Guide · from Tide

Too much light? How to make your bedroom properly dark

Early sunrises, streetlights and standby LEDs: cheap ways to get a truly dark bedroom.

Light tells your brain it's time to be awake. In an Australian summer the sun can be up before 6, and a gap in the curtains is enough to wake you.

Fix the window

Blackout curtains help, but light leaks around the edges. Stick-on blackout blinds cut to the glass are cheap, renter-friendly and close to total darkness.

Stick-on blackout blindsCut to fit, no drilling, peel off when you move.

Kill the little lights

Chargers, TVs and smoke-alarm LEDs add up. Electrical tape or small LED-dimming stickers sort them out in five minutes.

Or just cover your eyes

A good eye mask is the cheapest fix of all. Contoured masks sit off your eyelids, so there's no pressure and they're comfortable all night.

Contoured blackout eye maskNo pressure on the eyes, blocks light fully.

Sunrise alarm clockKeep the room dark all night, then wake to slowly brightening light.

Some links on this page are affiliate links: Slow Tide may earn a commission if you buy, at no extra cost to you. These are comfort products, not medical treatments. If poor sleep or pain is ongoing, talk to your GP.