Creating a Restful Bedroom
Ideas, encouragement, and simple changes for the darker seasons

Oh the simple promises a new day can bring... Hello friend, "The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23 These words from Lamentations might have felt easy to believe in seasons when life felt bright. But, when you're in the grip of seasonal depression, even God's promises might feel distant. And yet, those mercies are still new every morning. Not some mornings. No

Sconces not only are beautiful, but they save space...as you can see from my own bedroom where space is a premium Hello friend, Wall mounted sconces are one of my favorite bedroom lighting options, and I think once you understand why, you will see why they deserve a place in your bedroom too. A sconce is simply a light that mounts directly to your wall. It doesn't take up floor or table space. It doesn't crowd your nightstand. It sits right there on the wall, offering light i

A room layout on paper can give you insight on where to place your furniture before you actually place it in the room. Hello friend, I'm going to ask you to do something wonderfully simple and wonderfully clarifying: sketch your room on a piece of paper. Not a perfect drawing. Not something to show anyone else. Just a rough, quick sketch that helps you see your space from above. This is one of the most useful tools I found for people rethinking their bedroom layout, especiall

How old is your mattress? And, is it still offering you a good comfortable rest? Hello friend, Your mattress is arguably the most important component of your sleep set up, and yet many of us rarely think about whether it's still actually serving us well. We sleep on the same mattress year after year, sometimes for far longer than we should, simply because replacing a mattress feels like a big, expensive undertaking. But, when you're trying to build a bedroom sanctuary that su

It takes discipline to set your phone out of reach... Hello friend, Your phone is the biggest sleep disruptor in your bedroom, and I see this not to shame you but to invite you into a different relationship with it at night. That little device carries everything; your work, your messages, your social connections, your news, your entertainment, your anxieties. When it is within arms reach of your bed, you're not just holding a phone. You're holding access to every reason your

Spring and Summer clothing swapped in place of Fall and Winter clothing Hello friend, Good day to you. Today, I want to talk about something that happens every single year, but that we often make harder than it needs to be. Seasonal clothing swaps. Right now, wherever you are, you're probably looking at a closet that's holding onto clothes from the wrong season. Maybe it's still winter where you are and your spring sandals are taking up precious real estate. Maybe summer jus

Blue light tells your brain to stay awake... Good day to you, One of the most loving things you can do for your sleep, especially during seasonal depression, is to turn off every screen in your bedroom at least 30 to 45 minutes before you intend to sleep. I know this might sound extreme. In our connected world, screens feel like companions. But, they are actually working against your ability to rest, and your brain, already overwhelmed by seasonal depression, needs you to cre

South facing bedrooms get light all day long ... the warmest light throughout the day!!! Good day to you. If your bedroom faces south, you have a gift. South facing rooms receive the warmest, most consistent natural light throughout the entire day. This isn't a small thing when you're dealing with seasonal depression. South facing bedrooms receive sunlight from morning through evening. The light is warmer, more golden, more sustaining than light from other directions. In wint

Get a load of these shoes!!! They just look fabulous on these luxurious sheets! Good day to you. I want to talk about something that I think gets overlooked sometimes: the actual texture of what's touching your skin as you try to rest. When you're dealing with seasonal depression, your nervous system is already overloaded. Everything feels sharper, more irritating, less tolerable. The last thing you need is sheets that are scratchy or pillowcases that have a texture that make

Good day to you, I want to talk about something that shows up in bedrooms more often than we might expect: exercise equipment. A treadmill. Dumbbells. A yoga mat rolled in the corner. A resistance band hanging on the wall or chin up bar hanging on the closet door entry. Maybe you placed one or more of these in your bedroom with the best intentions. Maybe you thought having it in your bedroom would make it more convenient to use. Maybe you hoped that seeing it would motivate y

Natural East facing light and a bonus of Southern exposure in the morning makes for a bright start to the day! Hello friend. There is something almost magical about how morning light moves through a room. If your bed is positioned to catch that early sun, especially if you're facing east, where the sun rises, you're giving your bedroom and your body a natural gift every single day. When you wake in a room flooded with natural light, something shifts. Light tells your brain i

Your master bedroom lighting is so very important Good day to you, I want to talk about ceiling lights and overhead fixtures, because this is where a lot of people get tripped up. When you are designing a bedroom for rest and recovery, overhead lighting plays a specific role. And, it's not the role you might think. Overhead lights are bright. They are meant to illuminate an entire room at once and they are excellent when you need that. But here's what I've learned: overhead

Where is your bed positioned in your bedroom? Good day to you, I want to ask you something that might sound odd, but I promise it matters: where is your bed right now, and why is it there? I’m not asking you to change anything yet. Not yet. For now, I’m just asking you to notice. Most of us place our bed where it “fits”. It goes against the wall that makes sense logistically. Maybe it’s where the previous resident had it, or where it fit when you first set it up, or where th

Does anyone still hang their sheets outdoors to dry? Good day to you, One of the most overlooked decisions in creating a comfortable bedroom is the material of your sheets. Most of us inherit whatever sheets we’ve always used or grab whatever is on sale at the department store. But, different fabrics feel remarkably different against your skin. And, during the months when seasonal depression makes self-care feel impossible, choosing sheets that feel right can be a small act o

The sound of rainfall... Good day to you, There's something so soothing about the sound of rainfall. It's calming. It's gentle. It settles you. It is one of the gentllest shifts you can make in your bedroom to introduce consistent, soothing background noise. This might sound counterintuitive, more noise to blackout noise? But, the right kind of sound can actually be transformative for sleep. A sound machine creates what we call "white noise"" or "pink noise". It's that stea

Small changes...big results! Good day to you, I want to share something that might seem almost too simple to matter, but I promise you, it does. It's about hangers. When seasonal depression is sitting on your shoulders, the last thing you need is to stand in front of your closet trying to decide between three different types of hangers, or squinting because everything is jumbled together. You need calm. You need clarity. You need to be able to reach for something without havi

Supportive bedtime routines can be such a gift to your well being Hello friend, One of the most gentle gifts you can give yourself during the darker months is permission to prepare your body for rest well before your head actually hits the pillow. I know how it feels when seasonal depression makes even the thought of bedtime seem overwhelming. But, what if we reframed those 30 to 45 minutes before sleep, not as another task, but as a genuine buffer between your busy day and t

There is something so uplifting about morning sunlight! Hello friend, If you are navigating seasonal depression, you probably already know that something about the changing seasons affects your mood, your energy, and your ability to rest. What you might not realize is that one of the most powerful tools you have to ease that heaviness is already there in your room, waiting for you to open a curtain or raise a blind. Natural light isn’t just nice to have. For someone experienc

The sounds of gentle rain can be so soothing... Hello friend, I want to talk with you about something that might sound simple, but can make such a difference in your bedroom: the sound of gentle noise when silence feels too heavy. If you are experiencing seasonal depression, you might notice that quiet amplifies everything. Quiet means your mind has nothing to do but wander into the dark corners of worry. Or, your mind keeps spinning out things like: what you did today, conve

Keeping your master bedroom free of "extra stuff" requires intention, but creates a room that breathes. Hello friend, I would like to invite you on a gentle walk through your bedroom with me. Not to judge, not to overwhelm you with everything that needs to change, but simply to notice what is there. Sometimes when we are in a space every day, we stop really seeing it. And, when seasonal depression has us moving slowly, our bedrooms can become catch-all spaces for everything e