Decorating a room for kids is child’s play
ONCE children enter the interior arena, priorities have to change. White linen upholstery and glass topped coffee tables take now elicit high pitched yells from parents as something far more precious wobbles towards them on unsteady legs with a fist full of Nutella poised overhead. Compromise between an orderly home and the ocean of activities and detritus that accompanies children of every age is vital to keep the peace.
WHOSE HOUSE IS IT ANYWAY? Corralling children sternly out of ‘good rooms’ is a leftover from the 1950s. The ‘good room’ was pickled in the aspic of social etiquette demanding a perfect display of tastefully chosen goods if a neighbour called unexpectedly. Today, with every room pressed into service in a busy family house, it simply doesn’t make sense and it could be argued that estranging little ones based on the room you are in is questionable.
Child-proofing is a whole project by itself, and if you have under 3s, the entire house should be detailed for safety, but what about the quintessential feel and use of the house? There’s a nice gap between the squalls of your newborn and crawling, where you can think through those practical problems of balance, delivering a relaxed family home you can still be proud of.
ROOM SHUFFLES & HIDDEN ASSETS
If you have spaces that are under used in their present role or could be further developed, consider re-assigning them, even temporarily. A lonely dining room can be transformed into a fresh, lively playroom or second TV space. If it’s destined to be a den, make that floor suitable for sprawling and crawling with comfortable, no fuss seating.
Teenagers may eventually reject a den full of springing younger siblings in favour of their room. If the area appears increasingly abandoned, it’s probably time to clear out those tween toys and claim it back. This is not to suggest that a last family eating area is up for grabs — if you have a casual dining space, it really is a family jewel.
FAMILY CENTRAL
Dining together even if it’s just breakfast fosters communication and reinforces that sense of ‘us’ in a family. See if there is room adjoining the kitchen for a big scrubbed table that can take the pressure of everything from Friday night pizza to crafts and homework. Open family inhabited areas or high traffic corridors (under the stairs is an often overlooked and happy nook) are the sensible positions for a PC connected to the internet used by children under 16. Here you’re on the spot to look over their shoulder regularly, supervising their adventures in that potentially dangerous highway of social interaction.
A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD.
‘Clean up!’— is the battle-cry of every weary over-pressed parent with Lego lodged in the in-step of their foot. Low level, child friendly storage from floor units with pull handles containing their cooking and painting stuff in the kitchen to pegs and racks at the back door for shoes, bags and coats, mean less excuses and less mess. Large, multicolour dumping bins in plastic might seem like a godsend. However, unless you label each container by type of toy, they simply add to the tangle of lost paraphernalia.
Provide towel rails the kids can reach and they might even use them. Laundry baskets will at least keep clothes off the floor even if the clean goes in with the wretched. Stick a small stool under the sink, and fit a thermostatic tap set to a safe temperature and hand washing becomes possible for even toddlers.
For older children, ensure they understand that keeping their personal spaces reasonably clean and orderly is a responsibility and a privilege. Smells, filth and heaped belongings will result in a finger-tip investigation — jaw dropping horror to the over 12s. Lay down the law about keeping doorways, corridors, stairs and any traffic spots clear, as serious tripping accidents can and do happen.
WHAT ABOUT ME?
When it comes to decor, don’t browbeat children into something we adults deem tasteful. Demonstrating that you respect their opinions means more than an inevitable future make-over. Keep the sticky-tape under lock and key, but let them put up those celebrity and animal posters and artwork with wall putty to stamp their spirit on the surroundings.
The cot aside, if you fall for cutesy child sized furniture, resign yourself to the fact it will be scorned by those same dreamy eyed children within a few short years. Consider pieces that will grow with your child. Scandinavian designers are renowned for creating such items as the Tripp-Trap, a wooden chair that starts as a high chair and finishes as an adult stool. Full sized beds (no high sleepers for the under sixes) can be a first step from a cot with a side bumper to prevent falls. For investment metamorphics to shift with your little weed, try www.flexa.dk.
For the big ticket items, examine what’s available second hand. Top quality items some other poor parent has to now shift can provide a triumphant bargain. Tightened up at the screws, with a new mattress and a coat of paint or varnish job, decked in fun linen, bunk beds and toddler beds are easily up-cycled. Try DoneDeal.ie, awash with unwanted put perfectly good used children’s accessories of all kinds.
TOUGH BUT TENDER
The right materials for floors and surfaces in a family house can make a huge difference in terms of aesthetic survival. Imagine the difference in a cup of blackcurrant cordial spattering a pale wool mix carpet and it hitting an area of linoleum. The latter is sheer ho-hum. When it comes to walls we all love the look but dread the smears — happily we are lucky enough to live in an age of washable mats, a superb paint choice for halls and living rooms where fingers trail and small feet occasionally scale the walls.
Woodwork will stand up best with a coat of gloss paint, acrylic versions being the most eco-friendly and healthy. Lose the carpet if you have the chance in favour of tough hardwood flooring, rubber tiles, cork (well sealed) or good quality water repellent laminate with islands of soft rugs set on non-slip webbing.
Hard flooring is not only easier to clean but won’t harbour the allergens that can make childhood respiratory problems an utter misery.
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