Real Kids' Rooms

Real Row House Kids' Rooms

Years ago when my children were small, I focused on creating cute bedrooms but not necessarily functional ones. When my son was 5, his room was a perpetual mess. I worked and worked with him, often ending up in a tug-of-war of wills to get that room clean. We moved as he was turning 6, and “Voila!” his new room was actually tidy much of the time (within reason for a 6 year old).  Of course I patted myself on the back for what a good job I had done. Later, I realized it had little to do with my great parenting skills and more to do with creating age appropriate storage.  Quite by accident, I had fashioned a room that was charming but more importantly, was accessible and logical for my 6 year old. Of course being able to manage his room and his stuff gave him a sense of control and self confidence. All of this, in turn, made our home a little more peaceful.

It took me a while to begin to apply the lessons my own kids taught me for designing kids’ rooms.  I realized the recipe for wonderful children’s rooms is a bit of creativity mixed with developmental psychology and a large dollop of practicality.

 Row house kids' rooms are no exception but they are often more challenging because of space and storage constraints. 

A few lessons I've learned:

1) Design the room for your child not for you. If you have preschoolers or younger children get down on your knees and look at the room from their vantage point. Are things accessible? Is there room to play? Are things that appear to be fun to climb secured to the wall?

 Teenagers? Let them guide more of the process. A bedroom is incredibly important to  them - they spend most of their time in it. Their tastes may not be yours but keep your mouth shut. Much like 2 year olds they are pushing boundaries and trying to figure out who they are. Decorating their room is a safe way to do it.

2) Decide what the uses of the room will be and stick to it. Is it for sleep only? Then toys need to be stored elsewhere. Sleep, study, and play? Then make sure there are areas and storage for each of these. Studying does not necessarily mean that a room needs a desk. Some children will never utilize a desk. Ask your child and observe their habits to determine if a desk will just waste space.

3) All children's rooms need a bed, bookshelves, and storage. Everything else is optional.

4) Children should be involved in the decorating process but need a limited number of choices. If they say "I want a purple room", pick 3 colors of purple and let them choose. Remember, they don't understand that bright 'Disney purple' will be uncomfortable to live in. Children are exceptionally sensitive to color. Colors that are NOT too cold or overwhelming work best. If you have an older child you may still want to narrow the options somewhat (depending on personality) or you may want to hire a color consultant  or decorator for an hour or two to diffuse a potentially explosive situation.

The following kids' bedrooms, all in row houses, are great examples of real rooms that work. None are exceptionally large and some are, in fact, quite small. But each room is a functional space and representative of the person that resides there. 

Say "No" to White Ceilings
  Mia is 15. Her rooms' palette is soothing gray and white with a pop of raspberry overhead. The colorful ceiling takes the room from nice to memorable. This summer Mia had the wild notion to paint her bedroom door a distressed turquoise. Her parents realized doors can be repainted and gave her the go ahead. It is the perfect accent to her raspberry ceiling!

 The bed is tucked into a bay. Since there is not enough room for night stands, the radiator behind the bed is covered so she has a place for a lamp and a glass of water. 

The floors in this rooms were not in great shape. The economical solution? Porch paint. Another economical solution is the chandelier. Purchased second hand, it was spray-painted white and pink crystal strands draped upon it.

The headboard is from Ballard Designs. It is grown-up enough to travel to college with Mia.

The slipcovered Ikea chaise and chest of drawers are inexpensive furniture solutions.  Slipcovered furniture cures a lot of headaches in kids rooms - a white slipcover can be bleached. Mia created the charming mirror by gluing sand dollars to a inexpensive full length mirror. It fits perfectly between the two windows.

There is just 8" of depth behind the door, plenty of room for bookshelves.
Storage can happen in the most unlikely of places - take advantage!

Shared Room, Individual Style
 Vivian and Claire share a room. Vivian is 11. Clare is 17. Shared rooms are complicated, especially when there is a wide age gap. Even though the room they share is not large, each of their areas has it's own personality while still being cohesive.

