The Master Bedroom

Your bedroom should be a place to retreat and relax from the world. Having loads of hi-tech equipment in your bedroom can interfere with your sleep patterns, so if you like to watch TV in bed consider keeping your TV in a cabinet that can be closed when not in use. You should also, if at all possible, avoid putting your home office in your bedroom. Worrying about work definitely won't help you sleep and if you work very hard and are sleep deprived, as most of us are these days, you need all the sleep you can get.

Choosing Your Theme

Whether you like clean, minimalistic lines, or you want to create a fantasy fairytale royal bedroom, you can do it all with paint! If you have a walk-in closet, rather than individual pieces of furniture, you can really let your imagination run riot. Consider the whole look of the room, where you want to place the bed and any free-standing furniture and where you want the lights. Very often people don't consider the effects of proper bedroom lighting until all the paint work is done, which can be a very expensive mistake. So look around at your options - do you want concealed lighting, bedside lamps, or even floor lighting? Make sure that you will be able to turn the lights on and off from both the door and the bed. If you share your bedroom with a partner, dual controls are also a must, and get any electrical work done before you paint.

Color

Once you have your overall theme, modern, classic, romantic boudoir, or something in-between, start thinking of the color. Although you can make bold statements, certain colors are more conducive to sleep, and of course romance. Bold strong colors like bright red, unless used very sparingly, can be very overwhelming in a bedroom. It can even be physically uncomfortable to stay in a red room for long, which is why red is often used in fast food restaurants--so it's best avoided in the bedroom.

Cooler colors like blues and greens on the other hand can be very soothing, but if your bedroom is north facing, you may prefer a warmer pink, peach or even yellow palette. Don't alienate your partner though, as a too frilly, girly bedroom in powder pink could make your partner feel out of place, just as you might not like a too masculine bedroom. So this is one area of the house where you need to both agree! Remember, if you choose a calm background color for the walls and ceiling, and a complementary color for your woodwork, you can always change the accent of the room from time to time with bed-linens, throws and cushions.

Seasons

By using texture and color wash techniques on your walls and plain colors for your woodwork, you can pick out the different shades with accessories according to the season. Use warm colors for throws and coverlets in winter and then switch to cool, fresh colors for your linens in summer. By, for example, emphasizing the natural world outside in your soft furnishings you can change the whole look of your bedroom and be in harmony with the natural rhythm of the year.

Remember you want your bedroom to be a place to unwind, relax, and hopefully have a little romance, so don't be afraid to create your own special haven from the world.