Words by Andrea Boffo
Do you ever just lay down on your bed fully intending to fall asleep in a few minutes – but then your mind starts whirring in every-which direction and before you know it, it’s three in the morning and you’re still wide awake?
Don’t worry; it happens to everyone, and most of the time the problem lies in our own surroundings. In fact, the interior design of your bedroom can end up affecting your sleeping habits and patterns. However, maintaining your sleep health is important, so we’ve compiled a list of effective interior design tweaks and hacks that can help you get a good night’s rest without any interruptions. Let’s take a look!
Be Selective With Your Mattress & Pillows
Your mattress and pillow are two major components that can affect your sleep patterns adversely if not selected with care. An old spring mattress can cause you premature backaches and stop you from falling asleep immediately. Similarly, a hard pillow with zero cushion can keep you up all night.
These days, there are a number of smart, affordable mattress and pillow options you can find in the market. You can either opt for a memory foam or latex mattress that can mold around your body’s contours for better anchorage. Similarly, a good memory foam pillow can drastically improve your levels of relaxation by comfortably shaping around your head.
Refer To Colour Psychology
You may not notice, but colours have a huge impact on our mood, how we react to certain situations, and what we feel at a particular moment. This is why you need to be extra careful about picking the right palette for your bedrooms. It can end up affecting your sleep health if you don’t.
Soft colours like cream, beige, greys (all part of the neutral palette) are the ideal choice. All of them have a very soothing quality that can assist you while trying to fall asleep. Blue is also a calming colour, but be careful about selecting a particular shade; either pastel and navy blue are good options. Bold colours like and red, emerald green, mauve, burgundy, etc. can evoke aggression, so try to avoid those. Stark white can feel a bit too austere – especially if you live in cold regions. It’s also best to avoid busy wallpapers and patterns to avoid visual clutter.
Emulate Some Nature
Nature has an inherent way of relaxing the human mind. You’ll notice that simply observing a gently wind-blown tree will calm you down. But since we cannot emulate an entire jungle within a bedroom, going for a few indoor planters in strategic locations can have just as much of a positive impact on your sleep health. They not only improve the visuals of the space but actually purify the air as well.
You can either set up a statement planter beside your bedroom window, hang a cluster of small terra-cotta pegs from your ceiling, or set up a small collection of indoor plants on your window sill. Orchids, palms, ferns, pothos, and dracaena are all good choices of indoor plants that can improve the air quality of your bedroom.
Go For Non-invasive Storage Units
Nothing increases stress levels quite like a physically cluttered ambiance. You automatically start feeling tense and irritated as soon as you enter a bedroom that is messy, unclean, and littered with personal belongings in all the wrong places. You’ll definitely have trouble falling asleep in such disarray.
To avoid disorganization and chaos in your bedroom interiors, going for non-invasive storage strategies is the best course of action. You can opt for a platform bed with in-built under-storage to reduce the physical clutter in your rooms. Similarly, you can opt for hidden compartments and cabinets underneath in-built window sittings. You can even opt for smart, foldable furniture that can transform into compact versions to reduce visual disorder. And if you’ve got kids littering the place before you’ve started hiding the mess, then you can turn to stylish home storage solutions like multi-purpose décor items and modular desks to stay on top of things.
Be Smart With Your Lighting
Bad lighting can end up causing you sleep troubles in the long run. The right amount of illumination is required for you to experience the space at a comfortable visual capacity. If there is either too much or too little visual stimulation, you’ll automatically start feeling distressed and anxious. Similarly, the temperature of your lighting can disrupt your sleeping patterns. If it’s a choice between warm or cool, always choose the fixture with warm illumination for a truly soothing effect.
A fully soothing bedroom always features medium-to-soft lighting. The aim is to evoke just the right amount of stimulation in just the right temperature for you to feel comfortable in. You can choose accent light fixtures like reading lamps, floor lamps, nightstand pendent lights, and innovative wall lights to add layers to the ambiance. It will help you bridge the distance between style and relaxation, in addition to improving sleep habits.
Don’t Underestimate The Power Of Windows
A bedroom without a proper window is like bread without butter. Not only does it evoke a sense of innate claustrophobia, but it also hinders the relaxing qualities of your space. The lack of natural light and outside views can often feel entrapping and make you unable to fully relax if all you have are four walls to stare at. This can have an adverse effect on your sleeping habits.
In complete contrast, even a small window portal can completely change the face of your bedroom. You’ll notice an improved ventilation, a distinct freshness that can only be achieved by ample natural light, and refreshing views of outside. All of this result in stabilized cortisol levels, which in turn improves the sleeping cycle by default.
Healthy Sleeping Hygiene
You need to partake in healthy sleeping hygiene to maintain an effective sleep pattern and the quality of your rest. First off, you need to set up a schedule and avoid any kind of disruptions for maximum effect. Secondly, you need to set the thermostat to just the right temperature – it should be neither too cold, or too hot. Maintaining a quiet atmosphere with absolute darkness can also promote healthy sleep patterns. And lastly, avoiding the blue light from your devices before lying down can do wonders for your routine.
From tweaking the ambiance to adding routine, these are some general tips that can improve the quality of your sleep many-fold.