Decor ideas for east and west facing rooms

East and west facing rooms have natural light come through at different times of the day and can therefore be quite tricky to get right. An east facing room gets the sunlight in the morning, which is then gone by the afternoon, whereas a west facing room receives no sun in the morning but does in the evening. 

As with north and south facing rooms, it's always best to order samples to test out on every wall of your room before going ahead, however there are a few things to consider before you do order samples.

First of all it's important to think about when you'll use a room the most. For example, if your bedroom is most used in the mornings and faces west, then you'll want to keep it bright and light in terms of decor as the morning is when a west facing room gets the least amount of light. For both aspects, you'll want to choose a colour that works both with lots of light when the sun is shining through the windows, and with little light when the sun has gone off. 

East facing
An east facing room will get lots of soft and clean light from the early morning sun, but you'll also find shadows will start to cast as the sun rises. Morning sunlight is slightly warm but as the day goes on and it starts to get brighter, it can lighten colours even further. For this reason it's best to avoid bright whites as they'll become too bright and washed out by the rising sun. As the sun starts to go off the room, they'll also start to feel quite cold and harsh. Instead, opt for colours with less grey in them; something that won't be washed out or become cold in the fading light. Greens with a yellow base can warm the room up versus blues which can become too cold. If you're going neutral, opt for one that's more on the pink than grey side and if you want bold, then there's nothing really stopping you!

West facing
West facing rooms are the very last to get the sun, and when they do, it's just as it's setting. This means that for the majority of the day, a west facing room can look quite shaded and more grey toned than a north, south or east facing room. When it's finally lit up however, it receives a really nice warm and subdued light, similar to that of a south facing room. Again it's key to consider when you use the room the most to figure out what shades will work best for you. Warm shades like pinks and reds will bring a feeling of warmth in the morning but become even warmer in the evening (and if rich colours are what you're after then, bingo!), whereas cool colours will balance the warmth out in the afternoon sun.

Really, there's no right or wrong when it comes to choosing colours for an east or west facing room, it's more about the timing and when you'll most use the room. If you're still stuck however, here are a few dream schemes to choose from.

Image features Oasis Natural Mural, 003 Pink Cloud and 002 Magnolia

Image features Crane Bird Rose Pink/Cream wallpaper, 003 Pink Cloud and 014 Moorland

Image features Broadhead Forest Lichen Green, 009 Bracken and 005 Hare