~ Tips on How to Get a Good Night’s Sleep Based on Your Light Preferences ~

With the current state of the economy, a good night’s rest to help neutralize stress and reenergize for the coming day is more important than ever . According to Karl Lohnes, interior designer, TV host and style editor at Style at Home magazine, each of us falls into one of two categories when it comes to sleep habits. The first type is categorized as a “Cave Person” and consists of those who need window fashions that make the room pitch black in the morning. The second type – a “Cloud Person” – is someone who needs light to come through in the morning in order to wake up.

“Most people think the look they’ve chosen for the entire house has to flow to the bedroom,” said Lohnes. “This is not the case. The bedroom is a private room and it is a matter of how you function in the room and, particularly, how you like to get up in the morning.”
Lohnes offers the following tips on how to decorate your bedroom in order to get a good night’s sleep based on your light preferences:

• The most important thing to consider when decorating the bedroom is that you need something on those windows. If you are a “Cave Person,” the best window fashions are those that block out light so that you are not woken up and agitated by it. Products such as Duette® Architella® honeycomb shades in an opaque fabric from Hunter Douglas, the nation’s leading manufacturer of custom window fashions, feature a patented honeycomb-within-a-honeycomb design that significantly reduces heat transfer at the window and serves as an excellent light-blocking tool. They also deliver deep, rich color saturation, especially in the opaque fabric because of their unique construction. In addition, they absorb up to 50 percent of reflected sound to ensure a restful night’s sleep.

• If you are a “Cloud Person,” you need something that will let light filter through and allow you to wake up to light coming into the room. Silhouette® window shadings from Hunter Douglas feature soft fabric vanes suspended between two sheer fabric facings. With the vanes opened, light enters yet is diffused through the sheers to soften it and allow you to wake to soothing and less jarring light Additionally, these shadings absorb up to 30 percent of reflected sound.

• When decorating other elements of the room, if you are a “Cave Person,” you should use rich paint colors, deeper-toned bedding and dark-stained furniture to create a more intimate space. Two fabulous colorways like chocolate brown and blue are an ideal combination for the base colors. The brown can set the tone of the room while the lighter blue can serve as a striking contrast. Go darker on the walls and add accessories with darker accents. Examples include a prominent lamp with a tan shade and a black base, throw pillows in dark blue, gold and black and an accent rug with black trim and muted colors in the center.

• If you are a “Cloud person,” use light, reflective colors, wood tones and artwork to keep the bedroom bright and airy. Accent the room with bright and airy accessories, including a lamp with a white or cream shade and a golden base, a vivid turquoise throw pillow and a rug with warm colors surrounded by cream trim.

“The bedroom is the only room in the house that you can decorate for your personal needs,” said Lohnes. “It’s a private space that should cater to your decorating preferences in order to allow a great night’s sleep.”
Using these tips, a good night’s rest is just a blink away.

Hunter Douglas Inc. is a national sponsor of Habitat for Humanity, covering windows in every Habitat home built in the U.S. and Canada. Headquartered in Upper Saddle River N.J., the company is the leading manufacturer of custom window coverings in North America.

For more information, contact Hunter Douglas at 1-800-274-2985 or visit: www.hunterdouglas.com.