by Lois Breneman, © 2005, Heart to Heart
Summer is a time when you might want to get your children's input and help in sprucing up or redecorating their bedrooms. Even if you decide not to change the whole bedroom, you may want to incorporate at least one of these ideas into your children's bedrooms. Below are a few tips to consider. A good starting point is to discuss some ideas with your children and if they are old enough, let them be part of the planning and decorating.
A Beanbag Chair is extremely easy to make, with only three different pattern pieces. They make great gifts for kids - from toddlers up to and including college kids and married kids! Years ago I traced the three different pattern pieces from a large beanbag chair by simply laying newspaper (taped together) over it. It consists of 6 identical panels with a long heavy duty zipper, and 2 round ends. After sewing together, fill it with foam peanuts used for packing.
Room Darkening Shades will make it so much easier to sleep during daylight hours, as well as at night when children need to go to bed before dark. Even grownups can sleep better with darkening shades when bright lights from the neighbors are shining all night long.
Pretty Fabric Glued onto Shades will brighten up and add so much color to a bedroom.
Decorator Fabrics Can Be Glued to Walls, using liquid starch. It's easily removed and it doesn't damage the walls. Allow time to wash the walls when it's time to move out. The fabric can be reused as well. You can do just a panel for decoration or do a whole wall as if it was wallpaper. Solid or printed vinyls can also be held on the wall with push pins, though I wouldn't advise push pins be used if you have very young children who might pull one out and put into their mouths.
Paint Odor - A small paint bucket of water in room will help to dissipate the paint odor. Never use a large bucket of water, in case a small child might fall into it. Adding a little vanilla extract to the paint will also help and will not change the color.
A High Built-in Shelf around part of or all four bedroom walls, about a foot below the ceiling, is great to hold special dolls, trucks, stuffed animals, pictures, trophies, etc., and show a display your child's personality.
Tie the Theme Together with a Quilt and Painted Pictures to Frame - Paint pictures by copying simple pictures from coloring books or the wall border you are using. Recently my daughter painted and framed pictures of a train, car, airplane and tractor, copied from the border in her two year old son's new bedroom to help tie the theme together. My grandson loves anything with a motor and last month he was so thrilled to sit on his Uncle Paul's green John Deere tractor - with the engine running! He's still talking about his Great Uncle Paul! Soon I will be making him a bed quilt, using one or more of those favorite little boy designs, to help emphasize the theme of his room.
Favorite Story Books - Decorate your child's room using illustrations from children's books. Combine them in a collage, then mat and frame them. If you don't want to cut up books for this project, have color copies made. Front covers of several of your child's favorite books, such as "The Poky Little Puppy" make a great display on the wall.
Baby Cards - When our daughter was a baby, I made a collage from cutouts using many of her baby cards, arranging them onto a large posterboard, and gluing pink lace around the edge. It hung on her wall for quite a few years, as a reminder of those who were very glad she was born. You could do the same with your older child's birthday cards. For a boy, use a wide grosgrain ribbon, rather than lace.
Custom Borders - Postcards can be used to emphasize a specific theme! Soak the postcards first in plain water to remove the pictures from the backing, since they are too heavy to remain on the wall with wallpaper paste. Cut out and position your postcards to make an exciting and customized border. Wallpaper paste will finish the job!
Enjoy these three home decorating articles by the Budget Decorator, Kathleen Wilson!
5 TIPS FOR PRESCHOOLERS' BEDROOMS ON A BUDGET
by Kathleen Wilson - The Budget Decorator - Used by permission
Decorating on a budget can always be a challenge, but nowhere do our hearts yearn to provide a beautiful room as much as when it comes to our little ones. There are some great ideas you can do today, to punch up your preschooler's room, and keep the costs as little as they are!
1. Paint the room a wonderful, dreamy color. Soothing pool blues, apple greens, and soft yellows are great for a young one's restful spot. Make the colors too bright, and you will affect their ability to rest well as the colors will be too stimulating. Make them too pale pastel, and young ones have a hard time even registering them as colors! You can pick up a gallon of quality paint from your discount store for less than $10, which should cover the average bedroom, and make a quick and dramatic change in just a couple of hours. I recommend Dutch Boy paints for kids' rooms, as they are almost odorless.
