The primary bedroom in our home is a small and awkward space but the view and connection with nature out the doors to the deck beyond are spiritually invigorating. In a simpler space like this, with a minimalist intention, each environmental element and design choice shines brightly.

Flooring

The primary bedroom came with shag carpeting that matched the lower level of the house, which is not ideal for a sleeping space for asthmatics (a health issue as much as a design issue). Still, we lived with it until we were prepared to replace all of the carpeting in the house (it’s most cost efficient to do things like this all at once). Our primary bedroom is on the main level of the house with the kitchen (you can tour that delicious space here) and great room (you can see that remodel here), which already had a hickory solid wood floor. So we continued that flooring into the primary bedroom.

The area rug is earthy, grounding, and whimsically delightful in addition to being washable—Ruggable’s Wildwood Brown Flatwoven Rug. It’s probably my favorite element in the room. It’s like being held within the nurturing mycelial connection of the forest at night. Stepping on it as I get into bed is an unexpectedly powerful transition point for sleep. My only lingering desire is that the pattern ran horizontal instead of vertical.

Walls

We continued the shiplap painted White Dove into the primary bedroom from the rest of the main level of the house. It adds such a cozy, textural, earthy warmth without demanding attention.

All of the doors in this house are stained a very intense orange color that we plan to sand down to a more natural, cool wood finish eventually, but DIY renovation takes time, and this is where we’re at now. So, I want to highlight it here for you to notice a realistic aspect of slow renovation.

Window Treatments

I went for thick, velvet curtains in a deep turquoise that pull in the green-blue water from the Sound. They offer sound and temperature regulation while feeling textural, soft, and rich, heavy in a way that feels protective.

We mounted the brackets as high as the room will allow and outside the door frame enough for the curtains to not block any light or view while open. They feel decadent without becoming cumbersome (we want to invite in every ounce of light in our Pacific Northwest climate).

For those of you following along, these are the same window treatments we have hung in the home office (you can tour that transformation here).

The small window contains the same custom honeycomb blinds that were installed in all of the windows of the house when we bought it (I would have opted for a more natural blind material, but they work fine so it doesn’t make sense to spend the money to replace them). While I chose to hang curtains around all of the windows in the home office, that choice felt wrong for this awkwardly sized and placed window. Instead of highlighting it, I’ve opted to blend it. Curtains would only impede the function of the space on this wall (form follows function around here).

Temperature

This house contains very low, flat ceilings—my least favorite aspect of the building. And as you can see in the before picture, there was a large, low ceiling fan/decapitation hazard in the center of the room that we were quick to remove. This home also sits on a bluff over the water and these doors open to welcome the full power of the wind. I have never been in a room that needed a ceiling fan less. After living in the space for a couple of years, we were able to install a ductless HVAC system that keeps the room perfectly warm or cool (no need for the fan that looked like a WW1 era plane was crashing through the ceiling).

Lighting

We continued the dimmable, canless LED recessed lights from the rest of the great room, though the sweet little green lamps with linen flower petal shades set the perfect mood for evenings unwinding (a Target find).

Furniture

We have tried numerous beds over the years as a large, co-sleeping family, but this Thuma bed is by far our favorite (ours is the king classic bed in natural + pillowboard). It’s definitely an investment piece, but we are so happy with it. It feels completely solid (no creaking, no squeaking, no wiggling). The pillow head board with a bucle cover is so comfortable and supportive. We did have to purchase the pair of boosters to raise the height of it to compensate for our thick mattress. I will disclose that 4 boosters are actually needed to prevent sagging in the middle, but we worked around this by getting a couple cheap foam blocks from the craft store instead of an extra pair of boosters (since the middle can’t be seen).

The three drawer nightstands (Nest 3×1 Dresser) are modular and provide a just-right height work surface along with ample storage. It’s essentially a dresser split in half, which suits the space perfectly.

Bedding

The first layer of our bedding is a plush waterproof cover, which has been essential with three children and a dog in a family culture in which evening bedroom hangs are a significant point of connection.

The next layer up is a fitted sheet. No flat sheet.

The third layer is the duvet, containing a weighted comforter (Brooklinen’s weighted comforter, which they seem to no longer carry). A weighted comforter is so soothing to the nervous system—reminiscent of a womb. It’s an element of my self-care and mental health care that I feel so grateful for.

Atop the duvet is the final layer of a plush throw blanket. This is so handy for when kids plop onto the bed and cozy up or when a partner hath committed the atrocity of stealing the comforter in the middle of the night.

We each have three king-sized Brooklinen Marlow pillows with a pillow case (six pillows total). No decorative pillows in the way. Perhaps this functional pillow abundance is a point of opulence for us, but it’s so nice to be able to fully nest in whatever way we need.

We have two sets of bedding to allow for laundering, one favored by each of us (my husband and myself). We have one set of Brooklinen’s Lux Sateen bedding (buttery smooth and refreshingly cool) and one set of LL Bean’s Ultrasoft Comfort Flannel bedding (warm and soft like being inside a teddy bear’s hug), each includes one fitted sheet, six pillow cases, and one duvet cover.

Closet

The bedroom originally had a traditional built-in closet, but I passionately hate the grotesque inefficiency of those monstrosities. We gleefully tore it out and installed an Ikea Pax wardrobe system, which takes up way less space in the room while storing exponentially more (and in a completely organized and convenient way).

While it is visually appealing to build in a wardrobe with a box platform and trim, we would have lost too much storage space on top doing this here. The low ceiling height only allowed for the shorter Pax unit and the substantial space above is a great place to store things like out of season clothing in nice woven bins. Plus, our attic access lives here and needs to remain accessible.

The addition of the full length mirror makes for a lovely dressing area.

Entertainment

I very much enjoy cuddling in with my people and watching television in bed at the end of the day. So we installed the largest Frame TV that would fit on the small, awkward wall that juts out into the room at the foot of the bed (we suspect the small, weird bathroom was as addition—stay tuned for that project next). It’s not ideal, but there is no better option for TV placement in this room, so we just make the best of these imperfections (the room exists to support our needs, not the other way around).

Decor

We installed three cute wooden pegs on the wall where I hang my hats, we have a macrame plant holder hanging from the ceiling in the corner with a small terracotta pot, and the Frame TV displays a lovely work of art. If I had to choose just one room as the most impactful point of minimalist, it would be the bedroom. Consider this an invitation to join me with LESS in the sleeping space.