Our bedrooms are our own private sanctuaries away from the stresses of the world, so it’s only natural to want to relax in a fresh, carefree and inviting space. And this is where modern coastal styling comes in.
Inspired by the organic colours and textures of nature, modern coastal décor typically includes neutral walls, light woods, woven accents, simple textiles, shades of blue and subtle nods to the seaside.
Done well, modern coastal design provides a space that feels so much like the beach that you don’t need the décor to spell it out. By keeping things minimal and pared-back, it offers a sense of serenity.
So, if you want a room that’s perfect for chilling out every day of the year, look no further. We’ve collated some of the very best modern coastal bedroom ideas for you to create your own dreamy space. Enjoy!
1. Keep It Fresh
You can almost feel the cooling sea breeze in this bright and fresh bedroom. By using a simplistic white palette with a few hints of beige, the room is a light and airy space. The white shiplap cladding adds subtle texture behind the bed, while Capiz shell lampshades nod to the coastal theme.
Keep your modern coastal room fresh with all-white walls. Opt for sheer, white curtains to make the most of the light and create a relaxed feel. Introduce a handful of neutral accents to ensure a natural coastal theme.
2. Use Organic Materials
The trick to nailing modern coastal design down is to recreate the feeling of the beach – without being overly beachy. With a simple, neutral pallet and mixed materials, this beautiful coastal bedroom is a fresh and inviting retreat.
Introducing organic materials is a brilliant way to subtly bring the seaside into your space. Opt for relaxed fabrics like cotton and linen, and accessorise with woven baskets and a jute rug.
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3. Soften Your Colour Palette
Curate a space that’s both coastal and modern by choosing a simple colour pallet for your bedroom. Classic coastal décor typically features bold hues, but modern interiors need a more minimalist approach.
Of course, you can still add colour to a neutral scheme, but keep it soft and subtle like these pastel blue accents. This will ensure you have a sleek and contemporary design.
4. Paint Your Floorboards
Looking to create a light and bright modern coastal bedroom? Don’t forget about your flooring!
Painting your floorboards white is a fantastic way to give your room the relaxed, coastal treatment and add extra light to your space, too. Complement your hardwood floor with a natural jute rug to complete the look.
5. Hang Beaded Lights
This light and bright room uses a neutral pallet and a mix of textures to create a dreamy seaside space.
Beaded lights are a great way to give your bedroom a relaxed coastal twist. Opt for a feature beaded chandelier in the centre of your room to make a cool statement. Complement it with some woven planters and accessories to enhance the beachy vibes.
6. Cover Your Wall With Shiplap
Shiplap cladding provides the perfect base for curating your dream coastal bedroom. Simplistic yet stylish, white shiplap cladding can create a fresh and airy feel that’s perfect for relaxing.
Paint your room white and add one wall of white shiplap cladding on your headboard wall to create texture and visual interest. Add a pop of blue through your soft furnishings, but keep your accessories to a minimum to ensure you’ve got that modern coastal aesthetic.
7. Decorate With Pampas Grass
Fluffy pampas stems are a natural addition to any coastal space. But remember, modern coastal design embraces minimalism and shuns clutter, so think carefully about where to put it and how to balance it with your other accessories.
Try placing one large vase or basket of pampas grass in a corner of your bedroom, or add a small white vase of pampas on your dressing table. These dried palm leaves make a great partner to pampas too, evoking memories of beach holidays.
8. Add Aqua Accents
Although neutral colour palettes are perfect for this trend, a pop of colour can work wonders, too. Adding a refreshing accent colour like aqua will bring your modern coastal bedroom to life.
This gorgeous space uses aqua to complement white and grey, with a colour block behind the bed and a woven throw. Paint just part of your walls or add aqua through a couple of accessories for a colour pop that will make an impact without overpowering your space.
9. Opt For Classic Blue and White
A classic palette of blue and white is guaranteed to make your space feel coastal. Keep your colour scheme tight for maximum effect – think white walls and bedlinen, with pops of blue in your cushions, throws or lighting. Perfect the modern coastal look with minimalist décor, but add some carefully-chosen accents to make your space more dynamic.
10. Modern Monochrome
Love the coast, but blue and white décor doesn’t float your boat? The beauty of modern coastal design is that you’re not bound to the traditional nautical palette.
If you’re looking to give your bedroom a contemporary makeover, choose a simple monochrome scheme and use natural materials to soften the edge. Try a rattan bed and pale wooden furniture for warmth and contrast.
11. Dress Your Windows With Shutters
Shutters offer a stylish and practical way to dress your windows – and they’re the perfect finishing touch to a modern coastal bedroom. They offer privacy and filter light while giving a slick, contemporary look reminiscent of the beach.
