Styles go in and out of fashion. The contemporary style, also known as the modern style, emphasises minimalism and simplicity. We provide tips on how to achieve this affect.
Over the last thirty years, I’ve moved house a few times, and each time I’ve decorated my house in exactly the same way – the simple way. People in many professions find it necessary to relocate to new cities or new states on a regular basis (the military, for one), and many of these individual have a tendency to cut down on their possessions, because that makes it a lot easier to move house. Alternatively, they keep their possessions in storage for decades, so that when they finally retire they can unpack everything they’ve accumulated over the years, and finally enjoy it all!
Most people, however, only move once or twice in their lifetimes.
Which is not to say that, just because you’ve been in the same house or apartment for several years, you can’t regularly redecorate your home to give it and yourself a new look. Indeed, if you’ve ever decided you need a complete change to start on a new path, there’s no need to move house, just redesign the one you’re in.
If you’re in quest of a new look, there are many resources for you to use in order to find exactly what you need. Surf the web for thousands of photos of various design styles, from the classic styles such as Colonial and Federal, to the current day styles, and in particular the Contemporary style.
The Contemporary style, also known as the Modern style, is characterized by an emphasis on minimalism, on a lack of ornamentation in the furniture, in a subdued palette of colors for walls and carpeting , and accessories kept to a minimum.
Decorating Your Bedroom in the Contemporary Style
The rule of thumb in decorating a room is to build everything around a central focal point. In the bedroom, of course, the central focal point is the bed. In traditional designs, the bed is usually cluttered with throw pillows and made to look like anything other than a bed until bedtime. In the contemporary style, the bed is just a bed, an ornament in itself, with a sleek design, in metal, or dark wood. Bedspreads of white, beige or other subdued color make the room seem larger and more airy.
Bedroom furniture
The key is to have just as much furniture as you need, and no more. Don’t have a chair in a corner if you never sit in it, and especially don’t have it flanked with a couple of occasional tables with lamps if you never use them! If you have a walk-in closet that can obviate the need for dressers and armoires against the walls…get used to the feeling of space created by not having these items intruding into the space of the room itself.
Accessories
Accessories should be kept to a minimum. If you like flowers, by all means have a vase of flowers on the bedside table. If you like teddy bears or fluffy animals or sculpture, have a couple of these. The key is to not overdo it and end up having a cluttered look. It’s not as restful as a neat, clean look.
Walls should be painted in a subdued pallette – white, beige, tan – so that they can set off other splashes of color in the room, from a bright red vase to a colorful painting on the wall. Here again, let the wall space breathe. Don’t cover every square inch with a decoration of some kind.
In the contemporary style (and in contemporary housing design), ceiling light fixtures are a thing of the past. (Or, considering how tastes change, the future.) An occasional lamp on your bedside table, or recessed lighting in the headboard of the bed, give the room a classy look.
Regardless of how you decorate your bedroom, of course, the idea is that you must feel comfortable in it.
