Zen Bedroom on a Budget

If there is only one room in your entire home that makes you feel at peace, it should be your bedroom. Our lives can be full of stress, but our bedrooms should be a tranquil place to escape to in order to get the rest we need. This is what creating a Zen style bedroom is all about. Taking the relaxing ideals of Zen and turning it into a beautiful space for sleep and relaxation. We believe it should not cost a fortune to design your dream bedroom, which is why we are sharing our tips on how to create a Zen style bedroom on a budget.

What Is Zen?

Technically Zen is a school of Buddhism that originated in China. However, in Western cultures it has been boiled down to slang for feeling peaceful and relaxed.

For the purposes of this bedroom design, we are going to focus on extrapolating the Zen Buddhist ideals that focus on using meditation, in order to focus the mind in order to create a sense of balance and peace.

While we are taking inspiration from Zen and Chinese culture, we are in no way sticking to tradition. For our purposes in creating a peaceful bedroom design, it will be more of take on the westernized view of what Zen means.

Have you heard of the term Hygge? Check out our post: Create A Hygge Feeling in Your Bedroom

Make Your Bedroom Feng Shui Friendly:

Feng Shui also originated in China. It is very prevalent in Chinese homes and traditions. Feng Shui is all about the flow of energy through a space. This can dictate furniture placement, excluding items like mirrors or particularly sharp-edged furniture, as well as the direction you face.

While there is a lot of history behind Feng Shui, you do not need to be well versed to feel the difference between a room with great Feng Shui compared to one with poor Feng Shui. So much of the purpose of Feng Shui comes down to creating a space that feels good to be in.

Click the link to learn more about the art of Feng Shui and how you can use it in your bedroom design here: A Guide to Bedroom Feng Shui

Less is More:

When you are creating an intentionally Zen feeling peaceful environment, it is a great idea to cut down on clutter and ornamentation. Try to combat the urge to over decorate. Too much decoration can be overwhelming to the eye and add too much distraction and just feel like clutter.

This is also a tip for saving money. Instead of filling your bedroom from top to bottom with knickknacks, try to be more intentional with the items you add into your room. This will save you money, time, and energy when decorating. Less items that you love, vs filling your room with pieces you don’t even enjoy.

Get our tips on how to get the most out of your minimalist bedroom in our post: How To Maximize Your Minimalist Bedroom

Avoid Designer Brands:

When you are shopping for furniture, art, and decorative pieces try to avoid designer brands and high-end shops. While these places have beautiful inspirational bedroom designs and items, they are often incredibly expensive.

When you are designing your Zen bedroom on a budget, you are going to want to take inspiration from these designer brands, and try to replicate it elsewhere. By avoiding shopping in these places you will be able to save yourself a lot of money.

How To Create a Zen Style Bedroom

The following are a few of the key elements that we see in most Zen style bedrooms. These are great features to add into your bedroom in order to make it feel like the calm Zen bedroom of your dreams.

Add Touches of Nature

Organic textures and shapes can add a lot of peaceful interest into your bedroom. Houseplants can also be a great addition into your bedroom.

Low Profile Furniture

Instead of grand large pieces of furniture that are stately and project wealth. Pick out simple pieces of furniture that are lower to the ground. This projects more of a literal and metaphoric feeling of being grounded and centered.

Balance

While your room does not need to be completely symmetrical on each side, having a sense of balance is a great way to creative a sense of tranquility within a space.

 Minimalist Décor

As we mentioned previously, less is more in a Zen style room. Keep the décor to a minimum in order to keep your room feeling peaceful and not crowded or cluttered.

Curved Shapes

Sharp angles are believed to create harsh directions of energy within a room. Meanwhile curved pieces of furniture and décor is supposed to create a more peaceful environment. Which is exactly what you want when creating a Zen bedroom.

Natural Color Palette:

Try to avoid highly pigmented colors as they are too energizing for a bedroom designed to create a sense of relaxation.

Click the link to learn what the Best Bedroom Colors for Sleep are.

Best Bedroom Plants

Bamboo – Grows so well indoors and freshens the air

Orchids – Stunning flowers and need minimal water

Peace Lily – Could practically grow in a closet, great for rooms with little light

Lavender – Peaceful and relaxing scent

Learn more about houseplants that make great additions to your bedroom in our post: Bedroom Plants & Flowers

Designer Zen Bedroom:

The following is our Zen Bedroom inspiration using many designer brands in order to achieve a gorgeous modern Zen room with no mind to sticking to a budget. Next up we will attempt to recreate this look except as a budget friendly version.

1. Late 19th Century Circular Shelf – $1,800 – Click To Shop Chairish
2. Waterdrop Table Lamp, Blush – $129 (x2) – Click To Shop Pottery Barn
3. Anaise Cane Nightstand – $500 (x2) – Click To Shop Crate & Barrel
4. Artificial Bamboo Tree – $330 – Click To Shop Birch Lane
5. Ivonne Beaded Chandelier – $400 – Click To Shop Ethan Allen
6. Anaise Cane Queen Bed – $1,800 – Click To Shop Crate & Barrel
7. Sunny Handwoven Basket Wall Art – $379 – Click To Shop Pottery Barn
8. Chillum Metal Flower Tabletop Fountain – $63 – Click To Shop Wayfair

 

Zen Bedroom on a Budget:

The following is our attempt to recreate the designer bedroom into a budget friendly option. We found many similar pieces that are all less expensive. You could also choose to shop resale or garage sales to find even further discounted pieces. Click the link and search the item name to buy now.

1. Dundas Indoor Mango Wood Handcrafted Circular Shelf – $270 – Overstock
2. 510 Pink Table Lamp Set – $99 – Overstock
3. Safavieh Devon Coastal Nightstand – $250 (x2) – Overstock
4. Small Bamboo Plant – $25 – Amazon – Bamboo
5. Wood Bead Globe Chandelier – $208 – Overstock
6. Halcyon Cane Queen Headboard – $225 – Overstock
7. Decorative Beige and White Round Wicker Wall Decor – $206 – Overstock
8. Lotus Indoor Fountain – $40 – Amazon – Fountain

Zen Bedroom Design – Final Thoughts:

We hope this example of comparing a designer vs budget friendly zen bedroom design helps to show you that you can recreate just about any bedroom style while sticking to a smaller budget. We want to remind you that redecorating a room is always best done in smaller pieces in order to spread out the cost and find the best deals possible. Creating a Zen inspired bedroom is more than just an aesthetic, it is all about making your bedroom feel like a peaceful escape where you can rest and recover from the day.

If you have any questions, feel free to send us a message. We would love to help out in any way we can.