Vivian's side. A bed with a simple covered headboard makes a nice place to sit and read. Both girls have bins that store clothes under their beds.

 Claire's side. The chair serves as a dividing line - much more civilized than caution tape.  Note the roman shades, they were fashioned from IKEA sheets and green ribbon trim - custom-on-the-cheap.

The bookshelf is tucked into a sliver of space in the corner (this space was stolen from the back of a bathroom).

Unify Furnishings With Paint
8 year old Leila has been in this room, virtually unchanged, since she was two and a half.  Proof that simple palettes often last the test of time. The room is shaped like a 'T' with the bed tucked in one side and a desk in the other, leaving play space in the middle.

 Most of this little girl's furniture belonged to her parent's when they were children, including the play kitchen. Leila's mother unified these mis-matched pieces with iridescent paint. Along with the simple handpainted wall, using the same iridescent paint, the feeling is magical.

 When Leila was younger this screen was turned with the mirror-side on the bottom so she could see herself. Remember, to look at the room from your child's perspective. Now the screen has hooks which hold jewelry and hair bows.

A vintage frame, painted with iridescent paint, surrounds a chalkboard . It is hung at a height that is easy for an 8 year old to utilize. The baby pictures are a nice touch - kids' often like to see pictures of themselves, especially when they were younger.

The shelves in Lelia's room hold not only books but baskets with clothes, making it easy for an 8 year old to find her things and put them away.

Use a Strong Color in a Small Space

It is true, Liza, 11, doesn't have to share her room - I don't think she could. Coming in at 7'5" x 9'5"  this is the smallest room featured. However, what it lacks in size it more than makes up for in personality!

The bed fits between two 6" deep bookcases, which provide much needed storage. The walls are painted Benjamin Moore's Pear Green. The green walls are balanced with lots of pink, red, navy blue and WHITE.

This room does not have an overhead light fixture. However, Liza fashioned the paper chain and made the 'fairy' in preschool; hung with the paper lantern, it is the 'centerpiece' of the room.

Towel bars don't always belong in the bathroom. This one makes an excellent headband organizer.

 Classic Furnishings are Always in Style

What says classic and personal more than a monogram? 

Both the pillow shams and matelasse coverlet are monogrammed with 13 year old Sally Harris's initials. This classic bedding looks great with the traditional furnishings. From this view you can peak into the bathroom, which is just large enough for a corner shower, vanity and toilet - all any child really needs. The blue linoleum floor is not only fun but practical. Check out the matching monogrammed shower curtain.

Even teen posters take on an air of sophistication when hung in this room. 

Aman Aine, age 10, has the pink version of her sister, Sally Harris's room but with her own twist. 

Again, monogrammed matelasse bedding with traditional furnishings - timeless.

A place for everything. Bookshelves do not have to large to be useful. 

Bows, bows, bows! A long ribbon holds all of Aman Aine's hair clips, making them easily accessible and creating a charming room accessory.

Build-in the Bed

My son, Daulton's room was redone when he was 12. There was not a lot of space for both storage and a bed. Our solution was to build the bed, bookshelf and drawers together as one unit.

Daulton's love of fantasy novels and Asian art were the jumping off points for this room's decor. 

 Since Daulton loves to sit in bed to study, we made a simple upholstered headboard. To create one yourself, check out this link for easy DIY instructions http://www.bejane.com/diy-projects/by-topic/carpentry/make-your-own-upholstered-headboard

This room is only 8'5"x10'5", so every inch of space had to be utilized. My husband built in the bed with bookshelves at the foot and large drawers underneath.  The solid wood shutters add an element of safety as well as privacy . They were cut out of cabinet grade plywood using a jigsaw. Note: the sides of the bed are actually hinged, without this feature it would be difficult to make the bed..

Much like Liza's little room this space is super cozy and comfortable. With a place for everything so that it is easy to stay organized.

A mural really personalizes the space.

Don't forget the fifth wall

These bedrooms each have their own distinctive style - like taking peek into the children's personalities. But they also offer simple decorating and storage ideas that anyone can replicate.