designing your child`s bedroom

designing your
child’s bedroom
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Unlike other rooms in your house, your children’s bedrooms must grow and adjust
to their ever-changing needs – from newborn to teenager. This takes smart forward
thinking, but thankfully there’s a world of wonderful decoration to choose from.
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Raspberry bugs and butt
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wallpaper from paperroom.co.n
walls and colour
The options are endless. Not only are there thousands of paint colours, but plenty of
interesting finishes and types of paint. www.resene.co.nz has magnetic and
chalkboard paint, as well as glitter and shimmer glazes. And there is a fantastic
range of chalkboard colours at www.hudsonpaint.com.
Kids club
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From a style point of view, a flat matt paint finish looks best – just make sure
it’s marmite finger friendly and can be wiped clean.
What hue to choose? Take into account the room’s aspect, natural lighting
and its size. White walls will brighten a room and highlight the furniture
and accessories in it. But don’t be afraid of deeper colours if the room
allows. Bold sophisticated colour schemes can last as your child ages,
such as aqua or charcoal, with white.
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At www.thelivingroom.co.nz, www.lovemae.com.au, www.stuckonyou.
com and www.stickytiki.com, to name a few, there’s a world of
amazing wall decals. Check the quality first – most are made of
fabric so won’t rip or wrinkle, and make sure they are removable for
repositioning and won’t wreck the wall or surface.
Wallpaper adds yet another dimension to a child’s bedroom, as
does artwork. All wall treatments should be thought through for
longevity. For example, a beautiful floral wallpaper from Designer’s
Guild will be perfectly feminine for a toddler’s room and will be just
as fitting when she is a teenager. You can also try Resene and
www.paperroom.nz for great wallpaper selections. The same
thinking applies to artwork. Steer clear of TV and current movie
heroes. Why not take the chance to introduce a limited print from an
up-and-coming artist? www.etsy.com and www.felt.co.nz are
goldmines for great pieces – not only for art, but also original or
limited edition toys and accessories.
wallpaper
Chinese rose redom
from paperro .co.nz
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floors and windows
Top: The nautical-themed room by urbankids.co.nz is perfect
for boys and girls, or for shared rooms - there are so many
opportunities for creativity. This theme accommodates so
many colours and accessories -including all those
collectables from holidays at the beach!
Above: Designers Guild Meadowsweet duvet from allium.
co.nz combines a plethora of dainty detail and colours to
create a very feminine girl’s room. This look would easily suit
girls from 4- to 14-years with its vintage appeal.
These can be two large financial outlays and are permanent features,
so choose carefully and wisely. Practicality also plays a part here. Wool
carpet is the number one flooring choice in NZ as it’s warm, a good
insulator and quiet. Floorboards are also an option and can be varnished,
oiled or painted. Because they are dust-free and easy to clean, they are
good in particular for asthma and allergy sufferers. You could buy rugs to
decorate and warm the room, with the added ease of airing them outside
regularly. Whatever you choose, flooring should be consistent throughout the
other bedrooms in your home.
What to choose for window dressing? Fabric blinds or curtains, wooden blinds or
shutters? In NZ, because of our climate, fabric curtains or blinds are best. Choosing
thermal and/or interlined curtains, and ensuring they are generously-sized around
the outer most of the frame, is the best way to ensure that heat stays in.
Choose a neutral-coloured, good quality fabric such as linen. Blinds cost more in the
making but use less fabric, whereas curtains will use more fabric (allow for twice the
width of the window, and always specify to the floor) but cost less to make.
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bedding, furniture and accessories
Is there such a thing as too much storage? Not when it comes to children’s spaces and
bedrooms. Whether you are in a position to have built-in storage or non-permanent,
flexibility is important. Remember that each age group has different storage needs –
large plastic and wooden toys as a baby, then a change to smaller pieces such as lego
or dolls house furniture, then to a study area. Wardrobes also need to be flexible in
accommodating different sizes and types of clothing.
Top: Keeping it soft? The new Wallace Cotton Rebecca range
combines lovely soft pinks and greens with lots of ruffles, and
all in natural cotton. Very pretty when combined with white
painted furniture and walls.
Above: We love these traffic pattern sheets from teapea.co.nz.
Cot sheets and pillow cases with just a strip of pattern on
plain white is always striking, especially in a white room. You
could bring in one wall of colour (from the pattern) or maybe
a textural rug in a bright colour.
Make use of hidden areas, like under the bed. Higher cupboards are great for storing
extra toys or out-of-season clothes. Think creatively and storage needn’t become a
huge expense. Stacked painted crates can be a perfect toy sorter. www.trademe.
co.nz has plenty of second-hand storage solutions that can be re-purposed to fit
into your child’s bedroom. Choose good quality wood (even if it is going to be
painted) and well-made pieces for longevity and style.
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kids love colour
We have brought together a selection of colours from the Resene KidzColour
range, and had a bit of fun creating a few dreams and themes for a child’s
bedroom. Don’t feel you need to stick with our suggestions, this is the time to
get a bit whimsical and create some magic of your own – and sometimes putting
a name to your colour choice will give you inspiration for the other elements.
What a wonderful opportunity to really be creative and have some fun!
pirouettes
in wild thyme
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Glitter
Rocket
Banana Sp
lit
land of treats
• pretty in pink
• go go go
• go go go
• gobstopper
• banana split
feijoa fizz
bells and whistles
• top secret
• sherbet
• snap
• rocket
• go go go
…continued bedding, furniture and accessories
Furniture needs will change as the baby grows into a child. It is important
that a nursery has the right furniture for safety and ease of caring for the
baby. Change tables should be the right height to protect backs, and
have storage so that all necessities are close at hand. Some furniture is
designed to grow with the child, such as the Stokke Sleepi. White
painted furniture, especially the bed, makes a fantastic backdrop for
showcasing bedding. Its worth investing in a good quality bed that will
last the distance, such as those from Sleepyhead.
Bedding should be 100% natural fibre, check out options such as www.
alpacadream.co.nz or www.naturebaby.co.nz for beautiful duvet inners.
Keep away from commercial designs when choosing bedding – they will
let the rest of your stylish room down. Choose designs that you like as
well – remember it’s going in your house. www.teapea.co.nz and www.
gorgi.co.nz are good starters for stylish bedlinen, and conveniently online
for delivery to your door. Boys’ rooms look great with reds, blues, stripes
and retro prints. For a girl – floral, colourful birds,
or apples look great. Bunting strung above a
bed, cot or window completes the look.
ginger berry
Top Secret
• gobstopper
• hokey pokey
sugared violets
Hop Skotch
• splat
• bubblegum
• gobstopper
Sherbert
Snap
ladybirds in
the garden
• glitterbug
• splat
key
okey Po
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Bubblegum
rompa stompa
Splat
• rocket
• top secret
• banana split
winter pixies
Pretty
Super Duper
in Pin
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• dreamer
• go go go
golden delicious
• go go go
Dreamer
Go Go Go
• hokey pokey
Above: Karlsson puzzle
clock from allium.co.nz
Left:
This butterfly wallpaper
from paperroom.co.nz
makes the room come alive.
Picking a darker accent,
like aubergine or charcoal,
is a great combination
with clean colours, like
turquoise and raspberry.