With their colorful palettes and joyful energy, is there anything more fun to decorate than a kid’s room? We think not! Yet striking a balance between design and function in a kid’s room can be tough. From creating a room that will evolve gracefully with your little one to finding a place to store those toys, there’s a lot to consider.
So how does one go about styling a kid’s room the right way? We’ve rounded up some rooms that’ve nailed fun and function to get you inspired.
Use What You’ve Got
As much as we love a done-to-the-nines kid’s room, complete with a dynamite theme, there’s something equally charming about an informal and eclectic kid’s room like the one above. When you think about it, your little person won’t be little forever, so there shouldn’t be any pressure to invest in big ticket items like toddler-sized nightstands and armoires. Instead, rummage around your basement or attic for ideas. A rustic steamer trunk makes an inspired toy chest, while a vintage detergent bag makes an impressive hamper. Splurge on one large-scale item—like a vintage kilim rug—to give the room visual cohesion.
Balance Adorable & Durable
The best kids rooms are built to withstand virtually anything—from art sessions gone rogue to crushed crumbs and juice spills—but don’t look like it all. The key is mixing in pieces that are deceptively durable like thick pile rugs, printed fabrics (which’ll hide dirt), and hardy wood furniture. Remember: family heirlooms are heirlooms for a reason (they have longevity), so consider factoring yours into your little one’s room. Keep it feeling kid-appropriate by displaying stuffed animals and posters, which will add a youthful note to any room that may be skewing a bit heavily towards old-fashioned-feeling.
Leave Room to Grow
As the parent of any toddler knows, kids develop opinions quickly—and never look back. Which is why you might consider creating an environment that your child can treat like a canvas, and personalize as they grow. If you’re thinking of handing the reigns over to your offspring, keep walls and furnishings basic (like white-on-white-basic), and from there, let your child personalize through bedding, wall art, and toys that double as decorative accessories. While you might fear that the room will collapse into disarray, your strong foundational pieces will keep everything looking polished. And as the room above proves: elaborate architectural details like crown molding and chevron wood floors, don’t hurt one bit either.
Make it Versatile
Whether you need your child’s room to accommodate active play on account of a minuscule backyard, or you have two kids shacking up as roomies, versatility is almost always an imperative part of a kid’s room equation. To get the most out of your space, consider bunk beds. Even if you don’t have two bunkers, the top bunk can serve as a hideaway for reading or other quiet activities, nixing the need for a chair and doubling a room’s square footage (how’s that for a win?). Other ways to maximize your space include wall sconces (no need for floor lamps) or a chalkboard, which in addition to giving your kiddo a creative outlet, can stand in for traditional artwork.
Add in Some “Grown Up”
If you desire a room that will take your child from tot to tween (and—fingers crossed—maybe even beyond), try factoring some sophisticated touches, be it a chandelier, bergère, or a Kilim rug you’d use in your own room in a heartbeat. Grown up pieces like a Parisian-style dresser or a pair of classic dressing chairs can seem an odd choice at first, but as the room above proves, both look adorable in a little girl’s room and will transition beautifully into a teenager’s. To keep a child’s room from skewing too mature, try tempering things with a monochromatic palette in traditional kid color, like lilac, pink, or, yes, an all-out-get-out floral print.
Lead image by Jacob Snavely. Courtesy of Chango & Co.
