Archive for 2016
Once the girls’ bedrooms were completed, Lola and Heidi‘s parents asked me to help them decorate the rest of their home. These are play corners in two of the rooms I designed.
To return the living room to calm after a day of play, we sourced a shallow vintage French armoire which was painted to fit with the scheme – a stylish way to hide toys, puzzles and board games. A toy box, vintage suitcases and assorted baskets provide further storage. The yellow apple print links in with the accent colour used in the rest of the living room.
In the kitchen-dining room a house shaped chalkboard makes a fun background for a play kitchen and toys. This groups the toys together and makes them feel less lost in the space, but also gives the play area a more protected, snugger feel.
(images: design & styling by room to bloom, photography by brett charles)
This is Heidi’s room, a children’s interior design project I completed a little while ago. Heidi is Lola’s sister – you can see her bedroom design in my previous post. Their parents called in my help when they moved house and were struggling with ideas for their daughters’ bedrooms. They wanted the rooms to have a similar feel and fit in with the rest of the house, yet have their own identity.
To visually connect the girls’ bedrooms, we used a lighter tone of the wall colour from Lola’s room, then painted most of the furniture in similar tones to blend the pieces into the background and keep this much smaller room feeling as spacious as possible. The bespoke vintage style wardrobe was made to fit in the narrow alcove next to a pretty fireplace. We gave Heidi her own Swan print and dolls house, but in different colours to Lola’s. The girls have the same two-tone curtains – another visual connection.
A vintage style toddler bed and display shelf were painted in light grey to blend in with the walls – this creates a calm background to offset lilac and golden accents. Timber was used to bring warmth to the scheme. A light moon, cloud and star theme creates a whimsical mood in Heidi’ room.
I loved the challenge of creating different rooms that were still visually connected – I hope you like the results!
images: interior design & styling by room to bloom, photography by brett charles
Today I’m happy to share some photos of a recently completed interior design for a girl’s room. Lola’s parents called in my help when they moved house and were struggling to come up with ideas for their girls’ bedrooms. They wanted the rooms to have a similar feel and fit in with the rest of the house, yet have their own identity. After some brainstorming and moodboarding, we opted for a soft grey-based style with pink and vintage accents. This is the result for Lola’s room – I will share her sister’s room a little later.
Lola’s room is made up of soft tonal greys with pink and blush accents. Most of the furniture is white but we added warmth with some natural timber. The two-tone curtains add a playful touch and tie the scheme together. The floral feature wall with bespoke alcove shelving is centred around a period fireplace. Lola’s grandmother painted the dollshouse that Lola already had in tones to go with the colour scheme and we added matching wallpaper inside. Vintage apple crates on castors provide characterful storage for toys and assorted decorative boxes keep less pretty belongings out of sight.
Between the windows with two-tone curtains we added a vintage style school desk and a house shaped trinket shelf. A simple wall sconce provides task light when Lola sits down to do her crafting. Next to that we created a snug reading corner in a teepee with cushions and a sheepskin rug. The pretty vintage wardrobe was sourced online and painted, to hold all of Lola’s clothes and shoes.
To bring the room’s scale down a little, we used a four poster bed with a ledge for pictures and books to create a snug nook for bedtime. A bedside stool, fairy lights and a reading lamp complete this corner.
I hope you’ve enjoyed Lola’s room as much as I’ve loved working on it!
images: interior design & styling by room to bloom, photography by brett charles
I was very proud to be featured in the Essential Guide to Children’s Rooms by Essential Kitchen Bathroom Bedroom magazine in their August 2016 issue. The article features lots of tips and advice from children’s interior designers the world over, alongside gorgeous photos of kids’ rooms to inspire.
If you’d like to read my tips on how to use colour and pattern in kids’ rooms, you can find the full article on my Press page.
(image: ekbb & room to bloom)
Very excited that Charlotte’s pretty grey bedroom was included in this month’s children’s interior design feature for Elle Decor India! Her little reading nook was shown alongside a brilliantly styled shoot focussing on natural materials in kids’ rooms.
(image: elle decor india & room to bloom)
This eclectic, boho girl’s bedroom belongs to Edda who is 2.5 years old. She lives with her mum Elin, dad Jonas and big sister Indra in a 1960s terrace south of Stockholm, Sweden.
