10 Summer Touches to Refresh Your Bedroom for the New Season
Try these quick and simple updates to give your sleep space a fresh, warm-weather mood
There’s so much to love about the Great British summer: lush greenery, an abundance of fragrant blooms, long, light evenings and, hopefully, glorious sunshine. When summer finally arrives, we Brits embrace warmer weather like no one else – no sooner has the sun come out than the flip-flops are on. And just as we make season-appropriate sartorial adjustments, our interiors can also benefit from small updates that are conducive to warmer nights and brighter mornings.
Keep décor light and bright
Replacing your heavy duvet with lighter sheets and blankets is just the start; also consider incorporating a brighter colour scheme, and embracing florals and fluttery fabrics. Here, floral cushions paired with a pale pink throw, delicate curtains and a lightweight rug are enough to transform the feel of the room. For a crisp final touch, add freshly cut flowers.
Find more bedroom ideas
Replacing your heavy duvet with lighter sheets and blankets is just the start; also consider incorporating a brighter colour scheme, and embracing florals and fluttery fabrics. Here, floral cushions paired with a pale pink throw, delicate curtains and a lightweight rug are enough to transform the feel of the room. For a crisp final touch, add freshly cut flowers.
Find more bedroom ideas
Make the most of natural light
Long summer evenings are the perfect time to recline in a comfortable chair and enjoy the last of the day’s light. Create a seating area in your bedroom near a window – leading into the garden, if you’re as lucky as the owners of this well-positioned bedroom – where you can curl up with a book or a glass of wine before bed and enjoy the evening breeze.
Long summer evenings are the perfect time to recline in a comfortable chair and enjoy the last of the day’s light. Create a seating area in your bedroom near a window – leading into the garden, if you’re as lucky as the owners of this well-positioned bedroom – where you can curl up with a book or a glass of wine before bed and enjoy the evening breeze.
Block out early morning rays
While lingering evening rays are always welcome, not everyone loves to wake up to the sight of sunlight streaming in through light, gauzy curtains. So if you’re one of those people wide awake at the first glimmer, you might want to consider blackout blinds. They do a great job of keeping the light out and, in a pale fabric like this, don’t look at all dark or heavy. You can wake when you decide to, not when the sun says it’s time to rise and shine.
Bedroom overlooked? Browse some ideas for privacy-enhancing window treatments
While lingering evening rays are always welcome, not everyone loves to wake up to the sight of sunlight streaming in through light, gauzy curtains. So if you’re one of those people wide awake at the first glimmer, you might want to consider blackout blinds. They do a great job of keeping the light out and, in a pale fabric like this, don’t look at all dark or heavy. You can wake when you decide to, not when the sun says it’s time to rise and shine.
Bedroom overlooked? Browse some ideas for privacy-enhancing window treatments
Try a canopy
Floaty fabrics are so evocative of summer, fluttering at windows or French doors and especially around a bed. A canopy is an atmospheric addition to a bedroom that can also double as protection against bugs. And an added bonus? Kids love canapies!
Floaty fabrics are so evocative of summer, fluttering at windows or French doors and especially around a bed. A canopy is an atmospheric addition to a bedroom that can also double as protection against bugs. And an added bonus? Kids love canapies!
Dare to go bare
Few things feel as summery as padding around the house in bare feet. To re-create that barefoot holiday feel, swap heavy winter rugs for something lightweight in a natural texture, such as sisal, or keep floorboards bare. If you have fold-back shutters, throw them open to flood your room with light and let in the balmy summer breeze.
Few things feel as summery as padding around the house in bare feet. To re-create that barefoot holiday feel, swap heavy winter rugs for something lightweight in a natural texture, such as sisal, or keep floorboards bare. If you have fold-back shutters, throw them open to flood your room with light and let in the balmy summer breeze.
Enjoy greenery inside
Indoor plants make a home look and feel fresher – as well as adding some life to interiors, they also improve the quality of air. Summer is the perfect time to enjoy lush greenery inside the home, from ferns and lemon trees to fragrant star jasmine and geraniums.
Discover more ideas for bringing houseplants into your home
Indoor plants make a home look and feel fresher – as well as adding some life to interiors, they also improve the quality of air. Summer is the perfect time to enjoy lush greenery inside the home, from ferns and lemon trees to fragrant star jasmine and geraniums.
Discover more ideas for bringing houseplants into your home
Boost your colour scheme
If your bedroom features strong, dark colours that aren’t easy to change – on a wall or piece of furniture, say – fear not: a summery bedroom might only be a few cushions away. Dress the bed with crisp white sheets and then add splashes of vibrant colour through soft furnishings for a bright and breezy bedroom. Well-placed mirrors are also a great trick for maximising the light in a room.
If your bedroom features strong, dark colours that aren’t easy to change – on a wall or piece of furniture, say – fear not: a summery bedroom might only be a few cushions away. Dress the bed with crisp white sheets and then add splashes of vibrant colour through soft furnishings for a bright and breezy bedroom. Well-placed mirrors are also a great trick for maximising the light in a room.
Embrace a floral motif
Who says magnolia is just for walls? A giant floral print, like the one in this room, lends an early summer burst of colour and life to a neutral bedroom. Touches of blue provide a crisp accent to the light bed linens for a look that’s stylish, cool and inviting. What more do you want from a bed in summertime?
Look for more summery prints and posters
TELL US…
How do you like to summer-up your sleep space? Share your tips and photos in the Comments below.
Who says magnolia is just for walls? A giant floral print, like the one in this room, lends an early summer burst of colour and life to a neutral bedroom. Touches of blue provide a crisp accent to the light bed linens for a look that’s stylish, cool and inviting. What more do you want from a bed in summertime?
Look for more summery prints and posters
TELL US…
How do you like to summer-up your sleep space? Share your tips and photos in the Comments below.
Swapping heavy soft furnishings is one of the quickest ways to update a bedroom for summer. Sturdy wicker baskets like these are ideal for storing bulkier items, such as winter bedding; tucking them away on top of the wardrobe makes the most of storage space and keeps warm blankets accessible in case the nights get chilly.