Get Inspired With Some Of These Guest Bedroom Makeover Ideas

Besides a growing family, one of the biggest reasons why you might want to spring for a bigger house is to have a guest room for visiting friends and family from out of town. While it might have been okay when you were a broke college kid to put out a futon or air mattress, once you have your own home, people will probably expect a bit more from you. Although you don’t have to provide hotel-style service your guest bedroom should be comfortable and feel a bit like home.

Whether you just purchased a house or you’re looking to redecorate, it’s never a bad time to take stock of your guest room. You don’t have to remove or change everything in the room. However, it’s a good idea to take stock of how you would feel if you stayed in your own guest room and make some changes. Below are some design tips to make your guest bedroom a more welcoming place.

Keep It Clutter-Free

Has your guest bedroom slowly evolved into a storage room? You’re not alone. It’s all too easy to start shifting your belongings into an empty room, especially if you don’t get many guests. While most houseguests will give you enough time to clean out the room and prepare, sometimes life hands you surprises. Rather than scramble to get the room clean, your best bet is to always keep it clutter-free.

That doesn’t mean your guest bedroom has to be austere. In fact, that will probably make the room less welcoming if the only thing you have is a bed and no other decorations. Instead, add in some cute knick-knacks to liven up the room a bit. Even choosing some cute sheets and pillows can make a room more inviting. By keeping the decorations and items to a minimum you’re saving on budget and keeping the room easy to manage. The day before your guests arrive, take stock of your room and remove anything in there that doesn’t ‘spark joy.’

Have Fun With Your Guest Bedroom

Who says you have to only decorate the room with basic pieces of furniture? The guest bedroom is a great opportunity to add in some fun chairs, side tables, lamps, etc. Of course, you don’t want the guest bedroom makeover to look like a mishmash of random items. The room should be nicely coordinated in terms of color scheme, decorations, and furniture. With that said, it’s a great opportunity to let your personality shine. Maybe you wanted to have an indoor swing in your bedroom, but your partner turned it down. Whatever the reason, use the guest bedroom as a way to embrace your creativity.

Of course, you don’t have to add any crazy furniture if you don’t want to. Even accent items like throw pillows, rugs, and wallpaper can brighten up a room. You can also add some potted plants for a bit of greenery. When choosing what to put in the guest room, make sure to pick items that are either sturdy or you don’t mind getting stained or potentially damaged.

Create A Restful Space

As with any bedroom, the guest room should encourage a good night’s rest. Of course, a good bed is paramount to getting a good night’s sleep. With that said, there’s no way to know what type of bed your guest prefers. Plus, you can’t keep changing out the mattress for each guest as each one will have their own preference. Instead, you should focus on improving the overall guest room environment.

One of the first things you should do is make sure the room remains dark throughout the night. Black out curtains are a must-have for every bedroom. Not only will they block the early morning sun, they will also help block stray lights from streetlights and cars. Studies have shown that even dim lights can have a negative effect on people’s sleep quality. That goes for indoor lights too. Make sure to remove any constant night lights in the bedroom and hallway near the guest room. If you’re worried that your guests might stumble in the dark, only use motion-sensor night lights. You can also seal the gaps in the door with some foam tape to prevent light leaks from other areas in the house.

Another simple, but effective tip is to keep the guest room nice and cool. The optimal temperature for sleep ranges from 60 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit. If you don’t have central air, you should install an air conditioner in the room so your guests can sleep comfortably. For a greener route, you can opt for ceiling or electric fans. You can also keep windows open when nighttime temperatures are cooler. Just make sure to install screens so no bugs can fly into your home.

While it might be tempting to add a TV to the guest room, try to avoid it. TVs emit a lot of blue light, which alters your body’s natural circadian rhythm. Banishing the TV from the bedroom will help your guests get much better sleep. Of course, smartphones and tablets also emit blue light and while you can’t force your guests to not use their devices in the bedroom, you can at least remove one item that interferes with sleep.

Add Furniture

It should go without saying, but a bedroom is more than just a bed. In general, you should at least have a drawer where your guests can place their clothes. Even if they are only staying for a few nights, not rummaging through their luggage for their clothes goes a long way in making your room more hospitable. If you have more space, adding a small desk or bench is a great way to give guests a bit more freedom to use the room how they want. 

Everyone wants a little time to themselves, even close family members, so provide a space in your house that serves as a retreat. This way, your guests can use the room to relax, do some work, or maybe just watch their favorite show on their phone. Sure, it might be a small room, but even for the most extroverted person, it’s important to have a little bit of alone time.

Symmetry Always Works

When planning out your guest room, you should first consider who your guests are. Do you tend to get couples or families? Are you hosting friends or are you converting a room in your house into an AirBnB? Depending on your answer, your layout will change. Of course, you’ll also have to take the size of your room into consideration.  

If you have the space, having two beds in the guest room the rule of thumb is to keep it symmetrical. That means whatever is on one bed, you should have on the other. This even comes down to decorations above the bed. Symmetry is easy on the eyes and it keeps the room from getting too visually cluttered. To visually separate the sides of the room, add a night table or desk between the two beds to create a barrier. It’s a great way to separate the room without putting up a partition.

