How to Make Open Storage Work in a Bedroom
You can have anything from clothes to books on display in your bedroom without creating clutter simply by following a few simple rules
Anna Tobin
17 January 2016
Houzz UK Contributor. I am an experienced lifestyle journalist, interior stylist and editor. I regularly contribute to all the UK glossies and the national press and international press and I run www.dontcrampourstyle.com, the blog for people who live in homes that they've physically outgrown. Follow me on Twitter @theannatobin or contact me via www.annatobin.co.uk
Houzz UK Contributor. I am an experienced lifestyle journalist, interior stylist... More
Open storage adds a casual informality to a bedroom and allows you to really inject your personality into the space, but to make it work you need to set a few boundaries to keep your sleep space somewhere you can still relax. Follow these tips for success.
Keep it tidy
A completely open wardrobe like this is a look for the naturally neat; those among us who, even after a long night out, still hang up dresses, fold jumpers and replace scarves on hooks. Not you? Then if you have the space, build in cupboards, too, so you can hide your happily messy daily life behind closed doors, while creating the illusion, with your unused open shelving, that you’re a supremely tidy and organised human being.
If you can’t keep even for-show shelves tidy, either give them a miss entirely or consider filling them with matching boxes (inside which chaos can secretly reign!).
Try these quick tricks and simple treats for a tidy-looking home
A completely open wardrobe like this is a look for the naturally neat; those among us who, even after a long night out, still hang up dresses, fold jumpers and replace scarves on hooks. Not you? Then if you have the space, build in cupboards, too, so you can hide your happily messy daily life behind closed doors, while creating the illusion, with your unused open shelving, that you’re a supremely tidy and organised human being.
If you can’t keep even for-show shelves tidy, either give them a miss entirely or consider filling them with matching boxes (inside which chaos can secretly reign!).
Try these quick tricks and simple treats for a tidy-looking home
Tone it down or tone it up
There are generally two types of dresser: those who wear a mix of colours, textures and patterns, and those who tend to stick to a combination of two or three shades. If you’re going for open hanging space, first consider your style: either decorate the backdrop behind it in white, to showcase your multi-coloured garments; or choose a similar hue to your limited clothing palette to continue the muted theme.
In this room, the owners have opted for cream-painted walls to complement their browny taupe wardrobe, creating a calming and relaxed scheme.
There are generally two types of dresser: those who wear a mix of colours, textures and patterns, and those who tend to stick to a combination of two or three shades. If you’re going for open hanging space, first consider your style: either decorate the backdrop behind it in white, to showcase your multi-coloured garments; or choose a similar hue to your limited clothing palette to continue the muted theme.
In this room, the owners have opted for cream-painted walls to complement their browny taupe wardrobe, creating a calming and relaxed scheme.
Only display your finest
If you’re going to put your clothes on view, only bring out those pieces that warrant admiration. That old maroon flannel dressing gown doesn’t quite fit the bill here – stick to your best items, like this crisp white sleepwear, for an attractive display.
Discover how to avoid a ‘floordrobe’ in your bedroom
If you’re going to put your clothes on view, only bring out those pieces that warrant admiration. That old maroon flannel dressing gown doesn’t quite fit the bill here – stick to your best items, like this crisp white sleepwear, for an attractive display.
Discover how to avoid a ‘floordrobe’ in your bedroom
Maintain a balance
Open storage is naturally interesting: the eye is drawn to it because it contains lots of little interesting pieces. Consequently, it’s important to create a balance within your room.
Position open storage either side of the bed, as shown here, or centre it on one wall, for example. Or, if you have one piece of open furniture that’s sitting in the corner of the room, put a chair in the opposite corner to create visual harmony.
Open storage is naturally interesting: the eye is drawn to it because it contains lots of little interesting pieces. Consequently, it’s important to create a balance within your room.
Position open storage either side of the bed, as shown here, or centre it on one wall, for example. Or, if you have one piece of open furniture that’s sitting in the corner of the room, put a chair in the opposite corner to create visual harmony.
