BEDSIDE STORIES

Sometimes a bedside table isn’t a table at all – sometimes it’s a wall shelf or headboard ledge

Text and styling Amber Armitage Photography Wendy Fenwick Styling assistant Natalie Sievers

WAVE THEORY Wall in Resene Anglaise. Mural in Resene Didgeridoo and Resene Fuel Yellow. Final Form (yellow) artwork by Henrietta Harris, $1500, from Melanie Roger Gallery. Ercol Rimini bedside cabinet, $795; Sto Copenhagen Model S22 candle holder, $85; Gemini candles, $20 each; and Architectmade Finn Juhi bowl, $475; all from Good Form. Home Body book, $28.99; Miso Beauty pillowcase, $99 each; and linen pillowslips, $69 (pair); all from Penney + Bennett. Vase painted in Resene Didgeridoo. Cultiver linen duvet cover set, $449, from Father Rabbit. Round cushion, $54.90, and Lazo wool boucle cushion cover, $109, both from Citta. Mulberi Meru hides in cassia bark and biscotti, $265 each, from Furtex. Jigsaw ottoman set, $795, from Contempa.

Take some creative license with what is and isn’t a bedside table. If it’s beside your bed and functions as a stand, then it is a bedside table. Here are three different ideas and styles to get you thinking about that small space beside your bed. Going retro Retro ’70s style is back and this bold colour palette (previous page) could be just the thing you need to add a sense of optimism and adventure to your bedroom. Start by painting a wavey mural on the walls, then repeat the wave theme with interlocking curved ottomans. To balance out all the curves, stick to traditional bedside drawers, plus you get points for extra storage.

Compact spaces and minimalist style

Just because a bedroom is small doesn’t mean you need to cut back on style. Try a paint-split wall with a darker shade on the bottom to make the room look wider. We colour-matched our Made of Tomorrow wall-hung bedside shelves with the panelled wall colour Resene Navigate (right) for seamless integration. Keeping things clean and uncluttered will also make the space feel larger. Add personality with great artwork and patterned pillowslips.

Style tip If you are short on space try a wall-hung shelf as your bedside table paired with wall lights to keep available floor space to a maximum.

SPLIT THE DIFFERENCE Wall in Resene Flotsam. Wall panelling painted in Resene Navigate. VV Cinquanta wall lamps, $895, from Good Form. Henrietta Harris artwork Untitled 2020, $3000, from Melanie Roger Gallery. Fold wall-hung bedside table, $99, from Made of Tomorrow. Karlsson alarm clock, $59; Sans (ceuticals) Barrier Restore body + hand butter, $58; and Nevis throw, $229; all from Father Rabbit. Selma chair, $295 from Cintesi. Milk and Honey, $29.95; and Moonlists, $30, books; moonstone pillowcases, $155; linen pillowslips, $69 (pair); and linen duvet, $279; all from Penney + Bennett.

Bring the outdoors in For a bold and colourful bedroom, start with a wallpaper that’s caught your eye, then pull colours from it and repeat throughout the room. This bold botanical wallpaper was the jumping off point here. The ledge headboard was painted in Resene Arthouse and the upcycled bedside table had two coats of Resene Palm Green. These block colours provide a barrier between the patterned paper and the mix and match bedding, so the look is cohesive rather than overwhelming.

LIFE ON THE LEDGE Wall in Resene Wallpaper Collection TP80810. Ledge headboard painted in Resene Arthouse. The Words Are Not In Their Proper Place artwork by Michael Greaves, $2000, from Melanie Roger Gallery. Ecoya Maple Madison candle, $52.95. Zaha Hadid Design Braid wide vase, $695, and Warm Nordic Ambience table lamp, $595, both from Good Form. Sove linen pillowcases in miso and iced tea, $79.95, and washed velvet quilted throw in kale, $179, all from Citta. Linen duvet in zinc, $279, from Penney + Bennett. Mulberi Serenade throw in shiraz, $75, and Mulberi Glenorchy Silver Birch rug, $1370, from Furtex. La Tribe sheepy slippers in tobacco, $119.90, from Father Rabbit.

Style tip A ledge headboard is a great way to add a block colour, plus you get the added benefit of it doubling as a shelf.