There are a couple of staples for kids’ rooms that I love at Ikea, but this season they have topped the list with some limited edition goodies that not only look great, but are an absolute steal too. First up is the balancing bench – the perfect piece to perch on whilst tying shoes in a hallway, and of course for balancing games in a playroom. Second is the gym mat in a range of tonal greens, a soft surface for indoor and outdoor tumbles. I love the way these images are styled too – those red and pink floor boards look edible!
But, as VT Wonen stylist Cleo Scheulderman shows in their July issue, the bench looks great in a monochrome space too!
(images: ikea, photography for vt wonen by alexander van berge)
I love decorating with vintage wallpaper in kids’ rooms – using it a on all four walls in a box room, on just a feature wall, or working with small pieces to up-cycle furniture. One of my favourite shops for retro wallpaper is Retrovilla (based in Denmark but shipping worldwide). They currently give 25% discount on all wallpaper until the end of Sunday 13th July (mention “SOMMERTILBUD” in the comments field), so now might be good time to have a browse! Here are some images to get you inspired:
(image sources: -pink- milk, the style files, nordic bliss, vt wonen -orange- mes caprices belges, mokkasin, nooshkids, mokkasin -blue- morganours, kmldesign, little big magazine, room to bloom -yellow- 101 woonideeën, mokkasin, decopeques, frokenbauer -green- mail online, design sponge, miluccia, pure style home)
This colourful playhouse is a hideaway for Alexander, who is 7 years old. He shares it with his brother Adrian and lives with his family in Norway.
The boys’ playhouse was designed by their mum Anne Lene, who is a musician and blogger with a keen eye for interior decoration. Her blog Ralfefarfars Paradis if filled with beautiful photographs of her home and the updates she makes to it.
Anne Lene’s advice for decorating kids’ rooms is to make it an inviting, cosy and safe place. Avoid filling it up with too much stuff so there’s room to play.
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Let’s find out a bit more about Alexander now. Tell us…
♥ What is your favourite food? Pancakes.
♥ What are you into right now? Exploring nature, finding small animals and insects.
♥ What is your favourite colour? Yellow.
♥ What is your favourite animal? Fish.
♥ Your favourite book? Barbapapa.
♥ What do you want to be when you grow up? A fisherman.
♥ What do you like most about the playhouse? The small furniture. I like to play with lego there.
Thank you Alexander, it was super to meet you!
(images: ralfefarfars paradis)
Monochrome kids’ rooms are hot news at the moment, and whilst looking for some white accessories I found a lot of sweet things at Zara Home Kids. There’s a sale on right now, which includes some lovely star themed kid’s bedding (duvet set & blanket) and cloud wallpaper that didn’t quite fit in with the monochrome theme. Call to see if your store has items in stock before heading out, or otherwise order them in. And no – this is not a sponsored post!
image: room to bloom 1. numbers cupboard knobs 2. blackboard house desk 3. plant fibre kid’s chair 4. bentwood children’s chair 5. dinosaur light 6. white cot on castors 7. tree trunk kids’ chair 8. baby clothes hangers 9.white storage crates 10. cut-out paper lampshade
I recently used this adorable raccoon in pyjamas art print to decorate a nursery (photos this summer!). The print is by Little Hands in Portugal, a company led by illustrators Marta Belo and Leonor Feijó, who specialise in whimsical children’s art prints and wallpaper murals. The prints are available in A3 and custom sizes, and the wallpaper murals can be made to fit your wall. Cute or what?
(image: room to bloom collage with 1. grey sebra kili cot 2. ferm living harlequin wallpaper 3. litte hands raccoon in pyjamas print)
This monochrome girl’s bedroom belongs to Della who is 1.5 years old. She lives with her brother Wilton, mum Sandra and dad Marcus in Sweden.
Della’s room was designed by her mum Sandra, who has a background in interior design and together with Marcus forms the creative duo MiniWilla. They design the playful graphic posters that you can see in Della’s room, and many more. Originally created to decorate their family home, the couple decided to open a shop after requests for the posters poured in from family and friends!
Sandra’s motto for kid’s room design is to have fun, above all.
Let’s find out a bit more about Della now …
♥ What is your favourite food? I love eating and like to try everything!
♥ What are you into right now? Playing with my brother’s lego.
♥ What is your favourite colour? I don’t have a favourite colour yet, but I like black and blue.
♥ What is your favourite animal? Cats and dogs.
♥ Your favourite book? I love tearing up my mum’s magazines.
♥ What do you like best in your room? My teepee.
Thank you Della, it was great to meet you!
(images: miniwilla)
This children’s bedding pick ‘n mix comes from my love of combining different patterns. Have a go at this yourself – just pick a colour and find different patterns that share the same colour palette. I like to add some plain bedlinen to tone down the overal effect. Happy decorating!
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Sources: 1. blue ticking duvet cover 2. floral cushion 3. blue polka dot duvet set 4. blue turkish bed spread 5. 2CV toy car 6. grey bedding with chartreuse ties 7. yellow polka dot duvet cover 8. grey gingham and yellow duvet cover 9. bunny cushion 10. easterly blanket 11. cloud cushion 12. red and orange stokke sheet 13. vw van cushion 14. pink and red duvet set 15. toadstool baby rattle 16. wall puppet 17. cat print
Background: Van Gogh’s Arles bedroom colouring page, downloadable here.
This bright and colourful shared kids’ room belongs to Antoine (4) and Leonor (1.5). They currently live with their sister Romy, mum Peggy and dad Eric in Malmo, Sweden. Their home is in a 100 year old building that was meant to be hotel, but due to WW1 it was filled with apartments instead.
Antoine & Leonor’s room was designed by their mum Peggy, who is a professional blogger. Her blog Paul & Paula showcases the latest international kids’ design & lifestyle, whilst her new blog Paul & Paula Mum focusses on covetable style for mamas.
Peggy’s number one rule for kids’ room design is to keep the wall colour simple – meaning white ; ) As kids usually have lots of colourful toys, books, etc., white walls will let those live and shine. Wallpaper or coloured paint would be too much for her taste.
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As Leonor is still so little, let’s talk to Antoine and find out a bit more him and his room …
♥ What is your favourite food? Porridge.
♥ What are you into right now? Writing my name, because I just learned it at school (and its not a very easy one so I am very proud).
♥ What is your favourite colour? Green.
♥ What is your favourite animal? Lion.
♥ Your favourite book? It’s Voyage en train.
♥ What do you want to be when you grow up? A fireman.
♥ What do you like best about your room? That there is a lot of space to build a biiiig train track.
♥ Which is your favourite duvet cover? The one with the blue parrots [Mini Rodini].
♥ Your favourite pyjamas? Spiderman (really cool vintage style!)
Thank you Antoine, it was great to meet you. Say hello to Leonor!
(images: Paul et Paula)
Need ideas for a spring refresh of your child’s bedroom? Check out my top kids’ decor picks over on the My Baba blog, with sources for the products on my spring board.
Happy decorating! x
sources from top: chick in box, pull along rabbits, rabbit cushions, polkadot rabbit hooks, paper chicks, yellow lapin light, white bunny lights (image: room to bloom)
