No matchy-matchy in the bedroom, pleaseChat with us in Facebook Messenger. Find out what's happening in the world as it unfolds.Story highlightsDecorators: Bed-in-a-bag sets can be stiff and too coordinated for a cozy room."A bedroom can be uncomfortable if it's too formal," blogger Corrie Moore said of furniture choicesShare your gorgeous mantel photos and ideas on the next CNN Open House iReport assignmentIt might seem like a smart idea to buy everything together, but ultra-coordinated, flat bedding and stiff comforters often found in bagged bedding are the enemy of an inviting bedroom, said Holly Browning, DIY blogger and former home accent and interior designer.When pressed, decor blogger Emily Clark said, "A bed in a bag can sometimes be a good jumping-off point, if you add some other elements like patterned sheets or different shams."Pillows"Pillows have always been a big discussion in our house," said interior designer and The Little Black Door blogger Elizabeth Baumgartner. "After a lot of trial and error, I've found that we need at least one king-size synthetic pillow and one regular-size down pillow per person."
The combination, she said, is perfection.Julie Holloway, part of the Milk and Honey Home decorator team from Roswell, Georgia, also finds pillows paramount. "My husband and I love our Tempur-Pedic pillows that mold to the shape of our neck and head," she said. "Our young boys love them, too, and steal them often."FurnitureBut scratchy sheets aside, comforters that match throw pillows that match curtains, elicit a shudder and "ugh" from interior designers like Shannon Berrey. And what of a matched suite of bedroom furniture? They inspired the same kind of disdain. Interior decorator and blogger Bethany Brower said matching bedroom furniture makes her feel "claustrophobic." Headboards"This spot is so special to my husband and me because we built and upholstered the bed ourselves," Kelly Marzka said. "Every night when we crawl in to sleep, we're reminded of this project we took on, not knowing if we could even do it."CNN iReport head-honcho and home decor blogger Katie Hawkins-Gaar is similarly proud of the impact her DIY headboard has on her master bedroom.
Aside from wanting to make the space better looking, the primary goal of my ongoing bedroom makeover project is to improve the functionality of the room. For the first few months I lived here, the only thing in the bedroom was a bed. I had nowhere to store my folded clothes, no bedside table, no mirror…I didn’t even have a knob to open the closet door. I kept my clothes stacked on shelves in a closet on the other side of the house. My socks were kept in a shoebox. At night I set my phone and a glass of water on the floor beside the bed, hoping the latter wouldn’t tip over and destroy the former. The 8-drawer NORDLI dresser from IKEA was the first piece I chose to add to my barren bedroom. NORDLI comes in a bunch of different configurations (and colors!) thanks to its modular assembly, so I was able to find a variation that fits perfectly in the limited amount of space I have between the foot of the bed and the closet. The small drawers are just right for storing socks, undies, scarves and other accesories, and the four large drawers hold my jeans, pajamas and t-shirts with room to spare.
It’s SO nice to have all of my clothes in one place! No more going back and forth from my bedroom to the closet just to put together a single outfit, and a bent-wood IKORNNES mirror completes the dresser top with a place to put on jewelry (and maybe preen a little). My bedroom is a converted one-car garage, so it’s disproportionately long and narrow. Because I have a king-size bed, I only have about 16” of clearance on either side. That’s not much room for a proper bedside table, and even a tiny table might have looked squeezed in. To keep things looking balanced, I installed a couple of floating LACK shelves to function as nightstands. They’re just big enough for the necessities, which is fine by me! I love that they leave the floor open underneath—that makes for easy vacuuming in addition to keeping the space feeling airy. The RASKMÖLLE rug is the jewel of the room, if you ask me. It was created as part of IKEA’s initiative to protect the craftsmanship of hand-woven rugs and improve the working conditions of rug weavers in India, a consideration I greatly appreciate IKEA having made as part of their ongoing efforts to ensure that their products are ethically manufactured.
