9 things making a guest bedroom less cosy and how to remedy them

With Christmas on the horizon, attention turns to sprucing up the guest bedroom ready for family and friends to stay in comfort. While your spare room might currently be working as a home office, gym (or let's face it, a dumping ground for things that need to be wrapped, hung or posted for Christmas!), now is the time to get it looking it's best again.

But if you're worried about things making a guest bedroom less cosy, you're not alone. With the chillier weather and darker evenings, we all want our bedrooms to be warm and inviting, especially when guests come to stay.

So if you're looking for guest bedroom ideas that will guarantee your visitors leave you a 5 star review, look no further than our round up of things making a guest bedroom less cosy and how you can fix them.

1. A lack of warm lighting

One of the first things making a guest bedroom less cosy could be a lack of the right lighting to create that all important cosy and cocooning vibe. So knowing how to add warm lighting to a bedroom will ensure your guests feel comfortable from the moment they step in the room.

Bethan John, Co-Founder of The British Blanket Company explains, 'Lighting is a key factor that can easily make or break the cosy vibe of a guest bedroom. Bright, overhead lights or bulbs with a cool tone can make a room feel more sterile than serene, taking away from the calm, restful atmosphere you’re trying to create.'

'Try swapping out harsh overhead lights for warm-toned lamps or bedside lights with dimmer controls. This creates a soft, ambient glow—perfect for unwinding at the end of the day. With the right lighting and a cosy blanket (or two), you’ll have a bedroom that invites you to relax and wrap yourself in comfort.'

Elaine Harris, Interior Stylist and Art Director adds, 'If your bedroom lighting is too cold, your guests could feel that way too. If you have an overhead light, install a dimmer switch, but also provide one or two bedside or wall lamps. I would always suggest warm white bulbs in each case too.'

2. Nowhere for guests to sit

Another one of the things making a guest bedroom less cosy, could be that there's nowhere to snuggle up and sit comfortably apart from the bed.

Elaine suggests 'A comfy armchair or, if you have the space, a small sofa, looks lovely and inviting, and can be used for your guests to relax on. Adding one or two scatter cushions will help to introduce pattern and pops of colour to the room (plus any cushions or throws from the bed could be placed on here during the night, rather than being thrown on the floor!)'

'You could also add a little side table, large enough for a coffee cup and a reading lamp.'

To make sure your guests don't feel they have to use an armchair for putting their case on, make sure there is a dedicated space for that too.

'If room allows, a vintage or upholstered bench or luggage rack at the end of the bed can be useful for cases, and decorative too,' explains Elaine. 'I would keep this ‘undressed’ so that your guest doesn’t have to move a lot of things to use it or worry about knocking things off.'

3. Not providing the right bedding

The best duvets and pillows are essential to ensure your guests feel warm and toasty at night, and getting this wrong, could be one of the things making a guest bedroom less cosy.

Dr. Lindsay Browning, Psychologist and Sleep Ambassador at And So To Bed explains, ‘Without suitable bedding, your guests might worry about getting a good night’s sleep in your guest bedroom. To ensure that they do, it’s a great idea to layer your bedding with light blankets and a breathable duvet to allow guests to adjust the warmth levels to their preference.’

‘Naturally, your guests may feel hesitant to ask for extra items they might need to establish a calming sleep environment. Therefore, you could consider preping the room with sleep-friendly items such an eye mask, ear plugs, a lavender pillow spray or scented candles that might make them feel more relaxed and comfortable.’

'Different sleeping positions require different levels of pillow support. Offering a choice to your guests minimises discomfort and is beneficial to ensuring they have a proper night's sleep. Furnishing your guest bedroom with the best pillow options (one thicker and one thinner, including a hypoallergenic option) gives your guests a choice of pillow that best suits them.'

4. Dressing the bed with tired bed linen

Although it might be tempting to recycle old bed linen relegated from your own bedroom, this could be another one of things making a guest bedroom less cosy.

Elaine suggests, 'Use quality bedding in your guest bedroom such as cotton or linen. I prefer to use white, and find 100% linen works for me as it always looks good, no matter how ‘crumpled’ it is. Again, colour can be introduced on decorative cushions (though not too many!) and a cosy throw or a blanket at the foot of the bed can add colour and texture as well as extra warmth if needed.'

But using crisp white sheets, doesn't mean the room has to look bland. A considered space will ensure a cosier room, as Elaine goes on to explain.

'Keeping the bedlinen plain allows for pattern to be introduced on cushions, lampshades, a bed throw or even an upholstered chair. Start with a colour palette in mind and carry this through both the pattern and plains used. Bold patterns can work in the same space as smaller scale prints and weaves when they share the same hues, but to ensure that things don’t look too busy, balance these with ‘solid’ colour. Stick to calmer earthy, or neutral tones.'