Make It Cozy

A modern bedroom might look sleek, but it doesn’t necessarily put people at ease. A guest bedroom should make people feel comfortable and, well, cozy. You know that environment when you just want to curl up in bed or on a couch and read a book or just doze off. While capturing that cozy vibe can be difficult, there are a few things you can do to improve your chances.

If your guest room is already decorated, try to look at it from someone else’s point of view. Is there a lot of stuff on the bedside table or hanging on the walls. Maybe the furniture in the room is too close together and it’s hard to get around? Or maybe the wallpaper you’re using is too loud and distracting. It’s important to view the room with a critical eye and see what changes you can make. Sometimes, it’s just a matter of rearranging some items so that the room is more streamlined.

Of course, it doesn’t just stop at the layout of the room. You should also consider how things feel. Maybe there are a lot of hard edges, so soften it up with some soft throw pillows or quilts. Also, don’t cheap out on the sheets or blankets! Invest in some comfy cotton sheets and a breathable blanket that will keep your guests at the perfect temperature while they sleep. Oh, and don’t forget to provide some towels for your guests.

Add House Plants

Flowers are a quick and easy way to add a pop of color to the guest bedroom. If you grow flowers of your own, take a few from your garden and display them in a simple vase. It’s simple and it adds that extra dash of hospitality that your guests will surely appreciate.

If you’re not a fan of cut flowers, opt for potted house plants instead. You can easily relocate a plant from one area of your house to the guest room without any issues. Just make sure to choose one that isn’t too large and won’t require any care the entire time your guest is in the room. Plants like succulents are great as they really only require sunlight and watering once a week or so. If the room doesn’t get much light, opt for plants that thrive in low-light conditions.

Don’t Forget The Toiletries

Everyone forgets something when traveling whether that’s toothpaste or maybe shampoo. Chances are your guests have probably forgot to bring something important with them as well. Rather than wait for them to ask you for an item, provide everything for them. You don’t need to get too fancy, but including essential toiletry items such as a toothbrush, toothpaste, body wash, shampoo and conditioner, shaving cream, razor, some individual packets of tylenol, can all make your guests feel right at home.

Even if you don’t have a separate guest bathroom, leaving these items in the guest bedroom makes it much easier for everyone involved as you won’t have to scramble to find spare items around the house. While you might not have to go all out for family, you should have all of these items available if you plan to rent the room out as an AirBnB. If you want to go the extra mile you can also include commonly forgotten items such as charging cables and chargers.

Pick A Theme

It might be tempting to just throw whatever leftover decor and garage sale finds into the guest room, but if you want to make it welcoming and cohesive, you should pick a theme. It doesn’t have to be super specific, but you want something that helps to focus your interior design. Something like floral could be a good theme as you could then decorate the guest bedroom with floral objects from floral patterned sheets to subtle floral decor.

If you can’t think of a theme you like, focus instead on the color palette you want in the guest bedroom. While having a good understanding of what colors go well together is a plus, you can always stick with a base color of white and one accent color such as blue, red, green, etc. Make sure to keep towels and blankets the same palette and try to find decorations that match.

Update For The Holidays

While this isn’t absolutely necessary, if you know you’ll have friends or family over for the holidays, why not spruce up the room with some holiday decorations? You don’t have to do a complete guest bedroom makeover. Instead, add in some little touches here and there. That could be as easy as putting down some holiday-themed throw pillows or adding a wreath and/or stockings for Christmas.

If you really want to go make the guest bedroom festive, why not include little gifts representative of the holidays? These could be little things like heart chocolates on Valentine’s Day or maybe some snack-sized candy for Halloween. You should only redecorate for the holidays if you know the guests personally as you may end up offending AirBnB guests if they do not celebrate these specific holidays.

Keep Your Guests Cozy With This Helpful Guest Bedroom Makeover Ideas

There are so many ways you can decorate your guest bedroom. The key to a good guest room is to make it as comfortable as possible. That means spending the extra money and investing in good sheets, furniture, and a mattress. You don’t want your guests to feel like they’re an afterthought after all!

If you haven’t given your guest room a makeover in a while, now is the time to look at it with fresh eyes. Maybe the style you have now feels outdated or maybe it just feels too cluttered. Of course, there’s always the possibility that it still looks and feels awesome! Either way, take a bit of time to check it out and see if there’s any changes you want to make that will fit within your budget. Remember, you don’t need to spend a ton to make the room feel fresh. Sometimes all it takes is rearranging some furniture or adding a fresh coat of paint.

Lisa Czachowski is a professional social blogger and has worked on several online publications including Citrus Sleep. Lisa is an experienced content writer and copyeditor. You will find many of her works throughout CitrusSleep.com that cover a wide array of subjects including sustainability, natural, sleep products, health, fashion and many more. She is passionate about what providing as much information as possible on products you bring in your home and what we wear.

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