9 Ideas for Guest Bedrooms from 2019’s Houzz Tours
Here’s how to make your visitors welcome and give them a comfortable stay in your spare room
Want to make your guests feel at home (and, of course, a little bit awed by your incredibly stylish facilities)? Let the designers behind these spare bedrooms inspire you to create a home from home for visitors – and one that also works with the rest of your house.
Include mini-break-suitable storage
In a small room, you won’t always be able to pack in lots of hanging or cupboard space, but for guests, you don’t necessarily need to.
This colourful bedroom, designed by Alison Johnson of Otta Design for her own home, is used frequently by her parents. “It’s a small room, so we didn’t put in a wardrobe,” she says. “There are peg rails on one wall instead, plus a chest of drawers.” There’s also an ottoman at the end of the bed for linen.
Tour the rest of the designer’s semi-detached Edwardian home.
In a small room, you won’t always be able to pack in lots of hanging or cupboard space, but for guests, you don’t necessarily need to.
This colourful bedroom, designed by Alison Johnson of Otta Design for her own home, is used frequently by her parents. “It’s a small room, so we didn’t put in a wardrobe,” she says. “There are peg rails on one wall instead, plus a chest of drawers.” There’s also an ottoman at the end of the bed for linen.
Tour the rest of the designer’s semi-detached Edwardian home.
Squeeze in an en suite
If you’re converting a loft, it may be that you’re making a comfortable space for regular visitors, such as parents or even occasional paying guests. If this is the case, adding an en suite will give everyone a bit more privacy.
It’s not always obvious how to make room for a little bathroom, though, so it can really pay to ask a designer or architect to configure the floorspace to make the most of what’s available.
In this design by Laurence Katz of Elemental Studio, a bank of cupboards, which could be used for general household storage, perhaps with just one section kept free for your visitors, has been given a creative and dramatic additional purpose…
If you’re converting a loft, it may be that you’re making a comfortable space for regular visitors, such as parents or even occasional paying guests. If this is the case, adding an en suite will give everyone a bit more privacy.
It’s not always obvious how to make room for a little bathroom, though, so it can really pay to ask a designer or architect to configure the floorspace to make the most of what’s available.
In this design by Laurence Katz of Elemental Studio, a bank of cupboards, which could be used for general household storage, perhaps with just one section kept free for your visitors, has been given a creative and dramatic additional purpose…
…it also conceals a Narnia-style entry to a petite en suite.
Read more about how this was achieved and tour the rest of the house.
Read more about how this was achieved and tour the rest of the house.
Slot in comfy seating
If you have the space, a seating area is a luxurious touch in a guest room. When you’re staying with other people, it’s good to have somewhere to hang out away from the madding crowd, especially if it’s a big family get-together.
Could you squeeze in two small armchairs? In this 1920s family home in Kent, designed by Phoebe Oldrey of Smartstyle Interiors, a pair has been added to create a little spot for two, perhaps for a quiet drink together before dinner.
Want to see more? Tour the whole house.
If you have the space, a seating area is a luxurious touch in a guest room. When you’re staying with other people, it’s good to have somewhere to hang out away from the madding crowd, especially if it’s a big family get-together.
Could you squeeze in two small armchairs? In this 1920s family home in Kent, designed by Phoebe Oldrey of Smartstyle Interiors, a pair has been added to create a little spot for two, perhaps for a quiet drink together before dinner.
Want to see more? Tour the whole house.
Double up
Hands up who has a guest room that’s mainly used as a study? Here’s some inspiration from Natalia Rusak of Hampstead Design Hub about making that set-up work.
She designed a workstation that packs in drawers, units and wardrobe space, which means workers and guests alike have space for their things. For efficient storage, it can be a worthwhile investment to go bespoke, so you get maximum use from your room.
Browse cabinet-makers in your area in the Houzz Professionals Directory.
Hands up who has a guest room that’s mainly used as a study? Here’s some inspiration from Natalia Rusak of Hampstead Design Hub about making that set-up work.
She designed a workstation that packs in drawers, units and wardrobe space, which means workers and guests alike have space for their things. For efficient storage, it can be a worthwhile investment to go bespoke, so you get maximum use from your room.
Browse cabinet-makers in your area in the Houzz Professionals Directory.
Here’s the other side of the same room: choosing a beautiful (but, importantly, comfortable) sofa-bed, rather than a permanent bed for your study will ensure the room looks suited to its purpose, rather than a bedroom you’re camping out in with your laptop.
With set-up like this, make sure you include a small table that can hold everything a guest might need overnight.
See how this Victorian house looked before it was renovated.
With set-up like this, make sure you include a small table that can hold everything a guest might need overnight.
See how this Victorian house looked before it was renovated.
Make use of a blanket box
The humble blanket box is an incredibly useful piece of furniture for a spare room – especially a small one.
In this two-bedroom Georgian townhouse in Edinburgh, designer Lally Walford of Lally Walford Interiors, made use of a wooden box with the perfect proportions to fit inside the shallow window alcove.