Opt for full-height shutters for maximum light control in your space. Choose white for a versatile style that will stand the test of time – whatever colour you paint your walls in future.
12. Create a Soothing Space With Green
Create a soothing space by including green tones in your bedroom. Because it’s commonly found in nature, green is an excellent colour choice for modern coastal design – and it works incredibly well with white and blue tones, too.
Paint your walls a deep green-blue and complement them with white bedding for a fresh feel. Add navy blue accents to create depth and contrast.
13. Bring Drama With Blue Cladding
A splash of deep blue can add drama to modern coastal bedrooms. This striking space changes up the traditional white shiplap cladding for a rich blue, creating a sense of luxury. It’s complemented by pale wood accents and white bedlinen, which offer contrast.
Give coastal design a contemporary twist with navy shiplap cladding on one wall. Complement your feature wall with cool white or pale grey on your other walls to reflect light.
14. Add a Striped Throw
One of the simplest ways to change the look of your bedroom is with textiles. But to achieve that modern coastal style you don’t want to overdo the pattern in your space.
Choose minimalist white bedsheets and add a simple striped throw for an instant coastal vibe. And you needn’t stick to blue and white – muted grey stripes or sleek monochrome will still provide that beachy twist.
15. Choose Your Kitsch Carefully
While modern coastal design favours minimalism, there is still room for a little kitsch even in the sleekest of spaces. Classic coastal décor has bags of personality and fun, and you can still incorporate it into your space thoughtfully.
For instance, this playful, nautical-themed wallpaper has a simple pattern – and pairing it with natural accents and white bedding helps ensure the look isn’t too busy. Pick your statements carefully and limit your accessories to pull the look off.
16. Layer Shades Of Blue
Layer shades of blue for a relaxed coastal space. This beautiful room pairs pale blue walls with deep blue bedding, and grey and neutral tones to create a soft and inviting aesthetic. By limiting the amount of pattern used, it ensures a fresh and modern finish.
Use a range of shades from navy to pale blue in your bedroom. Balance the cool tones with neutral flooring and natural accessories to bring warmth.
17. Add a Half-Wall Of Panelling
Add colour and texture to your coastal retreat with a half-wall of panelling. This beautiful space uses a calming mid-blue to make an elegant feature, while the white upper walls and crisp white bedlinen ensure a fresh vibe.
Get the look by installing a simple half-wall of panelling on your main bedroom wall. Opt for a mid or deep blue or green shade to create depth and contrast beside white. Create a soft finish with pale grey accessories and light wood furniture.
18. Paint Your Walls Navy
Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ll know that navy is having a huge moment in interiors right now. Painting your walls navy is a great way to embrace the trend and nail down that modern coastal theme.
Navy can be treated as a neutral, so it’s perfect for creating a calming, contemporary space. Pair your navy walls with a pale grey bed, white bedlinen and pale furniture to create contrast.
Perfect the coastal look by dressing your bed with a striped throw or cushions.
19. Choose a Blue Accent Chair
Add a pop of blue to a white room to create a fresh and modern coastal feel. Keep the look simple by choosing one or two accents – such as a blue chair and a runner for your bed.
Opt for a rich, deep teal to contrast against crisp white walls and give your space a luxurious vibe.
20. Hang Abstract Coastal Art
It might be tempting to decorate your space with beachy photographs and paintings of boats. But when crafting a modern coastal interior, you might want something a little more abstract.
Nod to the ocean without being so literal – for example with an abstract piece of art that brings in blue and green hues. The art in this room evokes images of crashing waves, without being overtly beachy.
21. Get the Look With Light Wood
Many coastal homes are lined with wood – but to achieve that sleek, modern look, you should opt for paler woods wherever possible.
Paint your wood white or opt for light wood furniture to ensure your space is bright and light-filled. Enhance the airy feel with fresh, white bedding and floaty curtains.
22. Dress Your Shelves With Subtle Accessories
We’ve all seen classic coastal spaces with large shells, glass buoys and starfish adorning the shelves – but to perfect the modern coastal look, you’ll want something more subtle and minimalist.
Feature some less obvious decorative accessories to complement the coastal theme. Think seagrass or glass beads. These subtle dried plants and jars of shells evoke imagery of the sea without cluttering the space or feeling too kitschy.
23. Bring In Texture
Like the seaside itself, modern coastal interiors are full of texture. Classic accents like jute rugs, woven pieces, seagrasses and shells all nod to the natural environment.
Bring some of these elements into your bedroom and you’ll have a cosy coastal space. This statement macrame wall hanging is perfect for this room, creating contrast against the inky, textured wallpaper.
