Is your bedroom an inviting oasis of relaxation? Or does it look more like astorage unit, a veritable wasteland of clutter, dirty clothes, dirty dishes andkid's toys.

If your room is the latter and you're finding it increasingly more difficult tofind the bed when it's time for bed, you may want to consider giving yourbedroom a well-deserved makeover.

With just a few changes, some hard decision making and some tough love, you cantransform you bedroom into everything you ever dreamed it should be. And it?seasier than you think.

Start with the basics

First, your bedroom is not a storage facility. If things in the room do notcontribute to relaxation, enhance the beauty, add space or provide someentertainment, get rid of it. Pack it up, move it to another room or put it inthe garage or trash. If you like to watch a little television before calling ita night, consider getting an armoire to hide it away when it's not in use. Ifyou're an avid reader, make sure your nightstands have a drawer so you can putyour book or magazine away, along with your glasses. If you love the latestfashions, add more dressers, wardrobes and a closet organizer to the room. Finally,get a hamper for the dirty clothes so you're not tempted to leave them whereverthey fall. As they say, "A place for everything, and everything in itsplace."


Add furniture to the mix

Now that your room is clear of clutter, it's time to add beauty and charm tothe space. Start by looking at your furnishings. Do they have the same style orat least complement one another? Are there pieces that should be moved out tomake way for others? Does the style of your furniture match your tastes? Forexample, if you have a love of modern or contemporary furnishings, why do youcontinue to hold on to that monster of an oak four-poster? Creating a cohesiveor at least complementary look is essential to promoting relaxation and a soundsleep. As you review your bedroom's needs, consider the space you have to workwith as well. If you are in desperate need of another dresser, do you reallyneed the California King or can you do with a instead? This isnot the time to be in denial. Once a piece of furniture is purchased, it tendsto stay with you for a long time, so you want to choose carefully anddeliberately. Nothing is more maddening than creating a bedroom retreat wherethe furniture is so big you can't make it to the bathroom without stubbing atoe or cracking an elbow.

Think of your future storage needs

The old adage; "stuff expands to fill the space available" iscertainly true in the bedroom. Fashions change seasonally, and what's hot nowmay not be next year. So clothing and footwear seems to multiply as the yearspass, even though storage remains the same. Here's a couple ways to gain spacein your bedroom without knocking out a wall or doing a major remodel. First, choose that offersmaximum storage. A platform bed with space or drawers underneath provides asurprising amount of additional storage without adding to the overall furniturefootprint. The same is true with dressers. A nightstand with drawers is abetter choice than one with a single open shelf. Several highboys take up thesame space as a low dresser, but offer two to three times the space. The sameis true of a lingerie chest. A shoulder height lingerie chest offers morestorage than a Queen Anne dresser for your unmentionables. When you?reevaluating the space you need to store your clothing, don't ever think you haveenough. It's far better to have a few nearly empty drawers for a few years thanto have drawers so tightly packed that you have to struggle to get them open inthe morning. Nothing puts the damper on a day than getting a black eye from abra strap that got caught on the back of an overstuffed drawer.

Don't go it alone ? ask an expert

A well-designed bedroom doesn't happen by accident. If you're not comfortablewith doing it yourself, there are lots of good resources out there. TheInternet has sites devoted entirely to the subject of interior and bedroomdesign. Another good source is a reputable furniture retailer. Because theydeal with design, style and fashion at every turn, these experts can help youcreate a bedroom that meets your needs perfectly. They can also provide youwith good advice about colors, materials and fabrics so you can mix and matchwith ease and confidence.