How to Style a Bed Like a Pro
Because your bed is usually the largest object in the room, a well styled bed is the fastest way to give your bedroom a finished look.
Your bed styling is dependent on what look you are after. There are, of course, various thoughts on decorative pillows for styling a bed.
Some people view extraneous pillows as impractical - why have extra pillows you don’t need for sleeping?
image via Nathan W Pyle
I am of the mindset that extra pillows can have practical value (for example as a comfy backrest if you sit in bed to read or watch TV).
In addition they add pattern and color to break up the expanse of mattress, and impart a sumptuous, inviting look. A bed without any extra pillows looks a bit austere and sad...like a military barracks cot or jail cell.
Can you have TOO many pillows? Absolutely! There is a fine line between inviting and chaotic!
When making up the bed, I always plan on the sleeping pillows behind or under the pillows with shams - this hides them since they get wrinkled with use, but still makes it easy to access them for sleeping. At night, just set the pillows with shams aside.
I prefer sleeping pillows, toss pillows, or pillows that get used to be filled with feather and down, but purely decorative shams can have less expensive poly-fill pillows since they won’t get compacted with use and the stiffer nature of these tends to fill out the shams better for standing up.
A note about feather and down pillows: these come in a variety of percentages. As the down content goes up, so does the price. A 95/5 feather/down mix is the least expensive and most common. If the percentage is not listed for your feather/down pillow, this is likely what it is.
A bit of down is helpful to keep the feathers from aligning the spines and flattening out the pillow. The higher the feather content, the firmer and heavier the pillow.
Feather and down pillows, properly cared for, can be re-fluffed and will last for many years of service. Poly-fill pillows will flatten with use into unredeemable sad pancakes.
Minimalist/Modern Style Bed
Platform beds, or upholstered, metal, or wood beds with tailored lines work best for this style. If you have a box spring, cover it with a fitted sheet or custom fabric cover to coordinate with your bedding.
Dress the bed with a simple coverlet tucked in, a duvet or blanket folded at the foot, coordinating pillows with tailored shams layered over your sleeping pillows in pillowcases, add a single decorative toss pillow or long bolster in front of the pillows for a final finish.
Modern or Minimalist Bed Styling with a tailored bedcover, coordinating shams and a simple bolster.
New Traditional Style Bed
More detailed, traditional, or elaborate beds call for a bit more layering.
A coverlet and matching shams, a dust skirt if needed, and something - a quilt, blanket, or duvet - folded at the foot in a contrasting fabric, and a second pair of shams that match either the duvet cover or dust skirt, add some decorative throw pillows and this is an ideal formula that always works.
~ Janet Lorusso
A set of square Euro shams can even be layered across the back (3 fit perfectly across a king size bed). Euro shams are 6” taller than standard shams so peek up nicely in the back row against the headboard and are especially nice, functionally, if you don’t have an upholstered headboard and like to sit up in bed to read or watch TV.
Depending on the number of shams and pillows you use, you might want to keep the throw pillows to a minimum - One or two on a twin, full or queen bed and up to 3 on a king.
Traditional bed styling with a coverlet, dust skirt, folded quilt, and 2 sets of shams and 2 toss pillows (sleeping pillows can be hidden behind the shams)
Layered stacked sleeping pillows topped with sham covered pillows at the headboard. Decorative Euro or sham covered pillows lean in front of the stacks, with a pair of contrasting toss pillows and a folded quilt finishing the more casual styling on this 4 poster bed.
A trio of Euro shams perfectly lines the headboard on this king bed, sleeping pillows topped with sham covered pillows lean in front, and a single decorative throw pillow finishes the styling simply, letting the sculptural lines and fabric of the upholstered sleigh bed stand out.
#euroshams #bedstyling
Custom bedding for a king sized upholstered bed layers shades of the blue and cream used throughout this luxury studio we did in Boston a number of years ago. Euro shams of embroidered silk with brush fringe layer behind matelassé flanged shams with tape trim and a matching coverlet. An oversize bolster pillow of an embroidered stripe rests in front.
#euroshams #bedstyling #bolsterpillow
Euro shams line the headboard, and a row of flanged striped shams match the custom bedskirt. White matelassé shams match the coverlet. Now we just need to add another toss pillow or two and a taupe duvet or blanket to fold at the foot!
#euroshams #bedstyling
This hefty bed frame called for slightly traditional, but simple and bold styling. Again, we used a pair of custom shams and matching bedskirt, a pair of matelassé shams and matching coverlet. This time we added a simple custom oversize bolster and matching duvet cover.
#bedstyling #bolsterpillow #custombedding
Custom shams, coverlet and duvet cover are paired with a ready made dust skirt and throw pillows for this pretty bed. We had the coverlet made extra long in the style of an old-fashioned bedspread so that it could cover the sleeping pillows as well.
#custombedding #bedstyling
There are many options for styling your bed. The key to an inviting bed is layering. Layered pillows and throw pillows add interest and comfort to the head of the bed, while a folded blanket/quilt duvet at the foot breaks up the expanse of coverlet or bedspread.
Other posts you might enjoy:
How to Choose the Right Bedding
Bedding Basics: A Glossary of Terms and bed and pillow sizes