How to make your bed look more expensive - design experts on elevating your home to feel so much more plush

We all love our downtime, and there's no place better than the bed. Sprucing up this furniture and making it look expensive and luxurious will not only uplift the aesthetics of your room but also offer you the deepest, most peaceful sleep. Whether that includes investing in the fluffiest pillows, adding a statement headboard, or even carefully designing the area around it – all these factors can contribute to the bed of your dreams. 

To help you with this, we spoke to top designers in the field who offered unique bedroom ideas to help the bed look like a million bucks. Take a look and get designing.

1. Consider a unique shape for the bed

While dressing the bed with lots of pillows and fabrics will give it a plush look, what will make it truly the centerpiece of the room (and even the whole house), is its shape. A great staple of a modern bedroom is bespoke furniture – one specially made to order, perfectly suited to the owner's taste and the room's look. Consider a shape that cuts the straight, crisp lines of the room and stands out.

'I wanted to make a statement bed, but not with color and texture of the fabric, but with its shape,' says Tim Veresnovsky, founder of Veresnovsky Design Studio. 'That's how the idea of a triangle came about. The bed itself is finished with artificial leather, to match the walls, to make it merge with the background. But thanks to its bright shape, it is an accent piece in the bedroom.'

2. Choose luxe ceiling lights to illuminate the bed 

Bedroom lighting can take your space from boring to beautiful in no time. You'll be surprised at how versatile this decor element can be. 

To give the bed and the room a truly one-of-a-kind look, consider a constellation light look, that completely takes over the fifth wall, throwing an even distribution of warm illumination over the bed. This will have a big impact on the look and feel of the space, while also decorating the ceiling; an oft-ignored surface in the bedroom. Choose warm yellow bulbs that look like art pieces dotting the area above, and make sure the lights are connected to a dimmer, so you can brighten and dull them, as the day progresses. 

3. Cocoon the bed with long curtains

Canopy beds have an inherent charm – not only do they look luxe, but also give the bed a lovely, cocooning look. Plus, they can give it a four-poster feel but with a softer aesthetic. Consider hanging long, soft fabrics on either side of the bed, like in this project by Nainoa, and create the most tranquil setting in the room.

'Luxury is all about being understatedly glam with expensive-looking materials and elements,' says Athina Bluff, founder, and designer for Topology. 'Although undoubtedly wooden beds can be luxurious (think a four-poster or ornate French style headboard) we think upholstered beds are consistently more luxurious in tone. They allow you to play with texture in the space, which means you have the opportunity to have something a little bit imposing which, to us, is all about how you create that feeling of 'luxury'.

4. Design a built-in bed within a niche

If you have the budget and are interested in giving your master bedroom a complete overhaul, then consider adding a niche to hide your bed. Even a built-in bed within an alcove will help create a super smart, unique space that looks and feels refined, private, and enveloping. Add a window by the bedside and you have the ideal sleeping, reading, and relaxing space – multipurpose yet reflective of luxury. 

'This aesthetic appealed to us – boho-luxe minimalism paired with practical (but streamlined) storage space to retain the clean lines,' says Emma Wilson, owner of Castles in the Sand. 'Creating bespoke beds (and other furniture) that seamlessly form part of the home’s interior architecture is more readily accessible in Morocco, and gives a space a luxe feel. Additionally, it was a practical design-led solution – furniture stores were not widely available in Morocco when we were renovating so we had to create furniture that worked and looked in keeping with our design style.' 

5. Elevate the area behind the bed with texture

Nothing says boring like plain white walls and white bedding. But nothing adds a touch of high-end sophistication better than textured walls and bed fabrics from the best brands in the world. Limewash walls, suede or velvet headboards, high thread count sheets, and more contribute heavily to a luxury bedroom aesthetic. 

'The client for this project dreamt of a colorful, visually interesting family home, a triplex on New York City's Upper West Side,' says Brook Quach, design director and senior associate at Workshop APD. 'In the primary bedroom, we pulled in a shimmery, deep navy Pierre Frey textile for the custom headboard and frame, paired with a creamy Venetian plaster wall to elevate the room with texture. Hanging pendant lights from Future Perfect allowed the custom side tables to reserve surface area for necessities, but they also draw the eye upward, adding height to balance out the low bed.'

6. Go for a unique headboard

Headboards are the crowning glory of a bed and can transform a bedroom. There's much more to them than being those padded boards behind your bed. These can help inject color, texture, or style into a room. And in this bedroom designed by Truss Interiors, the headboard also adds height and a 'wow' factor to the interior.

'The platform bed we chose was white oak, so we decided to put similar white oak planks varying in widths from the floor up, culminating in a dramatic sunburst style treatment on the ceiling,' says Julee Wray of Truss Interiors. 'Applying the planks to the ceiling gave the illusion of great room height, while simultaneously giving that huge wow-factor impact.' 

'To get the effect of a luxurious bed, we believe it's all down to the plushness of the fabric used to upholster it combined with the height of the headboard itself,' says Athina. 'Having a headboard that's tall in height adds instant drama, and shouts 'boutique hotel' or 'grandiose'. That apart, we think a fluted velvet headboard with a ribbed-esq design is a great way of creating a bedroom that feels expensive.'