Be inventive
You don’t need to use standard hooks or shelving; be creative and dream up something of your own. Here, a stepladder is being employed as a bedside table and little clip-on bedside lights have even been fixed at the top.
Vintage trolleys and old dining chairs could also be given a new lease of life in this way.
You don’t need to use standard hooks or shelving; be creative and dream up something of your own. Here, a stepladder is being employed as a bedside table and little clip-on bedside lights have even been fixed at the top.
Vintage trolleys and old dining chairs could also be given a new lease of life in this way.
Work vertically, too
Items don’t have to be stored horizontally – they can just as easily run up the walls. Here, a stack of ‘invisible’ shelves holds small piles of books. This is perfect for rooms with very little free wall space.
Items don’t have to be stored horizontally – they can just as easily run up the walls. Here, a stack of ‘invisible’ shelves holds small piles of books. This is perfect for rooms with very little free wall space.
Experiment with see-through cabinetry
If you have beautifully coloured and patterned clothes, it seems a shame to hide them away. If you don’t want them permanently on show on a clothes rail, however, you could fold them neatly in a cabinet with either glazed or wire doors, like this one.
If you have beautifully coloured and patterned clothes, it seems a shame to hide them away. If you don’t want them permanently on show on a clothes rail, however, you could fold them neatly in a cabinet with either glazed or wire doors, like this one.
Big up a basket
Even little accessories, such as handbags, hats and belts, can be attractively displayed in the bedroom in little baskets, boxes and bowls. Here, a dainty little basket overflowing with scarves looks wonderful sitting under the vintage bedside table.
Browse 10 great uses for wire and wicker baskets
Even little accessories, such as handbags, hats and belts, can be attractively displayed in the bedroom in little baskets, boxes and bowls. Here, a dainty little basket overflowing with scarves looks wonderful sitting under the vintage bedside table.
Browse 10 great uses for wire and wicker baskets
Go low
Open storage doesn’t have to be at eye-level. If you look around your bedroom, you might find some previously untapped areas for showing off your wares. Coffee table books can be stacked neatly in two or three piles at the foot of the bed, for example; a vintage crate of shoes could be ordered next to an armchair or, as here, extra blankets for cold nights could be folded within an open ottoman.
Open storage doesn’t have to be at eye-level. If you look around your bedroom, you might find some previously untapped areas for showing off your wares. Coffee table books can be stacked neatly in two or three piles at the foot of the bed, for example; a vintage crate of shoes could be ordered next to an armchair or, as here, extra blankets for cold nights could be folded within an open ottoman.
Create a still life
If art represents life, your life can also represent art: use your special possessions, such as books, prints and perfume, to create an ever-changing still life on your bedside tables. On one side of this bed, for instance, a tray table holds colourful hyacinths, which are casually joined by a pair of glasses and a book.
The trick is to prioritise what looks pretty by your bedside – and to keep it minimal. But if you really can’t edit down your bedside paraphernalia, consider investing in a pretty vintage wooden box – with a lid! – to tuck beneath one table and conceal the rest.
TELL US…
Have you come up with an inventive open-storage solution for a bedroom? Share your ideas and photos in the Comments below.
If art represents life, your life can also represent art: use your special possessions, such as books, prints and perfume, to create an ever-changing still life on your bedside tables. On one side of this bed, for instance, a tray table holds colourful hyacinths, which are casually joined by a pair of glasses and a book.
The trick is to prioritise what looks pretty by your bedside – and to keep it minimal. But if you really can’t edit down your bedside paraphernalia, consider investing in a pretty vintage wooden box – with a lid! – to tuck beneath one table and conceal the rest.
TELL US…
Have you come up with an inventive open-storage solution for a bedroom? Share your ideas and photos in the Comments below.
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Thank you, Anna, for an inspired, fun and clever, useful, and beautiful post! Love it.