simple ways to dress your bed for a chic and practical bedscape

No matter how big or small your bedroom, the bed is usually the focal point of the room as it’s the largest piece of furniture. And there is something so inviting about a beautifully made bed that instantly elevates your bedroom and makes it look and feel cosier too. But all too often many of us ignore the top of the bed and leave it empty apart from basic bedding.

By decorating your bedscape, you can make your whole bedroom look more stylish and intentional. That’s not to say that you need to have a dozen decorative pillows or anything over the top because it has to be practical too. Besides, we don’t want anything super busy or complicated as the look should be calm. It should be simple enough that it can be done daily without it feeling like a big chore, yet adds to the look of the bed and the bedroom.

The good news is that there are plenty of very simple ways to style your bed that will create a cosy, calm and inviting bedscape without much effort at all. You might be surprised at how simply and easily you can elevate your bed and still get transformative results.

Simple ways to dress your bed for a stylish bedscape

Before you buy any textiles to style your bed, it’s worth keeping a few things in mind:

Make your bed every morning because we know that it sets you up for the day and makes such a difference to how your room looks and feels.
Choose natural materials like linen, cotton and wool because they look more aesthetic and they’re far comfier to sleep in than synthetics.
Keep practicality in mind. There’s no point in decorating your bed with 5 cushions that will end up living on the floor in your bedroom.
Choose a style that works for you and your bedroom. Do you prefer a more casual, relaxed look or something very polished or maybe something in between.
Keep your bed frame in mind when styling your bed. A bed with a headboard works better with different styling then a bed with no headboard. The height, style and material of the headboard will make a difference too.
Play with different textures, fabrics and tones to keep the look interesting rather than flat.
Switch up your look seasonally so your bedroom always looks fresh and is practical for whatever season it is.

One of my absolute favourite ways to style a bed is to drape an oversized bedspread over the entire bed and tuck the pillows in. This looks is so dramatic and elegant yet it’s so simple because all you need is a bedspread. The size of the bedspread is key here because it’s the graceful pooling of the fabric on the floor that really elevates the look. And the fabric needs to be fairly thin and soft for that draped look because anything too heavy or stiff won’t have the same effect. Linen is a great choice of fabric for this look.

If you wanted a little more embellishment you could also add a throw cushion or two but really, the draped look works without the need for anything extra, making it very simple to pull off yet so impactful.

This is a very minimalist look where the cover has simply been folded down and the pillows left exposed. This is particularly suitable in summer when you likely use a lighter/thinner cover rather than a duvet so it’s easy to smoothen out over the bed. I love that they’ve used a textured cover which adds interest and contrasts against the smooth white sheets.

This is similar to the draped look but you just drape the bottom half of the bed meaning you can use a smaller throw and it’s super quick to do each day. This look works particularly well because of the contrast of the white bedding against the bold, checked blanket. But if you prefer solids, any solid coloured blanket or throw would work too.

To keep things very simple yet striking, try adding pillow covers in an unexpected shade like on this bed above. All the bedding is in shades of pale beige but you unexpectedly have deep red pillows. This is a very relaxed look and you can layer on a throw or bedcover if you like. But even if you just add pillows in a different shade and pair with any pale neutral bedding, your bed will look intentionally styled.

Most of us use duvets for much of the year so this is a simple and quick way to elevate your bedscape with the duvet. Here a quilt has been laid on top of the duvet and the duvet has been folded over the quilt at the top to give it that finished look. It’s a simple way to dress your bed and not only does it look good but also provides an extra layer of warmth for the coldest months. Here they’ve opted for a brown quilted cover but you can go for any quilt or blanket you already have.

All the above bed styling ideas are simple and easy to pull of on a daily basis but still deliver plenty of style. You can alwys add a cushion or two to any of the bed styling ideas and you can layer on a blanket or throw as well if you wanted. But for me simple best as it doesn’t become a chore.

The above are just some ideas as there are so many ways to style your bed. So if you want a few more ideas, here are some more pics to inspire you:

Styling, or the way you layer throws, blankets, bedcovers and pillows is key to how your bed ends up looking and key for practicality too. Also remember to add interest and depth with different textured fabrics, subtle patterns and seasonal colours like many of the pics above show.