If you enjoy having out-of-town guests in your New Jersey home, a guest bedroom is an absolute essential. But because the guest room is often the least-used room in the house, it can get overlooked when it comes to planning designand décor. How can you create a place guests love to stay? What makes a guest room a great guest room?

Above all, you want a room that exudes warmth, welcome, convenience and comfort. Boring beige walls and stacks of boxes don’t exactly make a guest feel at home. In fact, those things can make someone feel like they are intruding on your space.

While beige may be a bit dull, you don’t want to choose colors that are too bright or bold, either. It’s still a bedroom, and you want to create a restful, peaceful atmosphere. That’s best accomplished with more neutral colors. If you have bright accent colors in other parts of the home, it’s fine to incorporate them—but use them as accents, not as the dominant color.

You’ll also want to pay attention to lighting. Bedside lamps (on both sides of the bed) are essential. It’s important that a guest be able to turn on a light to read or to get up in the middle of the night in an unfamiliar room. There’s nothing comfortable about tripping on your way to the bathroom in the dark. In a similar manner, some kind of ambient light that can be turned on from the doorway is a nice touch. It adds warmth and allows guests to see their way as they enter a room that’s new to them.

You’ll also want to pay attention to window treatments. Your shades and curtains are more than just design elements. Some guests simply don’t sleep well if there is light coming in. Make sure your guests can adjust outside light to their own preference.

You may have regular guests for whom you want to create unique spaces. You might have parents who visit frequently, so you can create a space that caters to their particular needs and desires. Or you may have grandchildren who visit often. You can make a space that feels special to them. You can even create a room with a theme—like the music-themed room you see pictured here from one of our model homes. 

A number of the homes we build in Hillsborough and in Montgomery include guest bedrooms or have the option to add a guest room. These rooms don’t have to be generic and void of personality. With a little planning, you can turn guest rooms into comfortable, welcoming areas where visitors feel like they’re sharing your home.