Edda’s room was designed by her mum Elin who is a professional interior stylist. You can admire Elin’s style over on her Instagram feed @studioelwa, where she shares photos of her beautiful home and both her daughters’ bedrooms. Edda’s room jumped out at me because the wonderful composition of vintage and modern design, soft colours and quirky, often handmade details.
Elin’s advice for designing children’s rooms is to consider above all what your child’s interests and needs are, what they are playing with and how they play. Perhaps they don’t need a large table or desk that takes up a lot of space, if they always play on the floor or at the kitchen table. It should be easy for them to find their toys and to play, and preferably to clean up after themselves. In Edda’s room, for example, her kitchen and little dining area occupy 1/4 of the room, since that’s what she plays with the most. Also her puzzels, books and dolls are easy for her to reach and play with, since that is what she loves the most.
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Time to talk to Edda now! Tell us Edda…
♥ What is your favourite food? Pizza.
♥ What are you into right now? Painting, puzzles, reading books, playing with dolls and in my kitchen.
♥ Your favourite book? Pippi Longstocking.
♥ What is your favourite colour? Blue (though she’s not quite clear what colour that is says mum ;-)).
♥ Your favourite animal? Cats.
♥ What do you like best in your room? My kitchen, I love to feed my family and my dolls.
♥ Which is your favourite duvet cover? The same one as my mum’s, a dusty pink one with a sea shell design from kongessloejd.dk.
♥ Your favourite pyjamas? The white and pink ones with the little penguins, the same as my sister.
Thank you Edda, it was super nice to meet you!
(photography: Elin Wallin)
I’m very excited that one of my children’s room designs (Dylan’s Room) is featured in this month’s issue of House & Garden! It’s part of a wider article by Rose Dahlsen with interior design ideas for children’s rooms. You can read the full article, including my top tips for designing children’s rooms, on my Press page.
(image: room to bloom/house & garden)
Fabric has a huge impact on the overall look and feel of kids’ rooms, but curtains and blinds can be expensive so it’s important to choose wisely. Read my tips on how to choose fabrics for children’s rooms over at Mr Fox magazine, and find out where to find them.
(image: room to bloom)
This romantic, boho girl’s bedroom belongs to Amélie who is three years old. She lives with her mum Maaike, dad Onno and sister Sara in a refurbished church in de Tijnje, The Netherlands.
Amélie’s room was designed by her mum Maaike who is a visual merchandiser & window dresser. You can admire Maaike’s talent for visual composition over on her Instagram feed @fleursdamelie, where she shares photos of her amazing home and the girls’ bedrooms. I love the soft colours and pretty boho feel of Amélie’s room, which features gorgeous oversized floral wallpaper.
Maaike’s advice for designing children’s rooms is to keep the base calm and the bed and other furniture light, then you can use accessories to add colour and atmosphere. Quirky details add character, and wallpaper is great for setting the mood.
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Time to talk to Amélie now! Tell us Amélie…
♥ What is your favourite food? Spinach.
♥ What are you into right now? I love riding my bike, which I got for my birthday. I also like painting and sticking stickers on pretty drawings.
♥ Your favourite book? Little Golden Books, right now I’m really into mermaids.
♥ What is your favourite colour? Black (unfortunately says mum ;-)).
♥ Your favourite animal? Tigers and crocodiles.
♥ Trousers or a dress? It depends – I love glittery dresses, but I’m kind of cool girl too.
♥ What would you like to be when you grow up? Black Pete, or a ballerina or a princess.
♥ What do you like best in your room? My bed, being tucked in and re-arranging the cushions.
♥ What do you like doing in your room? Reading, and pottering in my kitchen.
♥ Which is your favourite duvet cover? The one with little deer and bows – and there have to be lots of cushions on my bed!
♥ Your favourite pyjamas? The ones with little hearts and rabbits.
Thank you Amélie, it was super lovely to meet you!
(photography: Maaike Goldbach)
Where to start when decorating a child’s bedroom? You can now read my interior design advice for children’s spaces in Homes & Interiors Scotland‘s fabulous Kids’ Bedrooms Look Book! There’s some super lovely ideas here, plus lots of photos to inspire. You can see the full article on my press page.
