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
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)
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.
Blackboard walls add instant personality to a kid’s room and make a wonderful focal point, off-setting other colours beautifully. And of course they don’t just look cool, but invite children to get creative, creating their own art works or backgrounds for pretend play – like playing school, house, shop, etc.
If you are thinking of creating a chalkboard wall in your child’s bedroom or playroom but can’t make up your mind, take a look at some of the examples I’ve gathered of blackboards in kids’ rooms.
You may think chalkboards are just too black for kids’ rooms, but bear in mind that they do mellow over time, turning a soft grey by the chalk residue that’s left behind. At the same time, this is something to consider if you like things to look neat and tidy – a messy blackboard might not be your thing.
You don’t have to commit to a full wall and can just paint a smaller area in a nice shape, like a house in the example above. It can be a backdrop for a play kitchen or desk and you can dress it up with shelves, hooks or bunting.
Or how about just painting a border in chalkboard paint, or a door?
If you are worried about painting a chalkboard directly onto a wall – for example if you are renting – then you can go for non-permanent chalkboard film that sticks to your wall. You can buy it in rolls and cut it in any desired shaped or have a design made for you by most wall sticker companies.
A framed blackboard that you can stand against the wall is another idea – make sure it is attached securely.
To create something special, add an eye-catching wall sticker or light letters to your chalkboard wall.
Do keep a place for chalks and a wiper nearby – a picture ledge is a good solution. Dust free chalks help keep down the mess, but a final note of caution: if your child’s room is carpeted, a chalkboard might not be a good idea as it will be more difficult to clean.
Happy decorating!
Sources (from top): kotivinnki, lundia, maxime brouillet, living agency, nordic design, the boo and the boy, kotopalapeli, rh baby and child, homedit, shanna murray, seletti, the boo and the boy.
Time to share this Scandinavian inspired kids’ room I designed for a girl called Florence. Florence’s parents wanted a fresh, light feel for their daughter’s bedroom, which hadn’t changed much since she was a baby. We went for a complete make-over: the carpet was replaced with a wooden floor and the colour palette was reduced to off-white and a mix of mint greens and blues. To complement the floor, natural wood tones and a wool rug add warmth to this cool colour scheme.
A reading chair was also high on the list, and not being able to find quite the right bookshelf, I designed this plywood house shaped shelf myself. As Florence was starting school in September, we added a small desk. The animal map of the world seemed just the ticket or a girl who loves animals.
To make the most of the available space, we chose a rustic white bed with storage drawers underneath and a cute little step to get in. A wall shelf above the bed acts as a bedside table for books, a reading lamp and knick-knacks. Don’t you love the little trinket drawers? Perfect to keep treasures nearby.
sources: woodland animals, star cushion, heart cushion, harlequin wallpaper mint, animal map of the world.
images: design & styling by room to bloom, photography by brett charles, with thanks to nubie kids and molly meg.
Dutch bedding designers Snurk have added a fab woodland themed duvet set to their children’s bedding range, featuring a squirrel and a bunny rabbit. Two furry friends to keep your child company at night. Love it!
(image: snurk bedding)