2. Get craft foam from the craft store in varying colors, and cut out shapes according to your room's theme. The foam comes in sheets kind of like thick paper, cuts quite easily with scissors, and is brightly colored like a box of crayons! For instance, if your child loves trains and planes, cut out trains and planes! Learning to read? The alphabet! Trace from simple coloring books if you like. Now glue these shapes on the walls in a border or all over pattern. Quick, dramatic, cheap … and they will love it! (Can't glue? Use double sided tape!)
3. Pick up some cheap frames from the dollar shop, remove the glass for safety, and place pictures of your family, beloved pet, or even their own drawings right in their special place! It provides them with comfort when they are alone, and teaches them to value those close to them.
4. Keep an eye out for a low coffee table at yard sales. (Or maybe you have one in the garage?) Pick one up and paint it to match the room. This makes a great art table for kids …you would be surprised at how much time kids will spend being creative if only they had the materials available to them when the creative urge strikes! Cover empty wipe containers with contact paper, and keep full of washable crayons and chalk. Lay out paper for them each morning, and be ready for the masterpieces!
by Kathleen Wilson - The Budget Decorator - Used by permission
Decorating on a budget can always be a challenge, but nowhere do our hearts yearn to provide a beautiful room as much as when it comes to our little ones. There are some great ideas you can do today, to punch up your preschooler's room, and keep the costs as little as they are!
1. Paint the room a wonderful, dreamy color. Soothing pool blues, apple greens, and soft yellows are great for a young one's restful spot. Make the colors too bright, and you will affect their ability to rest well as the colors will be too stimulating. Make them too pale pastel, and young ones have a hard time even registering them as colors! You can pick up a gallon of quality paint from your discount store for less than $10, which should cover the average bedroom, and make a quick and dramatic change in just a couple of hours. I recommend Dutch Boy paints for kids' rooms, as they are almost odorless.
2. Get craft foam from the craft store in varying colors, and cut out shapes according to your room's theme. The foam comes in sheets kind of like thick paper, cuts quite easily with scissors, and is brightly colored like a box of crayons! For instance, if your child loves trains and planes, cut out trains and planes! Learning to read? The alphabet! Trace from simple coloring books if you like. Now glue these shapes on the walls in a border or all over pattern. Quick, dramatic, cheap … and they will love it! (Can't glue? Use double sided tape!)
3. Pick up some cheap frames from the dollar shop, remove the glass for safety, and place pictures of your family, beloved pet, or even their own drawings right in their special place! It provides them with comfort when they are alone, and teaches them to value those close to them.
4. Keep an eye out for a low coffee table at yard sales. (Or maybe you have one in the garage?) Pick one up and paint it to match the room. This makes a great art table for kids …you would be surprised at how much time kids will spend being creative if only they had the materials available to them when the creative urge strikes! Cover empty wipe containers with contact paper, and keep full of washable crayons and chalk. Lay out paper for them each morning, and be ready for the masterpieces!
5. Finally, make a little book corner for your little one. Even if they aren't reading yet, every small child should have the opportunity to spend time with books, and reliving the stories you read to them over and over! Place plastic crates on their side as bookshelves they can easily reach, and give them a soft spot to cuddle up, either with pillows on their bed, or a little beanbag chair in the corner. Yard sales are great places to pick up colorful books for just few pennies. And above all, find time to read to them each day in their special spot!
Just a few quick projects can enliven your kids imagination for years to come!
Kathy Wilson is an author, columnist, and editor of The Budget Decorator. For hundreds of free budget decorating ideas, and to sign up for her free online newsletter and free ebook, visit her at http://www.TheBudgetDecorator.com.
FANTASY ROOMS FOR KIDS UNDER $50
by Kathleen Wilson - Making memories for your kids - Used by permission
Decorating kids rooms on a budget can be challenging, to say the least. However, there are plenty of ways to create that dream domain for your little (or big) one, without sacrificing the college fund.
My first suggestion when decorating for children is don't do it without them. So many parents decorate for the way they envision the perfect room, only to have it backfire on them during the unveiling. Let the child become part of the process, and they will not only love the room they helped to create, but also they will have learned some valuable life tools as a bonus.
