The bedroom is a sacred space.
Throughout our childhood and teens, we decorate the walls with our favourite musicians and idols as a reflection of our identity. As adults, the bedroom becomes the hub of our most intimate family and romantic relationships. If the kitchen is the heart of any happy home, the bedroom might be the soul.
Virginia Woolf wrote about the importance of a closed-door sanctuary to the wellbeing of the progressive woman in her 1929 essay A Room of One’s Own. Almost 80 years’ later, and a place to decompress at the end of a manic day remains as crucial as ever. We may not all have the luxury of total privacy but whether you share your sleeping space with another, or are lucky enough to have a room of one’s own, here are the three best tips to make your boudoir a place of escapism.
1. Mess = Stress
Having familiar objects around that bring you joy and happy memories can help you feel at ease by positive association, but if you have an over tendency to hold on to things it can make a space feel overwhelmed. The key to spatial harmony is to have surroundings that feel as roomy and distraction-free as possible and it goes without saying that any transition from piles of old receipts to clutterless Zen perfection demands a bit of a clear out.
Luckily, there are some clever tools out there to help you purge, such as the wardrobe-purifying Closet+ app, which allows the user to photographically itemize their clothing and determine how often each item is worn, while the handy Room Planner by Chief Architect app helps you redesign the furniture layout if you feel like shaking things up.
2. Sleep More, Achieve More
For any gal with a big day ahead, a good night’s rest is key to ensuring she’s on top form and able to meet her full potential. A recent study by insurance firm Aviva, found that Canada ranked as the third most sleep-deprived nation out of 13 countries surveyed, with 31% of participants reporting not getting enough Z’s at night. Given that both physical and mental wellbeing are strongly linked to the amount of quality sleep an individual gets per day, you might want to consider upping your bedroom setup.
Beds and bedding are always a significant investment. Over the course of its recommended 2-3 year lifespan, your pillow can double in weight, thanks to a gruesome cocktail of hair oil, skin cells and dust mites. You can help your bed maintain its allure by changing sheets weekly and washing small items such as pillows and cushions a couple of times a year. For larger items such as duvets, a trip to your local launderette (or dry cleaners, where care labels advise) once a year is recommended to keep them fresh.
If broken springs are keeping you awake at night, some trailblazers in the mattress world are challenging the old idea that buying a mattress needs to be a stressful or expensive ordeal with a high quality/low budget concept. Sleep Sherpa, good-sleep advocate and expert bedding-and-mattress-blogger (yes, really) puts memory foam mattress company Eve through its paces with a review on his site.
3. Let the Outside In
Fresh flowers and plants are a quick and easy way to make a room feel inviting and peaceful. Florae such as Peace Lilies, Ivy and Dracaena, are cheap, low-maintenance solutions to purify air and promote a better flow of oxygen in a room, while fragranced plants such as Jasmine and Lavender release sweet scents that can help you sleep better.
Along with soothing soft lighting and relaxing music, bringing some leafy additions into your bedroom can help you press pause on life’s stresses and breathe your way to inner calm.
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