5. Forgetting to add blankets

It might seem like an obvious one, but not adding soft blankets and throws can definitely contribute to things making a guest bedroom less cosy.

'A bedroom should feel like a cosy retreat, but sometimes it can feel stark if it’s missing those soft, inviting touches that bring warmth to the space,' explains Bethan.

'For instance, a bare, undressed bed without accessories can look and feel uninviting, especially during the colder winter months. Wool blankets are brilliant for adding natural texture and comforting warmth and, without one, a bed can feel chilly and uninviting.'

'Adding a woven wool or brushed cotton blanket is one of the easiest ways to transform the space. Whether it’s draped over the end of your bed, tossed over an armchair, or wrapped around you as you lose yourself in a good book, it’s that extra layer of softness that makes all the difference. Plus, with so many beautiful shades to choose from, blankets can instantly add warm tones of colour too, making your guest bedroom feel extra snug for those frosty evenings.'

6. Not warming up floors with a rug

A great way to ensure your guest bedroom feels cosy from the ground up, is by investing in bedroom rug ideas.

Charlotte Ford, Europe Senior Marketing Director at Ruggable says 'A lack of different textures, textiles and soft furnishings in a guest bedroom can definitely make it feel less cosy and put together, so don’t be afraid to layer rugs on the floor.'

'Ruggable’s tufted, shaggy and flatwoven textures can provide a range of depths and textures under foot, especially when layered together. Guest bedrooms tend to be cooler as they aren’t used as often, but not including rugs may mean you miss out on added insulation. Like carpet, rugs reduce heat loss and create a warmer atmosphere especially in comparison to hard floors such as wood.'

'To make sure you’re not losing out on that cosy feel, especially in the winter months, you can incorporate seasonal colours and patterns to warm up your space even if it’s feeling chilly outside. Ruggable has rugs for all the seasons and even for seasonal moments such as Halloween and Christmas.'

Elaine adds, 'While bare floorboards look great in a guest bedroom, they are not particularly cosy. I would suggest a large low-medium pile area rug to run underneath the bed and extend at least 60 cm or so from the sides and base. This could be placed a little in front of the bedside tables, rather than against the back wall and will really help to make your guest bedroom feel cosy.'

7. Neglecting the best window treatments

Next up on a our round up for things making a guest bedroom less cosy, is not getting the window dressings right. From curtains to blinds the best bedroom window treatment ideas are integral to creating a cosy sleep space.

'Blinds are great in a guest room, but to soften the window and make it the room appear cosier, I would suggest the additional use of floor to ceiling curtains,' suggests Elaine. 'These could be simple voiles, dress curtains, or full width, black out curtains and could be used with venetian, roman or roller blinds.'

The wrong window dressings could be one of things making your home feel less cosy in all spaces, so where you can, opt for thermal or blackout with your curtains and blinds.

8. There's too much clutter

As we mentioned before, for most of the year, you might be using your guest room as a bit of a dumping ground. But there are things you should never store in a guest room so it's worth sorting out the junk and clutter way before you have guests due to visit, as it certainly won't be making the room feel cosy.

But it's not just the general clutter you should address, as 'bits and bobs' and keepsakes can also contribute to the room looking less cosy and more messy.

Elaine suggests, 'While you'll want to create a stylish space for guests, rather than over propping your bedside table, you should keep it simple. A small bowl or dish, a carafe and glass for water, and perhaps a small studio pottery vase with some simple stems, (real rather than plastic), a scented candle or diffuser is all you should be placing here.'

'If your bedside table has an open shelf, you could add a small stack of coffee table books or magazines. Less is more here, and a few carefully placed, interesting pieces work well, rather than hoards of things.'

9. Missing personal touches

Finally, in contrary to our last point, a room with NO personal touches can also result in things making a guest bedroom less cosy.

You want to strike a balance between a room too full of 'stuff' and a room devoid of any personality. If you don't want to keep anything too precious in your guest bedroom, find things that might not be personal to you, but still have personality.

'Trawl vintage fairs or car boot fairs for one off interesting pictures and accessories that will give your room extra character,' suggests Elaine. 'Vintage is so much more interesting than ‘off the shelf’ pieces. Scouring magazine features or Pinterest to get ideas about how to make your room look calm and inviting is a good starting point. Select artworks that sit well with your colour scheme rather than dominate it.'

So with our round up complete, hopefully you're now clued up on how to make your guest bedroom suitably cosy and ready for visitors this winter.