24. Opt For a Rattan Bed
Investing in a new bed for your bedroom revamp? Consider a stylish rattan bed frame. The organic material makes it perfect for a coastal theme – plus, the natural tones will add a hint of warmth to a cool interior.
A rattan bed balances the pale blue hues of the walls in this modern bedroom, while textured, striped bedding enhances the relaxed coastal feel. Complement your new bed with pale wood bedside cabinets and light walls.
25. Brighten Your Space With Pastels
Want to brighten your space but crave colour too? Try incorporating a pastel palette into your modern coastal scheme.
This beautiful bedroom uses a base of pale grey on the walls, but brings in pastel blue and pink through the furnishings and accessories, resulting in a light and uplifting feel.
26. Make Your Bed The Focal Point
This gorgeous blue velvet bedframe exudes luxury. Paired with coastal accents, it creates a calming and stylish space.
Create a striking focal point in your bedroom by choosing a blue bed. Dress it with neutral fabrics and paint your walls white for contrast. Bring in subtle coastal touches to complete the look – such as a vase of pampas grass or striped cushions.
27. Choose Sheer Curtains
Sheer white curtains are fabulous for creating a light and airy vibe that’s perfect for modern coastal spaces. They offer privacy as well as gently filtering light, ensuring your space feels bright throughout the day.
Keep your walls and bedding white and hang sheer, floaty curtains at your bedroom window for a feeling so fresh you’ll think you’re on a seaside holiday.
28. Use Layers in a Neutral Space
Worried neutral interiors could be a little bland? Think again – here, clever layering ensures this neutral space is anything but flat.
The use of different fabrics adds depth, texture and visual interest. Meanwhile, the creamy beige and cooler grey tones create harmony and bring the coastal palette to life.
Create a dreamy coastal bedroom by layering different textures – think linen and cotton sheets, woven accents and dried grasses.
Keep your colour palette simple to ensure a modern finish – look for neutrals that evoke shades found in nature, like sandy light browns, soft whites and black.
29. Make the Most of the View
There’s nothing quite like kicking back and gazing out to sea after a busy day. And if you’re lucky enough to have an amazing sea view from your bedroom, make sure to put it on full display.
Keep your colour palette simple so as not to detract from the outside views. This will help create a sense of calm, too.
Then, position your furniture to get the most from your space – for instance, make sure nothing is obstructing your line of sight to the window from your bedroom chair or bed.
30. Choose a Blue and Grey Scheme
Blue and grey are some of the most popular colours in interiors right now – and fortunately for you, they suit coastal style down to the ground, too. If you want to get in on the trend, layer different shades of blue and grey fabrics using your bed and furniture.
This contemporary space matches white-painted brick walls with layers of grey and blue and subtle stripes to create a fresh feel. Light wood elements add a hint of warmth and provide contrast next to the cool tones.
31. Add Pops Of Complimentary Colour
While modern coastal design favours white and neutral décor, your space can still enjoy a bright pop of colour. This contemporary bedroom uses complementary colours sparingly, ensuring the look stays modern and fresh rather than garish.
Add a hint of orange to your white and blue bedroom to bring your interior to life. Consider small touches in a table lamp or a throw to complement the cooler tones.
32. Include Some Distressed Wood
White linens and natural wood tones work together with organic one-of-a-kind pieces to create this elegant coastal classic. The distressed wood furniture works beautifully with the neutral palette, enhancing the relaxed beachy vibes.
While distressed wood is perfect for coastal spaces, use it sparingly to keep the look sleek and modern. Perhaps opt for one or two key pieces – like side cabinets or a wooden-framed mirror.
33. Consider Pink Tones
Don’t feel bound to using exclusively cool tones in your space. Dusky pinks can be right at home in modern coastal design, evoking images of sunset skies and offering a touch of warmth.
Throw a soft pink blanket on your bed or dress it up with a couple of dusky pink cushions. You could even look for abstract artwork with a hint of pink to introduce the hue to your space.
What is Modern Coastal Style?
Modern coastal style is a fresh, simplified update on traditional coastal décor. It’s a fusion of minimalist, modern design and seaside charm.
Favouring neutrals and subtle textures, it evokes the feelings of that beachy lifestyle without the obvious kitsch of surfboards, boats and fish.
How Can I Decorate My Bedroom With Coastal?
Your colour palette should feature plenty of white and sandy neutrals, as well as shades of blue, green and even soft pinks. Bring in natural materials with woven furniture, linens, rugs and organic accessories like seagrasses and pampas.
The trick is not to overdo it – keep pattern and accessories to a minimum to really nail that modern coastal look.
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