Kids’ Rooms
Planning
Involve your child in the decision making. Talk about colours, themes, bedding, a good space for study and homework, lighting, etc. Find good solutions that work for you both.
Essentials for children’s rooms:
Personality
One of the most important aspects of designing a child’s room is expressing their personality. Be careful though – kids grow quickly and a dinosaur or fairy princess theme could be out of date quicker than you think! Instead try hanging their snowboard on the wall, or some of their favourite art – you can update these things as they grow.
Colour
Don’t limit yourself to “kids’ colours” or materials. Accents of what you have in the rest of your home can work well and still provide enough contrast to make their room an individual space.
Furniture
Invest in quality pieces. Well constructed beds, desks and drawers etc will last for years and cost less in the long run.
Storage
Kids always need a lot of storage space for toys. If possible find space in another room for some of their toys and perhaps keep a pull-out box under their beds with toys they specifically like to play with in their rooms.
Get clothes under control
Start by spending time with your child and getting them to try on all of their clothes. Children grow fast and you may be surprised by how many outgrown clothes are still cluttering up their drawers and wardrobe. Be ruthless. There’s no use hanging on to a jacket your son’s worn twice or an expensive dress your daughter was saving for special occasions if they don’t fit. They will never fit them again, so package them up and give them to a relative, friend or to charity.
Put other clothes together in an order that works for your child so they can select their own clothes and make a ‘to buy’ list so you know exactly what they need next time you go shopping.
Sorting toys
Children’s rooms can be overtaken by toys in next to no time. Involve your children and make piles of toys that are broken, those that they have outgrown, ones they love and want to keep forever, and of course current toys. Once you’ve evaluated how much is to stay think about how you can store it. Perhaps put some in a box in the garage. Try putting a basic set of drawers in the closet for games, dolls or hobby equipment. Label storage boxes so that when your child cleans up they know what to put in each box.
Give the outgrown toys away to charity, explaining to your child that another child is sure to get pleasure from them.
No matter how old we are, we all need a little space to call our own. It’s just as important for kids to have a room that’s comfortable and makes them feel good as it is for adults. Here are some tips on making your children’s rooms places they love to be in.
