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How to dress a bed for that boutique hotel look

You know that wonderful (and for most of us, all too rare) feeling when you check into a luxury hotel? What really stands out when you walk into the bedroom is the bed with its crisp sheets and fabulous bedding. But how can you recreate that grand, sumptuous look in your own home? From cushioned headboards to cool and calming colour schemes and gorgeous throws, we’ve got it covered… no pun intended! Read on for our stylists’ 6 top tips on how to dress a bed.
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1: Make your bed the focal point of your bedroom

Your bed is quite possibly the greatest place on earth. It’s that magical place where you go to rest, relax, snuggle and snooze.

So why, all too often, is it pushed into the corner, neglected and adorned with no more than a tired old duvet?

Your bed deserves so much more than that. To make it the focal point of the room, make sure you place it centre stage.

Where possible, place it in the middle of a wall, with plenty of space around it and a bedside table on either side. If you have a smaller bedroom, choose an ottoman bed to maximise storage space.

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2: Make it all about you

If there’s any place in the house that’s all about you (and, well, perhaps your significant other too), your bed is it. So if you’re investing in a new one, make sure it reflects your personality, and meets all your comfort needs too.

Where comfort is concerned, it’s all about the mattress. Sleep technology has advanced in leaps and bounds. Latex, pocket sprung, memory foam or combination… try them all and make sure you find one that will give you a blissful, uninterrupted night’s sleep.

Now on to the look. Would you prefer a grand, upholstered, winged headboard or a simple, wooden slatted one?

Before you think about how to dress a bed, you need to make sure the bed itself reflects your style. Can you see yourself in a statement sleigh bed or something more minimalist and contemporary?

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3: Choose a harmonious colour palette

It doesn’t matter where your inspiration comes from – a spread in a glossy magazine, something you’ve seen on TV, a luxurious throw you’ve seen in a department store or a piece of artwork – when it comes to how to dress a bed, pick a colour palette you love, then stick to it.

If you want bright and sunny vibes, go for white bedding with splashes of bright greens and yellows. Or if you want your room to be a haven of tranquillity and relaxation, go for soft, dreamy blues, on trend greys or calming greens.

Imagine a room with pale teal walls, then add white bedding with accents of aubergine and pale greens to layer up on that palette. From your headboard to wall art and even an accent armchair, a coordinated colour palette will create a relaxed, harmonious feel that’s perfect for your sleep sanctuary.

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4: Layer on the luxury

There’s nothing quite as alluring as a plump-pillowed bed, adorned with luxurious layers of cushions and throws – the true heroes of the interior world. Think soft satin or faux fur throws, Moroccan blankets, embroidered bolsters and beautiful linen, silk or velvet cushions. If you’re going for a neutral, unfussy feel, you can still make your bed look and feel luxurious – light linens and soft cottons work wonderfully. Opt for pale blues, creams, taupes and greys and select light-weight throws that cover the foot of the bed but don’t feel over-bearing.

If you’re looking for ideas on how to dress a bed to create a more eclectic look (we hear boho is back), choose raw textures and weaves, and don’t shy away from bright splashes of colour to offset earthy tones.

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5: Arrange your pillows and cushions with care

When you think about how to dress a bed, the first thought is how to arrange those cushions so that your bed looks like something out of a style magazine.

If you like rules, you can find plenty of. guidelines online explaining how exactly you should arrange pillows and cushions on your bed. The consensus tends to be that standard pillows should be at the back, then European pillows and finally cushions arranged in front of these, with a maximum of three decorative cushions. But rules are made to be broken, so if you want more cushions, who are we to say no?

There’s one thing our stylists agree on – it looks better if you vary the size of the cushions on your bed, combining large and small cushions with bolsters, and mixing up your fabrics too.

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6: Triple sheeting

There’s a fabulous hotel trick that means you won’t need to struggle to fit your duvet into a duvet cover every week on wash day. It’s called ‘triple sheeting’.

As well as a sheet beneath you, place a sheet underneath your duvet too, and another, coloured or decorative, sheet on top.

For how to dress a bed with triple sheeting look online for video tutorials. They show you step by step how to create this chic, seamless look that saves on laundry and is better for the environment.

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7: Let it shine

As the sun goes down, bedroom lighting comes into its own. It’s all about achieving the right amount of lovely, soft lamplight to illuminate our beds in a way that’s warm, hazy, and utterly dreamlike.

Go for white-based lights to create a warm glow, and avoid blue-based ones at all costs, unless you’re going for

‘hospital waiting room chic’, and we doubt that you are. Add to the romance of metal bed frames with strings of fairy

lights, bringing another element of twinkly texture to your room’s lighting.

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So there you have it, how to dress a bed in luxurious style so you can’t wait to get back into it. Whatever look and feel you go for, you spend a third of your life in it, so isn’t it time you gave your bed the makeover it deserves?

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