How to Design a Horror Movie Bedroom

Make your bedroom the stuff of nightmares and channel Edgar Allan Poe.

When living in your worst nightmare appeals to your insomniac fantasies, decorate your bedroom like the set of a horror film and kiss sleep goodbye. If you loved “The Shining”, replay “Psycho” until you drive away your friends, think “Friday the 13th” is the epitome of cinematic sophistication and wish you lived on "Elm Street," a little blood and gore will augment the decor nicely. Hunt for props and inspiration just before Halloween so you can create something truly horrible over a weekend, while in between endless loops of “Rocky Horror Picture Show."

Things You'll Need

• Paint
• Paint brushes
• Paint trays
• Brown-tinted glaze
• Black window shades
• Curtain rods
• Ripped black fabric
• Fake cobwebs
• “Psycho” shower curtain
• Shower curtain rod and hardware
• Screwdriver
• Movie posters
• Picture hangers
• Halloween horror masks
• Large carpet remnant
• Wide paper roll
• Pencil
• Spray paint
• Scissors
• Red fabric paint

Instructions

1. Paint the room to inspire a gothic sense of gloom. Paint one black wall behind the bed, two dark gray walls and one light wall. Color wash the painted walls with translucent glaze the color of old shellac or dried blood to “age” the walls. Flick a paint brush full of red paint against the light-colored wall to simulate a spray of blood.

2. Hang plain black shades in the windows. Install wrought iron or painted wood curtain rods over the windows and drape ratty, torn and faded black velvet or another fabric over them. Stretch Halloween cobwebs over the curtain material.

3. Remove the closet door. Install a shower curtain rod and hang a “Psycho” shower curtain in place of the door.

4. Hang framed horror movie posters on the walls.

5. Remove the shade from the bedside lamp and replace it with the metal frame of a shade. Use an old shade and remove the fabric or paper, if necessary. Hook Halloween fright masks to the front and back of the lampshade frame. The light will shine through the hollow eyes and grinning mouths.

6. Lay down on a long roll of craft paper and have a friend trace your body in the corpse pose. Cut out the tracing. Lay it over a carpet remnant and spray the edges of the form with white or luminescent paint. Trim the remnant, leaving a wide border to highlight the outline of the body on the rug.

7. Spatter red fabric paint on the bedding and dip your palm in the paint. “Stamp” bloody handprints on the sheets and pillowcases or the duvet cover.

Tips & Warnings

• Make a big "X" on your bedroom door with yellow crime scene tape to keep out uninvited guests (not that you're likely to need it).

• Resist the temptation to paint every wall black. The room will be too oppressive and dark.

References

• Apartment Therapy; 10 Scary Movies With Wicked Decor; Sarah Coffey; October 2010
• Kids Rooms and Crafts: Gothic Décor -- Enter the Dark Realm
• Uncommon Goods: Psycho Shower Curtain