As a child, home decor and styling were always a love of mine. I have vivid memories of how I fantasized about having my bedroom redecorated from top to bottom. This will date me, but I remember watching an episode of Full House where Stephanie and Michelle got a bedroom makeover from an interior designer. I remember being so excited to see the reveal.
To this day, I love decorating children's rooms. It's a passion that begins and ends with the child's vision, interests and personality. If you're thinking of decorating your child's room, here are a few tips:
Let the child drive the vision: Ask the child what their vision is and involve them in the process. Some kids want a bright, funky, eclectic room, whereas others want something more neutral and soothing. I let the child tell me what they want, and then I execute on their vision and pull it all together.
Find inspiration: Once you have a general understanding of your child's vision, for example, colour scheme, style, etc., start looking for inspiration for the room. You may find inspiration from a large object, like a headboard that becomes the focal point for the room or from a small accessory, like a lamp that becomes the basis for your design. When I decorated my daughter's room, I knew she wanted lots of colour and whimsy, so I found three different options for wallpaper, and I let her choose which one she liked best, and then I designed the room around this particular wallpaper.
Create a vision board: Once you have found your starting point, finding items that align with your inspiration will become easier. And creating a vision board will keep you on track.
Make it easily changeable: It is always good to remember that kids' needs and wants change as they grow, so it's important to design a room you can easily edit. Decorative items like removable peel and stick wallpaper or wall decals are a great way to add a little boldness to a room, and you can easily remove them as the child matures and grows into a preteen/teen. Here is a link for peel and stick wallpaper that's easy to put up and remove and won’t damage your walls.
https://roommatesdecor.com/collections/peel-and-stick-wallpaper?usf_sort=bestselling
Incorporate storage, storage and more storage: When designing the function of a kids bedroom, ensure there is lots of storage, and preferably storage that is hidden, like in closets or storage bins with lids. Kids tend to have a lot of clutter, so storing it away, out of sight, will help the room feel tidy and organized.
Light it up: Extra lighting is huge with kids right now. Add anything from a funky lamp to a protection light or LED/fairy lights. Right now, fairy lights or LED lights are super trendy with children/teenagers, and they also create much-needed reassurance to kids who may be afraid of the dark or need some extra comfort at night. I used fairy lights for my daughters' rooms. They're easy on the eyes as you can barely see them in the daylight, whereas LED lights are brighter during the day and end up being more of an eyesore than anything.
Now it's time to pull it all together:
First off, you will need to determine your focal point. The focal point is basically an area that your eye is drawn to when you enter a room. This could be anything from a large window or something you created with an oversized mirror, piece of art or large headboard.
If you're stuck, don't panic; refer back to your inspiration piece. This will help you stay on course. Ask yourself, "Does this align with my inspiration piece?" If you're spinning your wheels, walk away and come back to the room once you've cleared your mind.
If you're not sure if the room is coming together the way you hoped it would, take a picture of it; take lots of pictures, then sit back and look at the room from an objective lens. Sometimes it just takes moving a floor lamp or the art on the wall for you to feel like you've nailed it.
If you need more advice, let us know. We’re happy to help.
