Master Bedroom's Yin and Yang

A master bedroom is shared by a wife and a husband, the yin and the yang. Designing a room with a feminine and a masculine appeal is a challenge. However, rather than conflict, the two aesthetics can counterbalance leading to a more interesting interior.

Marcus and Anna's master bedroom is a prime example of how combining old and new, rounded and angular, dark and light, soft and hard results in a captivating retreat for both genders.

Anna's knack for combining opposites is obvious in their bedroom.  The two largest pieces of furniture--a contemporary a light-colored, fabric-backed square headboard on an angular bed-frame juxtaposes a mellow antique, dark-wood corner cupboard.

The cupboard holds pocketbooks and shoes.

The bed wall reveals several other contrasts.  Dark plays off light. Two black-lacquered, antique Asian bedside tables stand next to the bed which is dressed in a soft, down-filled white duvet and coverlet. Bed pillows repeat the contrast. Moreover, angular geometric pictures framed in dull industrial-metal contrast with curvy, shiny lamp bases.

Across the room, a contemporary chevron-patterned, bone mirror-frame leans against the wall above an antique dresser. Further, a vintage fan is balanced by modern bottles.

On the dresser, Anna layers a piece of dark slate beneath a shiny white-lacquered tray.  Atop the tray sits a smooth, white porcelain leaf next to a gray, knobby snail designed by Jonathan Adler.  What a fascinating vignette.

Finally, a dormer nook reveals gray linen Roman shades with a shiny metallic brocade motif and an antique chair topped with a contemporary pillow.

In a room as in marriage, the differences between women and men can create a dynamic whole.  Rather than conflict, the balanced opposites compliment each other.

Scripture sums it up, "Then the Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make a helper fit for him...So the Lord...made a woman and brought her to the man...Therefore, a man shall...hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh" (Genesis 2:18, 22, 24).

Wouldn't you agree that Anna and Marcus' master bedroom illustrates the greater whole created by complimentary opposites?