Dear friends,

If you are planning to design and decorate your own bedroom, then you must know that there are many factors that can affect the outcome of your creative exercise.

Let's have a look at some of the possible factors.

1)Furniture: Furniture occupies maximum space in a room. The size and style of the furniture you choose will directly affect the way the space is perceived after the decoration is complete.

Furniture pieces, which are abutting the walls such as dressing tables, wardrobes, cabinets, form the face of the walls which were previously blank in an empty room. Because of this the face of the furniture is a major factor is creating the mood of an space.

2)Interior Color Scheme: Color has a direct effect on human mind. Color can make the room smaller or bigger than it is. For example dark rooms are perceived smaller in volume than those with bright and cheerful colors.

It's not the room which changes, it's the effect of the color which our mind picks up.

3)Wallpapers: Wallpaper is a good alternative to using paints on walls. The greatest advantage of using wallpapers is that they can be applied quickly.

Using wallpapers with design patterns can quickly alter a space and give a "rich" look to a space. Wallpapers are available in washable types as well.

The only problem with wallpapers is that they can get torn because of sharp edges of furniture items. If you have children in your family then maintaining a them can be a little nuisance.

4)Upholstery and Linen: This includes bed sheets, cushion covers, curtains, carpets, etc.. All these are dependent on something else. What does this mean?

Curtains are always in association with doors, windows or other openings in walls. So the texture/color/finish of curtains define a frame to the openings thus affecting the interior space.

Other upholstery items are dependant on shape and size of the furniture on which they are used. That's why a clever use of color/texture/finishes can greatly enhance the furniture piece thus altering the overall grade of the space.

5)Lighting: A well planned electrical and lighting plan can greatly enhance the interior space. Depending upon the internal arrangement of the furniture lighting can be used to enhance certain areas of the space.

Spotlights and filler lights can be used as and where required. Filler lights are used to achieve a uniform lighting, which is normally available during daytime from sunlight.

Spotlights used in the form of lampshades can be used to cater a specific area such as study tables, bedsides. Apart from these two types decorative lamps used as hangings can add extra mood to the space.

6)Project Budget: Budget is a very important factor in any project. Professional designers are very skilled in maintaining a balance between creative designs and economical design.

A design which is economical yet projects a highly creative mood is very hard to achieve. However a good market research can easily make you a good and sensitive designer. Keeping in mind the various materials available in market and proposing them in designs is a good practice.

I would like to make one important point here. A design with expensive an expensive budget is not necessarily a good design. A simple and aesthetically pleasing design solution can easily be achieved with creative thinking of what you already have with you.

From the above discussion you can fairly assume that a slight change in any one of the above factors can alter the appearance your bedroom. If you are planning to refurnish your bedroom, you can use this as a dummy checklist to organize the entire process.

I hope this article was helpful for everyone.

Copyright 2005 Shrinivas Vaidya.