As your kids move beyond the baby stage, life starts zooming by even quicker than before. I mean it feels like one minute they’re learning their ABC’s and the next they’re reading to you! That phrase – ‘they grow up too quick’ – that only parents understand, has never meant more to me than now. Knowing this, I’ve realised when decorating your kids room, you have to keep in mind that they grow so quickly. Keeping this reality at the back of your mind will save you money, angst and the headache of re-decorating every year or two. A while ago I shared some ideas on how to design a room your kids won’t outgrow and today I wanted to share this great shelving system that has so, so many possibilities. As far as changeable, practical and adjustable wall shelves go, I don’t think I’ve seen better.
Entries Tagged as 'Nursery furniture'
One shelf, one hundred possibilities
May 25, 2016
Five cool shelf ideas (to create using ikea shelves)
October 14, 2015
Shelves are such a practical way of storing stuff and you can’t ever have enough of them. You really don’t need to spend a packet on them either – there are plenty of very cheap and basic shelves out there. But just because they’re basic doesn’t mean they have to be boring. With a little imagination even the most basic of shelves can become features in any room but I especially love getting creative with shelves in a kids room. So here are five cool shelf ideas for a kids room that you can re-create using shelves bought from ikea. Each of these shelf spaces is unique and can be customised to your needs and tastes:
This is such a cool shelf space for a kids room. It makes a simple but striking feature wall while still providing good storage. You can create similar using the ikea forhoja kitchen storage units. All you need is a few of these storage boxes and a large piece of ply. I like the natural wood look but you could also customise as much as you want using paint, wall stickers or wallpaper.
Backless shelves on a wallpapered wall look so stylish. You can easily get this look with ikea’s ever popular billy bookcase by simply leaving out the back – I did this in my last home and it worked really well. Add some colourful toys and artwork around the shelves and you’ve got a completely unique looking bookcase or shelf.
In this shared boys room, those box shelves in various sizes and shades of green look great on the wall. Instead of being boring boxes, they’ve been turned in to a feature because of the unusual layout, the colours and also using a mix of open and closed shelves. You can get the same look using ikea’s valje wall cabinets. Paint them in any colour, combine a mix of square and rectangular and a mix of open and closed. They’ll end up looking custom made.
How pretty are these shelves? I love the touch of pastel blue that has really made them look special. Using ikea’s bekvan spice rack, you can create a similar look. You don’t have to stick to the idea above, you could paint the whole shelf or you could go for two colours – whatever works for your kids room. And for more storage, create a floor to ceiling wall of these gorgeous shelves.
All shelves don’t have to be made of straight lines like this picture above shows us. What a creative way of storing soft toys. It adds so much charm to the room. You can do similar with these ikea sinnerlig baskets. I’ve got one of these baskets which I love so I’m planning to get more and do this in Anya’s new room. It’s a great way of making a feature of her soft toys while having a place to store them too. And of course it saves floor space too especially useful in a small room.
My kids bedroom wish list
September 10, 2015
If you’ve been following this blog for a while, you’ll know that we’ve had a huge house renovation project on for months. Thankfully the builders have left and now it’s our turn to decorate and furnish. This is the really exciting bit and I can’t wait to get started. My first project is going to be Anya’s room for which I have been gathering ideas and inspiration for ages. I’ve started by putting together a mood board and thought I would share it here too.
For Anya’s room, I want to create a space that is whimsical and dreamy, a space where she won’t just sleep but will enjoy spending time in. The one thing I want to try and manage without is modular furniture simply because I don’t want too many hard lines but instead I want soft shapes, flowy fabrics and different textures that will hopefully make it feel a little magical. With those thoughts in my mind I’ve been looking around for furniture too. The bed will be the biggest piece of furniture in the room so I want to make sure that it compliments the whole look I am going for. I love the look of the kids bed I’ve chosen for the mood board because of the soft curves and circle details that will compliment the rest of the room. It’s simple and stylish and won’t end up taking over the room which is exactly what I want. And as for the colours, I can’t seem to move away from grey, dirty pink and white so that’s what it’s going to be!
I used to create kids bedroom mood board’s thinking one day I want to do up a real room and now I have my chance. So this is my wish list so far – what do you think? Do you like the look?
Here’s where you’ll find all the stuff I’ve gathered:
pom poms | posters | raindrop wall stickers | duvet cover | dot wall hooks | kids bed | soft toys | canopy | star garland |
5 of the best shared kids rooms
February 17, 2015
When it comes to shared kids rooms, bunk beds are the easiest option especially when space is limited. But I’m not a fan of most bunk beds. Apart from the safety thing, with a few exceptions, I’m just not crazy about how they look. Instead I think two beds look so much nicer and often look cosier. With a little imagination and thought, you can fit them in, even in small bedrooms. I went looking for some shared room inspiration and here are my favourite finds:
This small shared kids room sounds like it was a real labour of love. The room is only 10 x 12 feet so the mum didn’t want the beds taking up the whole room. Instead she wanted them against one wall which left playing space even in this small room. As the beds needed to be shorter then regular singles, they made them and even built in storage – the top panels of the beds can be lifted and the bottom panel acts like a storage box.
