Changing Lifestyles Means Home Design Changes, too
The modern home is quite different than what was considered the norm fifty years ago. Rooms and spaces are used differently, and design elements have had to adapt with them. The modern master bedroom is one of the rooms that has changed most dramatically, and the furnishings it needs have changed as well.
The traditional layout of a bedroom was very linear, with enough wall space for the standard bed, dresser, chest combo, and a couple of nightstands. Bedrooms were for dressing, sleeping, and sleep-adjacent activities and not much else. This meant that bedroom furniture was fairly standardized.
In the first half of the 20th century, most houses had one bathroom for every two family members. By the start of the 21st, that ratio had changed to one bathroom per family member. Part of that was due to a growing economy, but part of it was due to changes in the way we use our houses.
By the 1970s, most middle-class houses were built with an en suite master bath. By adding a bathroom, paired with the addition of Televisions in many people’s bedrooms, the bedroom became much more of a living area. A master suite with its own bathroom and tv doesn’t require its resident to leave the room for anything other than meals.
Master Bedrooms Now Are More like Studio Apartments
As a natural pairing to the increased time we started spending in our bedrooms, bedrooms started being built larger, either with a larger open area or multiple alcoves and niches.
While we traditionally only needed a bed and perhaps a dressing bench, the modern bedroom may include such elements as a vanity, a desk, or a seating area. There are two potential problems with this expansion, from an interior design standpoint.
The first issue that may arise is that everything in your room looks too “matchy-matchy”. If you are a Disney princess, this is to be expected. For most adults, having 8 or nine perfectly matched pieces of furniture can look immature. Not What you are usually hoping for after spending thousands on a bedroom set.
Another opposite problem is that the “sleeping” area of your bedroom can look disjointed from stylistically disparate furniture in the sitting area of your room.
The solution to both of these problems might be in the judicious use of accent chairs. An Accent chair is simply a chair that coordinates with the rest of your furniture without perfectly matching. This can be helpful in several ways.
An Accent Chair Can Break up Monotony
If your bedroom furniture feels like too much of the same thing, an accent chair in an exciting pattern can give a fun pop of color. It also can be moved around as needed, so your room can feel fresh, without any grand redesign.
An Accent Chair Can Tie Disparate Elements Together
If you are worried about your bedroom looking disjointed, or if it feels like two totally disconnected spaces, consider an accent chair to reconnect them.
One way to do this is to choose a chair that has lines that work well with one side of the room, in a pattern or color that coordinates well with the other. It will add visual appeal to whichever side it resides in while connecting it to the other half of the room.
Even Smaller Bedrooms Can Use Accent Chairs
While most of this article has been about larger modern bedrooms needing accent chairs, an accent chair can also help a smaller room. By adding visual interest and a comfortable place to sit that isn’t a bed, an accent chair can make a small sparse room feel more comfortable and inviting.
Regardless of what type of bedroom you have, it can benefit from having an accent chair!
