Are you thinking about
decorating your children’s rooms? Well don’t think too
long, because before you know it, they’ll be grown up
and gone!
When you’re decorating kid’s rooms, you can really
save yourself a lot of time and money by having a budget
and a simple plan. It doesn’t matter what age your child
is, if you’re thinking about decorating his or her room,
now is the time to make that plan.
The foundation of your decorating plan should be flexible
enough to work with several themes over the years. By
foundation I mean the flooring, paint or other wall
treatment and the furniture. You could also carry this one
step further and consider the window treatments. If you
have these basics in place, it will so much easier to just
get a few new items in the theme of choice, and make a
quick change in your kid’s rooms.
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Choose a paint color that isn’t too trendy so it will
withstand the test of time, and add some Wallies™ or
Wallpaper Borders as accent. You can always remove or
replace them later. If your child wants something “way
out there”, maybe do something special just on one wall,
and be sure you have enough paint left over so you can
paint over that special treatment at a later date! (Hint:
Buy semi-gloss for the lower portion of the wall and satin
for the upper portion in the same color. It will give the
look of two coordinating colors and the lower part will be
easier to clean.)
* Quality furniture can be expensive, but if you buy it a
piece at a time with the future in mind you will save
money in the long run. Why not buy furniture that your
child can take to that first apartment, and then hand down
to the kids? The convertible cribs are great! They morph
from crib to toddler bed to full size bed, and cost about
the same. (Hint: You can buy some real quality used
furniture for much less than new. And chances are it’ll
outlast the new furniture any way. Just give it a new coat
of paint and you’ll be set.)
* Often times you won’t have a choice about your
flooring, especially if you’re renting. But if you are
replacing flooring, choose something basic, again not too
trendy in pattern or color. You can always kick it up a
notch with accent or area rugs. (Hint: It’s also not
that expensive to buy a remnant of carpet and have the
edges bound to make your own area rug.)
* Window treatments are right up there with some of the
most expensive decorating items out there. Granted you can
buy inexpensive blinds and shades, but if you spend a
little more money on quality, you won’t be replacing
them every few years. (Hint: Soft fabric kids curtains can
make such a difference, and remember that the more fabric
and other soft furnishings you have in the room, the more
it will help with deadening noise.)
Okay you have your foundation in place. Now is when the
fun begins. Pick a theme, any theme. Bed in a Bag sets are
really reasonably priced and are available in many
different themes so are a great place to start when
you’re on a budget. Then add a coordinating lamp, a
couple things on the wall and an accent rug. Pick up some
Wallies™ and slap them on the walls or even on the
furniture.
Get the kids involved in decorating their rooms. Let them
make some of their own choices. For example: You’re
trying to pick a color scheme and she has a total
difference of opinion as to what it should be. Give her
two or three options to choose from so she gets to make
the final decision.
When the kids get to be involved in the decision making,
they are more likely to “own” their new décor. And we
can always hope that will give them some incentive to keep
it clean!
Oh, and that budget I mentioned earlier? (You hoped I
forgot didn’t you?) Only you know what your budget is
for decorating your kid’s room, and it doesn’t matter
if you have $200 or $2000 dollars. You can’t even begin
to plan a room re-do without knowing how much you can
spend. Otherwise you’ll be out there floundering around
buy stuff you don’t probably need and can’t afford.
If it’s $200, you’ll most likely be looking at paint,
bedding and a couple little room accents. You might even
be able to pick up a second hand night stand to refinish.
But if we’re talking $2000, you can do some new
furniture and maybe new carpet too!
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About
The Author
Komee
Carpenter has been in the decorating
industry for over 15 years and started the
Decorating Kid Rooms website to share her
ideas and knowledge.
This article provided courtesy of
Decorating Kid Rooms at http://www.decorating-kid-rooms.com,
your ultimate resource for free ideas and
tips for decorating your kid’s rooms and
the home of the Click!Decor-Kids
newsletter. |
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