Renowned interior designer Penny Morrison advises on how to plan a bedroom and gives ideas for refreshing your sleeping quarters

The most essential elements for a bedroom are a large high bed – with a proportionally quite high headboard – and bedside tables that are large enough for a lamp, books, water and !owers. The tables must be at least as high as the ma"ress.

When deciding where to place your various pieces of furniture, position the bed, which is the largest item, #rst. If possible, the bed should have a view and enough space at either side for the bedside tables. I would also place a stool at the base of the bed. It will look pre"y and be useful. If there’s enough space, add an armchair with a standing lamp to sit and read and a dressing table or desk with two lamps.

When considering lighting, I would recommend two bedside lamps for reading and another placed somewhere

else, such as on a dressing table. If the room is dark, then think about four downlights positioned in the ceiling near the corners of the room, but not above the bed!

Flooring will depend on the style of the house. If it is a beach house, for example, a bare stone or polished concrete !oor is lovely. In houses with lovely wide !oorboards, add a large rug that sits half under the bed so you step on to it when you get up in the morning.

To make sure your bed is comfortable and inviting, the

linens should be white and crisp and pillows should be pu$ed up and really so%. I hate messy duvets, so would suggest a bed cover over the top. The most di!cult things to move once they are in are radiators and lighting so, if you are starting from scratch, make sure you think about where these should go.

How you decorate your room will depend on size, architectural features, light and personal taste but, whatever you go for, make sure you pick a colour scheme that !ows. A small bedroom with matching wallpaper, fabric and woodwork colour works really well. If you decide to have blinds rather than curtains, then wallpaper will make the room cosier.

To tie the scheme together, accessories like bed throws, the stool at the bed base, armchair and cushions can have splashes of colour that are pulled from the fabrics on the curtains and bed.

If you’ve lived with your bedroom for a long time and need a refresh, then change the wallpaper or even just the curtains, and add some new bright lamps and fabric lampshades. For something fresh but a bit more masculine go for blues and beiges, or for something more feminine, pinks and creams with a pop of raspberry.

The "nishing touches should be pictures – lots of them – and a scented candle. Again, these are easy to change if you want to update your room. pennymorrison.com