It’s not only handy for stashing spare room bedding and guest essentials, it’s also a spot from which visitors can enjoy the view. It’s worth having a box made to fit if it’s going in a tight spot.
Check out the rest of this Scottish home.
The humble blanket box is an incredibly useful piece of furniture for a spare room – especially a small one.
In this two-bedroom Georgian townhouse in Edinburgh, designer Lally Walford of Lally Walford Interiors, made use of a wooden box with the perfect proportions to fit inside the shallow window alcove.
It’s not only handy for stashing spare room bedding and guest essentials, it’s also a spot from which visitors can enjoy the view. It’s worth having a box made to fit if it’s going in a tight spot.
Check out the rest of this Scottish home.
Boost the sense of space
Designer Eva Byrne of Houseology is skilled at making small spaces work beautifully. Here, she turned this tiny guest room in a 1970s flat in Dublin’s city centre into an inviting – and almost spacious – spot.
The bed packs generous storage into its base, and a floor lamp provides atmospheric extra lighting without the need for a surface for it to sit on. A glass side table works for bedside paraphernalia, and the whole room is decorated in white or off-white, meaning no lines to visually cut up the space.
See all of Eva’s clever space-saving tricks for this flat.
Designer Eva Byrne of Houseology is skilled at making small spaces work beautifully. Here, she turned this tiny guest room in a 1970s flat in Dublin’s city centre into an inviting – and almost spacious – spot.
The bed packs generous storage into its base, and a floor lamp provides atmospheric extra lighting without the need for a surface for it to sit on. A glass side table works for bedside paraphernalia, and the whole room is decorated in white or off-white, meaning no lines to visually cut up the space.
See all of Eva’s clever space-saving tricks for this flat.
Complement the view
When designer Nick Scott of WN Interiors renovated this two-bedroom Bournemouth new-build flat, his first focus was on what was outside its windows. “The flat has great views with lots of trees, and we wanted to reflect that nature,” he says (click through to the link in the next caption to see what he means). “So the décor isn’t shiny or glossy at all; it’s pared-back, with natural materials and plenty of textures.”
In the guest room, the bed is dressed with different shades of grey across varied textiles, including soft, tactile blankets. “I was trying to keep it really calm,” he says, “so I used a very light, muted colour palette, and not too many materials.”
Read about the surprising ways an interior designer could help you.
When designer Nick Scott of WN Interiors renovated this two-bedroom Bournemouth new-build flat, his first focus was on what was outside its windows. “The flat has great views with lots of trees, and we wanted to reflect that nature,” he says (click through to the link in the next caption to see what he means). “So the décor isn’t shiny or glossy at all; it’s pared-back, with natural materials and plenty of textures.”
In the guest room, the bed is dressed with different shades of grey across varied textiles, including soft, tactile blankets. “I was trying to keep it really calm,” he says, “so I used a very light, muted colour palette, and not too many materials.”
Read about the surprising ways an interior designer could help you.
A rattan headboard adds warmth and character, but feels lighter than a solid timber piece would and helps to keep this relatively small room feeling airy.
Note, too, the use of Venetian blinds set into the window recess, rather than curtains that would impinge on the room – another trick that boosts the sense of space.
See the whole flat here.
Note, too, the use of Venetian blinds set into the window recess, rather than curtains that would impinge on the room – another trick that boosts the sense of space.
See the whole flat here.
Add atmosphere with lighting
Make the most of any unusual angles in a loft bedroom by having LED recessed lighting designed in. After dark, it’ll cast a warm glow wherever it’s fitted (be sure to avoid cool white, which could be too harsh for a sleep environment), creating a lovely atmosphere for guests after dark.
LED lighting is energy-efficient, too – and it had to be here, as this room is on the top floor of perhaps the UK’s only Victorian Passive House-standard home, in Manchester, designed by Ecospheric.
The home was ingeniously retrofitted – read more about how.
Tell us…
What would your dream guest room look like? Share your ideas in the Comments section.
Make the most of any unusual angles in a loft bedroom by having LED recessed lighting designed in. After dark, it’ll cast a warm glow wherever it’s fitted (be sure to avoid cool white, which could be too harsh for a sleep environment), creating a lovely atmosphere for guests after dark.
LED lighting is energy-efficient, too – and it had to be here, as this room is on the top floor of perhaps the UK’s only Victorian Passive House-standard home, in Manchester, designed by Ecospheric.
The home was ingeniously retrofitted – read more about how.
Tell us…
What would your dream guest room look like? Share your ideas in the Comments section.
“It’s reasonably sophisticated, with the furniture the main interest,” says designer Caroline Nicholls of Slightly Quirky of this spare room in an Edwardian home in Surrey. “We wanted it to feel like a contemporary, grown-up room.”
But it’s not only the soft grey walls and richly toned wood pieces that make this room so appealing, it’s that wonderfully white bedding. Yes, it’s a classic, but one that’s hard to beat. Choose natural fabrics for a luxurious, hotel-like welcome for your guests – and a washed linen or waffle texture if you’re not keen on ironing.
Check out the rest of this home.