Don’t let your bed be an afterthought. Your bed will be the most outstanding object in your room, so it has to go with your bedroom’s theme, color-wise, size-wise, and style-wise. A huge bed in a small room will likely look out of place, as would a four-post bed in a room with sleek modern furnishings.

Bed Sizes

The most popular bed sizes are king, queen, twin and the more and more popular California king. A California king is narrow and long, rather than the traditional king bed’s square shape. Just make sure you have the exact dimensions of your bed before you go mattress shopping, since bed manufacturers sometimes do not follow the standard bed sizes exactly.

Bed Styles

Don’t confuse bed sizes with bed styles. Bed styles refer to the headboard and footboard. The basis of any bed is still the mattress and frame, which only vary outwardly in conditions of the sizes listed above.

• Daybed. Daybeds are twin beds. What makes them exceptional is that they can double as couches if you position them against a wall. Being compact and versatile, daybeds are great for small spaces.

• Platform. Platform beds are elegantly simple, harmonising with just about any style of decor.

• Sleigh bed. Sleigh beds have curved headboards and foot boards that look like, well…a sleigh. There are simpler and more innovative sleigh bed designs, so you can get one even if you are going for a more modern-looking room.

• Four post bed. You know these bed already: it’s the one with a post sticking up out of each corner. The posts can support a canopy, but the canopy is optional.

• Pencil post bed. Pencil post beds are like four-post beds, only the posts are tall and tapered like…well, pencils. Harking back to their heyday in the 1700s, pencil-post beds fit a room with colonial trappings especially well.

The bedroom is the place we spend most of our time, yet also tends to be the most ignored when it comes to decorating. Nowadays, money may be a significant factor! Here are some great hints for brightening up your space with no money at all!

1.Rearrange! A new fresh placement always makes a room feel new. Don’t be afraid to try new angles for your furniture…place your bed on a diagonal, or even right in the middle of the room!

2. Explore your drawers for scarves, tablecloths, or even pillowcases that compliment your color scheme. You can use things you already own to soften a dresser top or the edge of your nightstand, or perhaps lay a pretty shawl over the foot of the bed. If you already have throw pillows on your bed (if you don’t, it’s time to steal it from another room!) you can also wrap these fabrics around the pillows for a new look, and just safety pin it in back.

3. Add a plant to your room. Look around your home to see if one of your existing plants would be happier in your bedroom, then move it there! If you can’t find a plant ready for relocation, make one! Many plants can be grown from cuttings, either your existing houseplants, one a friend may let you cut, or even some outdoor plants. Ivy and many shade groundcovers are very good houseplants. You can even relive your childhood a bit and grow a cut potato, pineapple, or carrot tops in a pinch! For containers, check out your kitchen cupboards. Old teapots and cups, glass bowls, even baking dishes can make unique containers.

4. Add memorabilia to your room. I keep a photo of each one of my kids when they were small next to my bedside, and it always makes me smile. How about hanging your wedding veil from the headboard, or framing your wedding invitation or old love letters?

5.Add scent. If you do not have any potpourri or incense in the house, cut up some orange peels and allow to dry, then mix with whatever sweet spices you have in your cupboard. (It only takes a pinch, try cinnamon, ginger, or allspice.) Place your potpourri in an open bowl in your room to freshen and inspire! Later in the summer, make sure to include flowers in your room, if you don’t have roses or other scented blossoms in your yard, roadside daisies can smell great too!

Just a few small changes, no more money involved, and a better, more positive place for you to start and end each day!