I can’t pull out the worn carpeting since this is a rented house, but putting a heavyweight, flat-weave rug on top of a carpet really makes a huge difference. The rug is large enough that it only leaves a small amount of carpet exposed, and the impact is almost as striking as painting the walls white was. The whole room is so much brighter and happier now! RASKMÖLLE feels so soft underfoot, too—much better than scratchy synthetic carpet. It’s so easy to keep my bedroom tidy and organized now! I spend far less time getting dressed in the morning, and I no longer have to refold tipping stacks of clothes now that they’re piled up neatly in drawers. My bedroom feels like a place to retreat and relax rather than a sad, empty hole. I even have a place to set down a cup of coffee on lazy weekend mornings in bed! I am a Brand Ambassadör for IKEA U.S. This is a sponsored post.IKEA is a registered trademark of Inter IKEA Systems B.V. and is used with permission. The views, ideas and opinions expressed here are my own.
If you’re an average guy living in today’s overscheduled world (let’s face it, most of us are), then you’re probably slogging through on less-than-optimal sleep.Believe me: Juggling a growing business and three small children, I have plenty of experience trying to get by on less sleep than I need. I’ve learned you can’t pretend your way to feeling great. Chronically bad sleep adds body fat, screws up our hormones, ages us faster, increases chronic illness and drains us of our IQ and mojo. In fact, when it comes to staying fit, happy, and mentally-focused, the amount and quality of sleep is just as important as nutrition and exercise.Engineer a restful night every night with help from a these simple, science-tested strategies.Falling asleep requires a complex chain of chemical reactions in your body. Here’s how to facilitate the process.You can’t just slam the brakes on your day and expect to fall asleep instantly. A relaxing pre-bed routine offers the transition you need to wind down.
Maybe you like to meditate, breathe deeply or read.Low intensity movement, like fifteen minutes of yoga, can release tension and activate calm-down chemicals. So can a hot bath with magnesium-based epsom salts, known to support healthy sleep.Brave souls can experiment with a cold shower (I swear by it), which may stimulate a strong parasympathetic nervous system response, lowering stress and paving the way for slumber. Go to bed at the same time every night, and your body eventually learns to release calming hormones at the appropriate time to help you fall asleep.What’s the optimal bedtime? Some experts theorize that, because of the way our natural circadian rhythms work, every hour of sleep before 12am is worth two hours after. Shoot for at least seven hours a night, the minimum amount most people need to thrive.Too much booze or coffee can interfere with deep sleep, the phase that’s key to a truly restorative night.Limit alcohol to the recommended amounts, and quit caffeine after 2 p.m. Otherwise, you may “sleep” for seven hours, but it won’t be as beneficial.
Physical activity helps normalize circadian rhythms, tone down the sympathetic nervous system and regulate endocrine function—all crucial for solid sleep.That said, try not to work out too close to bed time, which can rev us up and make it tougher to wind down.When light decreases, the brain produces melatonin, a hormone that ensures deep sleep. Gazing into the hypnotic light of your smartphone means less melatonin—and suboptimal shut-eye.Try to unplug from all screens — TVs, computers, phones, tablets — at least 30 minutes before bed.Just can’t resist that copy of Gone Girl on your tablet? Switch the screen to a dimmer background (even black). You work hard to relax before bed—now don’t let anything bug you once you’re asleep!Number one: Make it dark (remember melatonin?). Trade your flimsy undergrad-era Ikea blinds for a better set, and cover bright screens (phone, alarm clock) while you sleep.Next, pick your temperature (you wouldn’t believe how many clients unknowingly sleep in a sauna).
Most people sleep better when it’s cool, around 67 F, though you might find any temperature from 66 to 72 F comfortable.Believe it or not, setting the stage for quality sleep starts the moment your eyes pop open in the morning. Hint: Waking to a blaring alarm gets your fight-or-flight hormones raging—not awesome. Here are some humane solutions.Throughout the night, we cycle through sleep stages. Waking during deep sleep causes “sleep inertia," that dreaded groggy, disoriented state.Time your wake-up call for a lighter stage. Not sure when that is? Apps like iPhone SleepCycle or SleepBot wake you up within a pre-specified time window when they sense wakefulness.Also, hands off the snooze button! This tempting tool seems to increase sleep inertia.Once you’re awake, simply sit up and put your feet on the floor. Start shambling towards the bathroom, or anywhere else that isn’t your bed. I’ve seen it—there’s something magical about movement that seems to facilitate the waking process.