How to upgrade your bedroom for a hotel-quality night’s sleep
Bedrooms are personal spaces where we can relax and recharge both in the morning and in the evening, and ultimately, sleep soundly. And there’s nothing like a good night’s sleep: it boosts cognition, productivity, mood, performance and immunity. But how to create the ultimate haven of peace and rest? Read on to discover simple ways to turn your bedroom into a tranquil sanctuary, so you can enjoy dreamy hotel-quality, luxurious sleep.
1) Choose the right fabrics
Image source: Piglet in Bed
To enjoy a good night’s sleep, it’s important to be as comfortable as possible, which means choosing the right fabrics. We recommend either luxuriously soft yet crisp and breathable cotton (such as Bedfolk’s Classic Cotton Bundle, featuring a super smooth matte finish), or temperature-regulating linen bedding (check out Piglet in Bed’s White Bedtime Bundle, made from super soft, 100% stonewashed French flax). For restful, luxurious sleep, consider also investing in a silk pillowcase, like one of Slip’s, as well, for particularly luxurious sleep. Silk fibres are both inherently temperature-regulating and hypoallergenic, so can improve the quality of your sleep. The same is true when it comes to your pyjamas and sleepwear: choose natural, breathable fabrics (Piglet in Bed’s linen sleepwear collection is a great choice, combining style with comfort).
2) Refresh your bed linens
There’s nothing like clean, crisp bedding, and freshly laundered pillows, to bring comfort and help you drift off with ease. And research shows that clean bedding improves sleep: a 2012 study by the National Sleep Foundation found that 73% of us sleep better on fresh sheets. We recommend changing your bedding once a week for optimum freshness and hygiene (check out our post on how to get fresher, softer sheets). Be sure to use only gentle, non-abrasive formulations like Kair, to keep your bedding at its best so you can wake up in super clean, cloud-soft cosiness. And for the optimum sensory experience, refresh your bed linens between washes by spritzing with one of our finishing sprays. They’ve been formulated to relax a fabric’s fibres and smooth out creases and wrinkles, whilst adding a scent-boosting finishing touch.
3) Find the right mattress
The average person spends about a third of their life in bed, so it’s important to have a comfortable mattress. All our bodies are different, and we all sleep in different positions, so we recommend trying out a selection of models to find the right one for you. Consider choosing a sustainable, durable mattress, made from natural yet absorbent materials, to keep your sleep environment fresh-feeling and hygienic. We particularly love this natural hemp mattress from John Lewis: it’s fully recyclable at the end of its life, with a completely glue-free design and chemical-free sleep surface, and features layers of insulating wool and breathable hemp and cotton to maintain a natural airflow throughout the night. Other good options include Silentnight’s award-winning Eco Mattress, made out of 150 plastic bottles, with a fully breathable eco comfort layer that’s ideal for hot sleepers.
4) Clear away the clutter
Clutter can overstimulate and quite literally mess with your brain, preventing it from switching into a restful state (mess = stress, after all). So transform your bedroom into a tidy, tranquil zone. Pop stray items of clothing into customisable fabric drawer organisers, such as this sustainable one from Oliver Bonas, featuring a green fabric and floral print lining made from planet-friendly recycled plastic bottles. Consider also underbed storage, like the natural sustainable bamboo Felicia storage system from MADE, with its calming nordic grey and light wood - perfect for storing socks, bedding and other odds and ends (and they’re collapsible too, so super convenient if you’re tight on space).
5) Regulate the room temperature
Though fabric and mattress choices can have a huge impact, room temperature is one of the most important factors in achieving quality sleep, with most experts recommending around 16-18ºC, to be in line with your body’s internal temperature regulation. So regulate your bedroom’s temperature by opening windows to ventilate the space and let in clean, fresh air, or by sleeping with a cooling fan (we love the Dyson Cool™ tower, with its blade-free Air Multiplier™ technology, and helpful sleep timer). However, as sleep expert, Dr Neil Stanley explains, the temperature in your direct sleeping environment, i.e. under the duvet, is as important as room temperature, and should be close to a themo-neutral temperature (between 28-32ºC). So be sure to swap out your bedding when the seasons change: a cosy down comforter or blanket is ideal in winter, but not so appropriate when summer hits.
6) Adjust the light exposure
Light plays a central role in regulating your circadian rhythm (the body’s internal clock, which signals when to be alert and when to rest) as well as in producing melatonin (an essential sleep-promoting hormone). Too much light exposure at night - particularly too much blue light exposure - can interrupt sleep cycles and cause repeated awakenings, limiting time in deeper, more restorative sleep stages, and ultimately reducing quality of sleep. That’s why it’s a good idea to install blackout curtains and keep your bedroom a technology-free zone, or at least switch your blue-light-emitting devices to night-time mode. Consider also investing in a sleep/wake-up light alarm clock, such as Lumie’s Bodyclock Rise 100, which mimics the light and colour of a real sunset and sunrise, preparing your body for both sleeping and waking up by gradually adjusting the light.
7) Paint your bedroom in calming colours
Image source: Getty Images
To create a restful, sleep-friendly bedroom, we also recommend painting your walls in known soothing colours, such as muted blues or greens. Blue is particularly calming, (we associate blue with water and the sky, which can evoke a sense of tranquillity), but green is a good choice as we associate it with nature, which can likewise create a feeling of relaxation. If you’re repainting your bedroom walls, check out Lick Home’s collection of carefully curated, pigment-rich paints, which are sustainable and low VOC. We particularly love their Blue 06 (a deep slate blue) and their Green 02 (a soft sage green) - the perfect colour palette to create a tranquil sleep haven.
8) Use aromatherapy
Image source: NEOM Organics
In addition to ventilation and airflow, aromatherapy can create a more restful, calming environment, with studies showing that exposure to pleasant odours, such as essential oils, can improve sleep quality, by lowering your heart rate and blood pressure. For the ultimate sensory sleep experience, check out NEOM Organics’ Sleep and Happiness Wellbeing Pod Collection, which humidifies the air around you, and comes with a low energy LED light and timer, as well as two 100% natural essential oil blends, including calming lavender, basil and jasmine, and uplifting neroli, mimosa and lemon.
Now you know how to transform your bedroom into a peaceful haven, so you can drift off with ease and wake up refreshed, and enjoy a hotel-quality night’s sleep every night.
Cover Image: Furniture and Choice
