In The Bedroom: To Sleep Perchance to Dream
“Eye on Design” Archive from Mann Report (Article By Gail Green)
At one time the bastion of heavenly sleep, the bedroom has been added to the list of multi-functional rooms. The bedroom can now accommodate the library, the dressing room, the study, the media center, the art gallery, the workspace and, on occasion, the breakfast, snack room.
While breakfast in bed is by no means a new idea, table and chairs in the bedroom is a more modern concept. While it is usually just a small tea table with accompanying seating, this little area can serve as an almost hotel-like approach to dining. It is a romantic tea for two in the bedroom.
Not as old a concept is the idea of the bedroom media center. Nowadays, it is common to find a large flat-screen opposite the bed. Having transported itself from the cumbersome and unattractive to the elegant and appealing, the television has found a more welcomed place in the home. And, with the size of televisions going from handheld to huge, the screen becomes a major focal point or none at all, depending on the viewer’s predilections. Whichever, they are definitely more attractive.
Books, books, books – under beds, in closets, hidden away, exposed. Books displayed in a bedroom corner can be both functional and a delight to view. Stacked at the bedside or on the nightstand, books add a warm dimension to a bedroom. In addition, one can create small areas for shelving, a mini-library with easy access not too far from bed.
Related to this notion of bedroom/library is the concept of the work area. This particular bedroom has an architecturally carved out area encapsulating desk, bookshelves, computer, chair, and lamp – everything that would simulate a study. Easily achievable with built-in cabinetry, the study workspace is compact and efficient. It is perfect for the work-at-home entrepreneur.
The bedroom as art gallery is an interesting one because here one tends to hang one’s favorites in the privacy of private spaces, the more sentimental as opposed to the more revered. Little collections of perfume bottles, family pictures, curios are just a few of the assemblies pictured here.
Sometimes as an elegantly added feature there exists the anteroom, a room before the bedroom. It can be as small as three square feet because it functions as a prelude for what is to come; it sets its tone. Eccentric, small, domed, carved – almost any unusual space can create this aura.
And lastly, one finds in the bedroom, the dressing room. This space can accommodate either built-in closets or walls of beautiful cabinetry with surrounding space.
Warm neutral colors, soft luxurious fabrics and ambient lighting all contribute to the bedrooms aura. Whatever purpose the bedroom performs, its function needs to be married, even subservient, to its creating a dreamy-like atmosphere for sleep, even perchance, for dream.
*Note – Article adapted from print. Images reflect reduced quality.
Click here to view original print article.
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