How to use linen to accentuate décor
Linen combinations and patterns complement the other design features of the room such as artwork, lighting, curtains and furniture. PHOTO/file
What you need to know:
While choosing linen, think about how they will look in varying lighting conditions. The right choice should complement the room’s decor.
Decorating your house or room can both be exciting and daunting. Even the smallest detail needs to be put into great consideration in order to achieve a cohesive and pleasant look. Although bedsheets might seem like a simple detail, they portray your taste and aesthetic sense and can greatly affect the way you live your life as well. Choosing bedsheets is more than just colour or material, they should look good, feel good and make you feel comfortable. Ronald Edmond Sessanga, an interior designer says your bed linen can be used to accentuate your bedroom’s decor style.
Choices
Hotels and guest houses prefer using white sheets because they will give the guest an assurance of the cleanliness of the room. While homes embrace different colour combinations and patterns that complement the other design features of the room such as artwork, lighting, curtains and furniture.
Bedrooms are, after all, places of relaxation and you can get this using the right colours, textures and patterns in a way that is comfortable. For example coloured linen adds a vibrant element to a room that is predominantly white while dark shades will give you a glamorous luxury look.
Alternatively you can go for elegant simplicity by keeping the design of your linen consistent with the other features in your bedroom.
Sessanga says, “Florals are preferred for their versatility as they can be easily matched with the shades around the room. The most versatile florals include combinations of red, yellow or green.”
White linen
Ian Twesige, a designer, says plain white sheets are great for homes although many homeowners give them a wide berth. “White goes a long way in making your master bedroom look elegant and regal. Besides, it makes the bed pop, making it and the room look bigger and fresh,” he says. Moreover, while many are wary of white sheets because they easily show stains more than any other colour, it means they will compel you to improve your hygiene standards, which in the long run is good for your health.
Mix it up
Another way of using bed linen in your décor is to mix up different styles. An example of this is feminine and masculine features. If you have a bedroom that has mainly masculine wall decorations or furniture, you can complement this with bed linen that looks more feminine. You can pick pretty floral bedding set to match heavy neutral furniture. Flowers can be printed in various ways, either sketch or hand painted or such as a modern designed base looking flower. This will bring a romantic and tender bedroom design. Also consider light colours that will balance the masculinity with calmness, positive energy and joy.
Marcus Musiige, an interior designer says children’s bedroom are perfect for natural hues and simple patterns. They can be decorated with basic shapes such as squares, diamonds, circles, or they can have orient ornaments. In fact, the bedroom will look fresh and lively if you will choose floral, ornamental and bright coloured bed sheets.
Some homeowners or designers consider contrasting or matching bedsheet colours depending on the room shading. For example, think about how they will look in varying lighting conditions. Question how dark and luxurious colours will look in bright natural light, or how more subtle designs and lighter colours will appear in lower light conditions.
Quality counts
Many people tend to focus more on the print and colour of the bed sheet and completely disregard the fact that quality counts too. Among the other fabrics available, cotton is the most popular during the hot season because it gives a cool and soft feel. Sellers claim that you will hardly ever wake up sticky on cotton sheets, since the fibre wicks absorb all the moisture.
There are also cotton-polyester blend bed sheets that are wrinkle-resistant and are long lasting. Polyester sheets are generally the cheapest, but these sheets tend to be scratchy and stiff. Since polyester does not breathe like a natural fabric, this may lead to more sweating at night. However, for a pure luxury bedding style, nothing beats silk. The cons of silk sheets are that they are expensive, delicate and need extra washing care. Avoid satin-style sheets made of polyester; as they give uncomfortable scratchy feeling against the skin.
