• Determine a simple theme. The possibilities are endless but choose something calming and inspirational. This is their place for growth and rest. Resist the obvious and be creative. A few ideas:
- A page from a children's book.
- Nature – trees, grass, flowers or bugs, water, etc.
- Shapes – circles, hearts, stars, blocks, triangles.
- Something that inspires you like the seashore, a merry-go-round, the stars, etc.
• Create a color scheme to fit your theme - beyond pink for girls and blue for boys.
• For basic furniture pick items which suit your storage needs and size. This isn't the time for pint sized chests of drawers, they aren't dressing on their own yet. Include a comfortable chair for you (recover it later or for another room) for nursing and bedtime stories.
• Keep it simple. As this is an important time in childhood development, do not over accessorize. It doesn’t matter how cute it is or how much you love it. Don't keep buying stuff and putting it in the room or on the walls. Just like in an adult room (it may be more important here) the eye needs a place to rest so leave open areas on the floors and walls were nothing is going on. Picture the softness and simplicity of a spa.
• Paint the room with a low VOC (volatile organic compound) paint. Don't waste your money now on cutesy wallpaper, you will be changing it too soon. Oh yeah, wallpaper borders are sooo yesterday so don't bother with them either. Paint is just fine.
Ages four through nine – your interests matter less
• Introduce your child's personality into the room by creating a new theme based on their interests, but with your guidance. Unless you want to re-do the room again in a two years do not follow a media based (cartoon, movie, TV show, computer game, etc.) theme. If they like a certain character create a theme based on colors from that show but no plastering the walls and bedding with a character.
• IKEA and Pottery Barn Kids are your friends. Pottery Barn Teen also has useful things. These are great places to purchase kid friendly furniture with growable options. IKEA has fun pieces (turquoise armoires or lime green chairs) which are inexpensive, it is okay to buy them knowing they are only going to work for five years. Please don't buy a set or suite of any furniture unless you are trying to inspire your child to have no personality and not be adaptable!
• Let your child have some influence. It will be a guaranteed failure if you start with "what color do you want to paint your room?" Instead let them select paint colors from a group of colors you've chosen based on the theme. You both win.
• Caution: no matter how much a child likes red it should not be a wall color for their bedroom unless you want to encourage restless sleep and hyperactivity.
• This can be the time to introduce a wallcovering if it is a pattern you can live with for a few years. Wallcovering is easy to change. You can do the whole room or just a feature wall behind the bed.
• Select a carpet or area rug with the same timetable in mind.
• Storage – introduce shelving and cubbies. EVERYTHING has a place to get put away by a pint-sized inhabitant. Introduce the idea that nothing new comes in unless two old things go out. This is the stages habits take hold. Give your children the gift of a clutter-free life.
• Accessories. Less is better, for everyone on many levels. With proper storage and display (shelves) you can feature a few key toy items and put the rest away. Too much to look at makes it hard to focus. This can result in a low attention span.
• Now is a great time to turn one wall into a chalkboard (special paint is available just for this), a bulletin board (4' x 3' or larger) or corkboard squares on the whole wall.
Ages 10 through 13 – your interests don't matter but your guidance does
• Try to build on the existing so it doesn't become a total redo. This is the last stage for any fairytale princesses or truck drivers. You may luck out with only a minor update your last color scheme. A previous theme can get a new life. Spaceships can convert to the solar system still keeping a main blue sky color or the girly dolls are replaced with fairies while purple and bright pink get added to the previous light color scheme. If you want to forgo a literal theme at this in-between stage, it can be purely about a color scheme.
• Time for a bedding update. Change all of it, the comforter, duvet, sheets, bedskirt, introduce throw pillows of their choosing.
• Based on the child this also might be the time for a more significant desk or larger bed or young adult scaled furniture if necessary.
• Sample Color Themes:
- Turquoise and lime
- Orange and blue
- Light pink, medium pink and orange
- Shades of blue
- Green and blue
- Purple and green or pink
- Any color and white
Ages 14 through off to college – you can have the room back when they leave
This is when their personality really matters. It can be your best opportunity to teach them about putting a room together. The next time they have a décor change will be when they are doing it on their own (with your money.)
• Let them pick a theme or evoke a mood. Girls tend to be very peer or celebrity focused and ready to be a grown up and boys can be still into sports, astronomy and cars. Guide them on selecting a theme that will last and is a bit more grown-up.
• Display is key. Give them a place to hang or display pictures of their friends, trophies and other items they want to show off. Teach them about rotating accessories if the shelves or bulletin board get full.
• Invest in a good mattress (this may be the one they take with them) but forgo a major bed. Upholstered headboards with slipcovers are fun, cheap and changeable.
• Grown-up lamps and bedside tables with storage are good to have. Pottery Barn Teen and IKEA both have afforable options.
• A good desk and desk chair are also vital unless homework is done at a family computer elsewhere.
• For girls their bedroom is their showplace, guide them well. Let her have that large print baroque patterned wallpaper in fuchsia and gold for the focal point wall behind her bed. Teach her about restraint and how having less in some areas makes the fantastic stuff stand out.
• For a boy who loves motorcycles or cars, what makes them stand out is shades of gray like as in the asphalt of a road. In this case the walls, floors and bedding may be very plain and what stands out is the model cars or bike posters.
• Now is often the time for new carpet. It is only one room, let them create their own interior. However if you are planning on selling your house in the next couple of years it is okay to stick with a boring neutral, just explain why and make it work. Otherwise let them have something fun. Throw rugs and carpet tiles are a great way to add personality and color.
These are just a few simple tricks to help you out at any stage of child rearing and guide you to when it is time for a kid room redo and how far to go. Decorating is something everyone thinks they can do and will try. This is a great way to help give your child good decorating tools for their future without making a big deal about it. They won't even know they are learning something. It's our secret.