When designing a bedroom, the right wardrobe can make all the difference. Fitted wardrobes, in particular, offer a range of benefits that can transform not just the look of a room but also the functionality and feel of the space. And when you add in sensory design principles, you can create a truly immersive and relaxing environment that feels tailor-made to your needs.
Interior stylist and author Pippa Jameson lovingly renovated her Liverpool home to reflect her best-selling book, The Sensory Home. Pippa wanted to create a home which demonstrates how to put wellbeing at the forefront of design, allowing the body to truly switch off from the outside world and the stresses of daily life. Pippa partnered with a select few brands that enhanced the sensory experience of space through interior design.
My Fitted Bedrooms are experts within their field and were the chosen partner for The Sensory Home®. Storage is just as essential to a soothing space as lighting and soft furnishings as it allows you to keep a clutter-free home (for the most part!), which immediately makes rooms feel more relaxing and can have a positive impact on your mental wellbeing too, as mounting belongings can contribute towards feelings of stress.
By paying attention to how a space makes us feel, we can create a truly welcoming and soothing environment. This means choosing colours and textures that promote relaxation and furniture that is kind to our bodies and avoids constant twisting and bending. This includes items such as pull-down rails for easy access to clothing, and gliding shoe rails, which allow you to view and select items effortlessly.
In addition, features such as built-in lighting, mirrors, and pull-out drawers, allow the furniture to double up as dressing mirrors, providing a functional and stylish storage solution that truly meets your needs.
Typical of Edwardian homes, the ceilings are high, and whilst this allows for ample storage unless the paint colours are considered, it can make a room feel cold and airy. For this reason, we painted all of the ceilings in TSH darker than the wall colour. This simple technique makes the ceiling feel lower, which creates a more intimate atmosphere.
To complement the paint colour, we chose the Elle wardrobe in Cashmere. The colour matched perfectly, allowing the fitted furniture to blend into the room seamlessly. The door style is a timeless and classic look.
Due to the wardrobes being custom-built to fit the room’s dimensions, you can see from the image below that we made use of every inch of available space – including awkward corners and nooks – of which there are many in old houses! It also meant that we could gain much more storage than with a standard wardrobe or set of drawers.
We worked alongside My Fitted Bedroom and designed each room with specific needs, ensuring we had precisely the kind of storage that works for the home.
We created an intimate and enclosed space for the middle bedroom by painting the ceiling forest green. My Fitted Bedroom looked at our chosen colour scheme and suggested colours from their collection that truly complimented the overall look and feel.
That’s another main advantage of the custom-built wardrobe; you can choose the materials, colours and finishes that work with your existing scheme to best suit your needs and style. So whether you prefer a sleek, modern look or something more traditional, a fitted wardrobe can be designed to complement your decor.
We briefed MFB about our sensory design principles for each room, including placing the bed where it’s not directly facing a door or window. This can help create a sense of safety and security. These principles followed into the wardrobe design and included design details such as easy grip handles, calm and earthy tones and storage that worked for the space.
Each room was tailored to the needs of the house to create an environment that is calming and restful – the perfect place to unwind after a busy day.
The back bedroom was a little more challenging as we had shallow recesses on either side of the chimney breast. However, careful planning and measurements could maximise the available space without infringing on the window. In addition, we were able to instal functional and stylish cupboards with adjustable inside shelving.
The final challenge we had was the loft. Again, we had an idea of what we wanted to achieve, but it was a complex idea requiring expertise in design, carpentry and installation.
We wanted to place the fitted wardrobe in the middle of the loft to divide the space into different areas, with a bedroom on one side and a chill-out area on the other.
Our designer from My Fitted Bedroom was enthused, on board with the idea, and totally committed to the concept. They worked up some designs, and we were thrilled with the outcome. The loft was transformed into a functional, stylish bedroom with the perfect storage solution. The designer even fitted shelving on either side.
The centrally fitted wardrobe created a stylish and functional divide for the loft bedroom. The clever shelving system provided extra shelving for personal items and accessories.
View the full range from My Fitted Bedroom here.
Photography: Jemma Watts (copyright laws exist).
The Sensory Home worked with My Fitted Bedroom on this advertising campaign. All thoughts are my own.