This eclectic shared kids room is bursting with fun and personality. By using mismatched beds, each child’s area is effortlessly separated without looking like you have two separate areas. The quirky decor across the room brings it all together and it looks so great too. This kind of decor is so perfect for a brother and sister shared space too.
This is another small shared kids room. By placing a large rug in the room, the whole room is brought together in a cheerful and cosy way. The beds are the same but by using different colours each kid has their own side. In small space like this one, a single bedside table is another way of making the best use of the space.
This is a room shared by brothers. While it looks more spacious than some of the other rooms, the space is still maximised by putting the beds at right angles to each other. This gives a big playing space in the middle, perfect for two little boys. I like the simple decor as well ensuring that the room grows with the boys and you don’t have to redecorate every couple of years.
This has got to be one of the most fun shared kids rooms I came across. This room is shared by brothers but it could equally be a unisex shared room or even a room for sisters. Apart from the cheerful black and white decor with pops of yellow, the idea of using shelves as a headboard is great. There’s no need for bedside tables and you get a lot more storage space.
A twin baby nursery
August 19, 2014
I recently came across a new nursery furniture range from Spain and I loved the modern lines and colourful accents. The range consists of cribs like the ones pictured above, chests of draws in a range of sizes, striped teepees and more. The nursery furniture has a contemporary vibe with unexpected little details like the angled legs and of course the cool colour accents. I chose my two favourite colours to share but there are many more including a beautiful wood and white one. This furniture is the the creation of one of my favourite Barcelona based shops for kids – if you are ever in Barcelona, do check out Nobodinoz but otherwise they are online too.
Rather than just show you the furniture, I thought it would be fun to create a baby nursery mood board and for a change I decided to go for a shared baby boy and girl nursery space – maybe for boy and girl twins. Here’s where you’ll find all the stuff:
1. mountain tops wallpaper | 2. pink, white and yellow pom poms | 3. fruit posters | 4. bird mobile | 5. grey baby rabbit lamp | 6. brown bambi lamp | 7. coloured wooden chests of drawers | 8. colourful flag garlands (these exact colours are no longer available but you can get similar)| 9. wooden baby cribs with coloured base | 10. high chair with changeable inner seat | 11. baby quilts and bed set | 12. toy storage baskets | 13. floral print star cushion | 14. fox and koala soft toy
5 fun ways to customise your kids wardrobe
July 9, 2014
When thinking about updating a kids room, you don’t always have to start from scratch. There are lots of easy ways to add a fresh look without completely re-decorating and turning it in to a mammoth project. One of my favourite ways to easily refresh a child’s room is turning the wardrobe in to a feature piece. Wardrobes are one of the largest pieces of furniture in most bedrooms including kids rooms. So instead of looking at them as boring must-haves, I love the idea of using the the wardrobe fronts as a space to be creative. With a little bit of imagination, wardrobes can become a really fun feature piece in a kids bedroom.
Here are 5 fun ways to add a some personality to any wardrobe:
1. A quick and easy, yet striking way to make your wardrobe feel very much a part of the room is to paint it the same colour as the wall. This gives quite a dramatic look and works especially well with bold colours as opposed to whites or creams.
2. Instead of creating a feature wall, turn your kids wardrobe in to one. Wallpaper the doors in colours and styles that match the rest of the room decor. As the image shows, using different but complimentary wallpapers is a good idea to keep it looking interesting. I’m loving the vintage wallpaper look so much that I’m tempted to try it myself.
3. Wall stickers aren’t just for walls. They a great option for almost anywhere including adding some fun to a wardrobe. A simple white wardrobe can be transformed in to something unique. And the best part of using stickers is that you can easily change the look as often as you like. Instead of stickers, for a really personal touch, you could even stick your child’s artworks on to the wardrobe doors making a little gallery space.
4. This is such a great idea. Paint the doors in chalkboard paint and your kids have a blank canvas. Each day they can create a new master piece, rub it out and start again the next day. And I’m sure this huge canvas will be a hit when your kids have friends over too.
5. For a subtler look, wallpaper the inside of a wardrobe in a bold print or pattern so you can only see the splash of colour when the wardrobe doors are open. You could also go one step further and paint the wardrobe in a complimentary colour or just stick with white for a more understated feel.
There are lots of ways to add your own personal touch to your kids room. I especially like the idea of customising furniture because it means that you can bring an old piece back to life or you can buy an inexpensive piece of bedroom furniture from places like Homebase and give it your own creative touch. It’s a fun project to let your kids get involved in and the best part is, it’s not permanent so you can change the look as often as you like.
This post is brought to you in partnership with Homebase. All content, words and ideas are my own. Thank you for supporting my work with carefully selected partners that support this blog.
Beautiful vintage furniture for kids
July 7, 2014
This is probably one of the best vintage shops I have come across. They have a lovely selection of vintage toys and furniture for kids as well as some stunning vintage pieces for the home too. That vintage child’s desk is stunning in it’s simplicity as is that ride-on wooden car. Most of the pieces in this shop are one of a kind and very hard to find. If you love vintage furniture then I highly recommend this vintage shop.
