The guest bedroom should have a comfortable bed, adequate storage space for guests’ clothes, and additional storage for spill-over items and out-of-season clothing from the family bedrooms. In addition, bedside storage and a reading light will help to create a comfortable environment for your guests.

Always place some drinking water and a couple of books or magazines there to help your guests relax if they are having trouble sleeping in a strange bed. Small details, such as a box of paper tissues, a stack of clean towels and a small vase of flowers also add a welcoming touch that will be much appreciated by your guests.

Make-over tips

Your approach to decorating the guest bedroom will probably be more cost-conscious than when decorating family members rooms. For example, if you buy new furniture for the main bedroom, you may wish to move existing items into the guest room. You could also use the guest room as an opportunity to show off your decorative paint technique skills by giving old pieces of furniture a new lease of life with a few painterly flourishes – at least you will not have to look at them every day if the finished effect is not exactly what you had hoped for!

Color choice

The guest room should be as warm and inviting as possible. Avoid using patterns that are overpowering or garish, and opt for fresh color combinations in natural colorways. A room that receives very little, if any, natural light will benefit from a bright and uplifting color, such as yellow. In north-lacing bedrooms especially, yellow provides the perfect background for many patterns and fabrics.

Cool blues and aquamarines should, on the whole, be used only in warm and sunny rooms, as cool colors can make a cold room appear even colder. Warm, soft colors such as peach and apricot, on the oilier hand, will help to warm up cold rooms.

Multi-functional guest rooms

In many homes, the guest bedroom also has to act as a home office, or a playroom and study area for the children. In such a multifunctional room, the positioning of the bed is very important. Rather than having a double bed, choose a single bed with an additional mattress housed under its frame to free up as much floor space as possible.

It is also a good idea to position a single bed lengthways against the wall and cover it with a generous collection of cushions to create a seating area. This will look much more in keeping with a home office or children’s study area than a made-up bed.

Many home office furniture manufacturers are now producing pulldown beds that are housed in cupboards when not in use. This is an excellent, albeit expensive, option. Alternatively, choose a sofa bed. Although sofa beds are rarely as comfortable as a traditional sofa, and therefore not suitable for the main living area, they are perfect for a study or spare bedroom, hi a modern setting, a futon sofa bed may be a good solution.