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Award-winning Tulsa designer Susan Eddings shares her tips for bringing style to any child's bedroom.
Think themed. Kids’ rooms are one of the few areas in a home where it is OK to take a theme and run with it. Just keep in mind that if frogs are the theme, that doesn’t mean there has to be a frog on everything. Keep the walls, bedding and window treatments neutral so you can easily change the theme when the time comes.
Know your budget. Whether it is $500 or $5,000, know what you can or want to spend. This information also helps you get started with your plan. You might have to think outside the box, and the lower the budget, the more work you might have to do, so include your kids in the project. This is the perfect opportunity to help your kids enjoy the sense of ownership as well as to help them learn the difference between a Phillips and a flathead.
Shop the sales. Keep in mind that you can find solid, well-constructed pieces of furniture at consignment stores, garage sales or even in your garage. You just need to get in the mind-set of looking at the “bones” of the piece. Imagine it painted ($10 for a quart) or with new hardware ($3 and up). There are also many ways to make art that won’t break the bank, such as framed fabric panels or a collage of enlarged and framed photos of children with friends. The collage won’t look homemade and can truly personalize and pull together a room if done right.
Remember: It’s not the size of the space but how you lay it out. I think it’s kind of ironic that our kids spend more time in their rooms than we do and yet they tend to have some of the smallest rooms in the house. Think zones: play, sleep, lounge and study. It’s almost like a one-room apartment minus the kitchen. And how many of our kids’ rooms have more than one dresser? If there is any way you can lose a dresser, it sure frees up space for a different use, such as a separate lounge area. Usually one dresser’s contents can be merged into the closet, especially if storage space is being put to use properly.
Measure, measure, measure. Make a map of the room. Do not even think of going shopping before you know whether what you find is going to fit. A favorite trick of mine is to tape off the furniture measurements on the carpet. This gives you a better sense of how it will lay out and fill up the space.
Go vertical. Whether you try elevating the bed or installing floor-to-ceiling shelving, going up instead of out gives you more floor space with which to work.
Paint is your friend. Nothing can transform a room in a day like a gallon or two of paint. Just remember that it is worth the time to invest in sample quarts (some stores have these for as little as $5) to see what the color really looks like on more than a credit card-sized swatch. Invest in four pieces of poster board, paint them and hang one on each wall. Look at them at different times of the day. And don’t forget what paint can do to transform an existing piece of furniture. Prep properly and you can paint almost anything that is not moving.
Look up and down. Two common surfaces that are overlooked are the ceiling and floor. Don’t leave the ceiling plain white — paint it. And there is no carpet police that will give you a ticket for putting a rug on top of carpet. It can add color, pattern and texture.
Remember the three Bs: baskets, bins and boxes. Storage and clutter containment are big issues in a kid’s room. Spray paint inexpensive baskets or photo boxes and fill them with everything from blocks to socks to Barbies.
Designers can be your friend. I’ve found that there are a lot of people out there who don’t think they can afford a designer. What they may not realize is that you can hire one just to do a consult. Have a designer help you pick out paint colors and fabrics or come up with a room layout. An hour of advice and tips/tricks can save you a lot of time, money and frustration.
