The Magnificent Bed: A Personal Expression of Luxury and Comfort
Share
It is often the case that when coming home after a long day’s work we tend to bypass every room and head straight for the bedchamber, that intimate niche that greets us with the warmth and comfort we yearn to nest in. Though, we often take for granted the comforts of our modern day resting place, it may serve well to acknowledge the evolution of the bed through history from a mere stone slab overlaid with leaves, hay, and animal skins in 10,000 B.C. to magnificent examples of affluence, status and power, embellished with high decoration. Over time, social hierarchies direct our inspiration to imbue the resting pad with our own sense of magnificence and importance.
Historian Lucy Worsely’s in-depth look at British royal dynasties suggests that magnificent royal beds reflected the power of the monarch and that their decoration expressed the rise and fall of the monarchy itself. “Royal Beds are supposed to be incredibly sumptuous and true royals can tell if they are not.” My own quest for sumptuous beds brought me to design gurus Rio Hamilton and Nitza Shawriyeh for their personal vision of luxury and comfort.
“I dream in silk. My bedroom chamber has always been a precious and sacred part of my home. I have designed the aesthetic around my bedroom with an ethereal and cloud-like feeling particularly while laying in bed. My Savoir mattress is layered with cashmere and down. The smooth off-white pinnacle Frette sheets are so soft. I’ve always enjoyed layers of white and cream in my bedroom. After a colorful day of strategizing for design brands – it’s nice to have a bedroom recipe that guarantees me a good night sleep.” – Rio Hamilton
“I feel no matter what’s going on in your life your bed should represent and show calmness and comfort! So a bed should be pretty, organized and most of all extremely comfortable!
Sheets should be of the best quality you can afford. I prefer an Egyptian cotton percale.
Depending on the budget these are the brands I like to use: Casa del Bianco, Matouk, Sferra and Williams Sonoma Home also has a nice Egyptian cotton percale. At least 300 count but as long as it’s a good quality Egyptian cotton, thread count above 300-400 doesn’t matter as much.”- Nitza Shawriyeh
Following Rio and Nitza’s lead, you too can create your own version of a magnificent bedchamber.
Nitza Shawriyeh Design & Decoration Facebook and Instagram: @Nitza_Shawriyeh_Design