts the importance of your unique, private space this way:

“When you go all over the world for work, your dream vacation is your bedroom.”

Udumo Group delivers interior décor and design services by empowering unemployed people with skills development initiatives. We believe in investing in the individual, nurturing inherent skills, and uplifting communities. We hold as our mission making the future sustainable by mentoring meaningful change in the wider environment. Our interior design philosophy is to design beautiful spaces that are both functional and timelessly pleasing. We have proved that promoting the values of creative excellence, discipline and commitment can bring forth the beauty within each person and reflect it in both private and public living spaces around them.

For information on Udumo Group, visit: www.udumogroup.co.za