As you grow, the spaces you live in should change too. You can transform your bedroom to make it more sophisticated by making simple changes to the color palette, moving and renovating furniture, rearranging spaces. Many changes can be made while on a tight budget, while others won't cost you a penny.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Change the Color Palette and Furniture
Step 1. Select the right color range
The colors you choose for the walls, bed and curtains will create the atmosphere in your room, so avoid pastels, such as pink and yellow, which tend to be a little more naive. Instead, go for darker, brighter colors.
- You can consider gender-neutral colors like purple, orange, and green.
- Choose trendy, fresh and pop-looking contrasting colors, such as deep dark purple and yellow.
- Fiery red and black also pair well with purple.
Step 2. Work with your existing color palette
Instead of completely revamping the color, you could try to take advantage of the current one. By renovating and emphasizing it, you can change the room a lot.
- For example, if pastel pink is the predominant color, refresh it by adding touches of fuchsia, hot pink and chocolate brown.
- If the predominant color is pastel blue, renew it by adding touches of royal blue and maybe even military green.
- Whatever decision you make, try to opt for colors that contrast with each other.
Step 3. As for the walls, opt for a color detail
Since the palette will be darker, paint only one wall in the new shade. Painting the four walls darkly can visibly shrink the room and make it more cramped than it actually is.
- Choosing harmonious combinations to make it look bigger and less chaotic will allow you to achieve a sophisticated effect.
- If your parents don't feel like having your walls painted, they will be much more willing when you suggest they only paint one.
- Make sure you paint carefully to get a beautiful and precise result.
Step 4. Add a pop culture flair
As a teenager, you are constantly bombarded with pop culture and you probably already have tangible proof of it scattered throughout the room. Take advantage of it! For example, if you love music, collect all the concert tickets you go to and pin them to a cork board. Get rid of posters featuring bands and singers, unless they deserve to be framed (in which case, buy some nice frames).
- You could also show off your instruments using a guitar stand or maybe put a keyboard in the corner of the room to give it an extra touch of style.
- Search the garage for cute items that you can recycle and display in your room.
- For example, old surfboards, sports gear and typewriters could be dyed and hung, but they could also be put on display without any modification to give the room a vintage feel.
Step 5. Get some discreet and sophisticated articles
If you want to hang something on the wall, get a nice frame. If the walls are bare, try purchasing prints and choose matching frames. If you don't have a desk or bookcase and have enough space, buy one or both of these pieces of furniture.
- Choose a rug that matches the new color palette. Carpets make a room's décor homogeneous and give it a sophisticated touch.
- Get a plant for the windowsill. Choose one that doesn't require great care, such as a fern or potted aloe vera.
Step 6. Choose a sophisticated duvet and curtains
Avoid prints such as plush toys and toy cars, opt for patterns such as lines of intense colors, tartan or delicate polka dots.
- If you don't know which pattern to choose, opt for plain colored bedding and accessories.
- Decorate the bed with a valance matched to the new color palette: it will allow you to hide all the objects you don't use and the clutter you have under the bed.
Method 2 of 3: Change the Furniture Arrangement
Step 1. Move or renovate the most childish furniture
For example, if you have the same chest of drawers you used as a child, put it in a place in the room that hides it or takes it out of the spotlight. You could even renovate childish-looking furniture. A coat of paint in a different color can make a difference for even the most insignificant items.
- Before making any definitive changes to furniture, always ask for permission.
- If possible, try to buy furniture that matches each other or from the same set.
Step 2. Create texture and layering
Arrange rugs and ottomans on the floor to add a pop of color and create more texture within the space. Stack some brightly colored pillows on the bed and ottomans.
- In winter, stack warm, colorful blankets on the bed to create a cozy effect.
- Try hanging colored lights (such as Christmas lights or Chinese lanterns) around a window, bed, or bookcase. This can add a touch of sparkle to the room.
Step 3. Use a desk or bookcase as the focal point of the room
If you have a nice piece of furniture, like a bookcase or desk, move it to a visible spot in the room. Clean it up and organize it to make it look its best. This way the space will have a much more sophisticated air.
Step 4. Put the bed back
This is probably the focal point of your current room, although this usually depends on the size of the room. Traditionally it is placed on the opposite wall to that of the door, so this would be the most suitable arrangement. If it has a nice frame and a nice headboard, but you can't see it from the entrance, move it around to make it the focal point.
- If in doubt, opt for a layout that makes the room seem more tidy and airy. Open spaces are more harmonious and sophisticated than a cramped room.
- If possible, do not rest the headboard on the same wall as the door, as this can confuse people entering the room.
Method 3 of 3: Organize the Room and Keep It Tidy
Step 1. Move or delete the plush collection
Hide them in the closet, give them to your little brother or keep them in the attic. If rag dolls stay on the bed or lined up on the windowsill, the room will look anything but sophisticated.
- Also remove any toys you have in sight. Put them in the closet or give them away. The same goes for children's necklace books.
- To make the room look more sophisticated, you need to be willing to put away some of your favorite childhood items.
- However, you don't have to get rid of everything at all! Leave your favorite item in plain sight and put the rest away.
Step 2. Eliminate all objects that make the space cramped and cluttered
If you have too many chairs, too many photos hanging on the wall, or a wardrobe overflowing with clothes, go through them all and throw something away. You could donate things in good condition to a shelter in your city or to a charity.
- Simplifying and organizing the room will create a more elegant and sophisticated atmosphere.
- Organize loose items using colored plastic boxes. This way you can order the room and at the same time add a touch of color.
Step 3. Tidy up the closet
Hang all your clothes neatly, rather than leaving them stacked on the floor. Buy a laundry basket (better match your room palette) and put away all your dirty clothes. Keep it in the closet, take it out only when you need to do the laundry.
- Examine the closet to get rid of any clothes and items that no longer fit you or no longer reflect you.
- Buy new, sturdy hangers of the same color. Get rid of the mismatched or broken ones.
- If you want to take it a step further, organize your clothes by hanging them by color or function.
Step 4. Vacuum and dust at least once a week
Keep everything clean and put away any items scattered on the floor. Store your backpack, school belongings and sports gear in the closet or piece of furniture and vacuum anywhere. Throw out the things you don't need and empty the trash can.
Having the room clean will certainly give it a more sophisticated air
Step 5. Make your bed every day
Get used to doing this every morning. It is a simple action, but also typical of adults. Arranging the bed will make the room immediately appear neater and more sophisticated.