The next step is to organize. Kids are much more likely to keep their rooms picked up if there is a little bit of order. Cardboard boxes covered with contact paper, fabric drawstring bags made from scrap fabric, and zipper style bags (not with babies or toddlers) can all go a long way toward keeping things in their place. It's also not a bad idea to label drawers and storage areas for the little ones. It helps them to remember what goes where. If they are too young for reading, draw pictures.
by Kathleen Wilson - Making memories for your kids - Used by permission
Decorating kids rooms on a budget can be challenging, to say the least. However, there are plenty of ways to create that dream domain for your little (or big) one, without sacrificing the college fund.
My first suggestion when decorating for children is don't do it without them. So many parents decorate for the way they envision the perfect room, only to have it backfire on them during the unveiling. Let the child become part of the process, and they will not only love the room they helped to create, but also they will have learned some valuable life tools as a bonus.
The next step is to organize. Kids are much more likely to keep their rooms picked up if there is a little bit of order. Cardboard boxes covered with contact paper, fabric drawstring bags made from scrap fabric, and zipper style bags (not with babies or toddlers) can all go a long way toward keeping things in their place. It's also not a bad idea to label drawers and storage areas for the little ones. It helps them to remember what goes where. If they are too young for reading, draw pictures.
To start the decorating process, the first thing to do is to come up with a theme. Even if it is just a color scheme (although with kids, it seldom is), it gives you a blueprint. Remember to ask for your children's ideas here. Give them your guidelines, and then let their imaginations flow. You can then narrow it down to two selections, and help them decide which is best. Some great themes for kids' rooms include garden, jungle, space, cowboy, trucks and trains, fairies, teddies, favorite animal, letters and numbers, cityscape, farmyard. Okay, I could be here all day. You get the idea, try to use your child's natural personality to direct you.
How to do this all on a budget? Apply your chosen theme, then try these ideas:
1. Paint. If you can't afford to or don't want to paint the whole room, add a colorful painted border, use foam stamps to stamp a theme design, or stencil around windows and doorways. Painted murals are the way to a fantasy room on a budget. Huge impact, and they are much easier than you think! You can buy stencils or patterns online, or use a coloring book to copy designs onto the wall with pencil, then paint with craft paint. Think kid here. It doesn't have to be Divinci!
2. Add depth to your wall design. This gives a fantasy feel to the room. Use contact paper or craft foam cutouts, paint a simple mural over the wall, tack felt flowers in your "garden," decoupage computer cutouts onto the wall. Cut out a fairy castle out of plywood (or cardboard or foam core), paint, and create a headboard. Use ribbon and glue or tacks to create a chair rail. Glue hot wheels to the wall end to end all the way around the room. Just use your imagination! Use chalkboard paint and a box of colored chalk to inspire their artistic side. Use magnetic paint and create "game boards" around the room, pick up magnetic alphabets to play hangman, or glue magnetic strips to checkers to make game pieces. You get the idea.
3. If you can't afford to buy new bedding for the whole room, consider using sheets to make some pretty easy changes. Flat sheets can be purchased at discount stores for just a few dollars in several great colors, and can be used to easily create duvets for existing comforters, simple curtains, and custom pillowcases. If you don't sew, you can use iron on fusible tape. Purchase the heavy-duty variety. Leave one end open to insert the old comforter, then secure with Velcro, or sew ribbon to each side and tie closed. Forget paying $20 a piece for pillow shams, they are easy to make for just $1 or $2.
4. Finally, add some personal touches. Make a simple throw pillow with their name in fabric marker, create a sign for them to hang on their door, or simply pick up some dollar shop frames and let them hold family memories close to their heart.
A word about teen rooms. This is one of the most common questions I hear from parents, "How do I decorate a teen's room?" The answer is simple. However they want within reason. I still feel parents should place conditions on how a room is decorated. It is your house, after all. For instance, my rule was no black walls. (And no permanent anything without approval!) But the fact of the matter is that teens either want a very adult room or a room that is totally not what any adult would want. And they won't be happy with anything less. So, within reason, let them call the shots. Just make sure you can close the door when company arrives.
5. Organize. You don't have to buy expensive storage cubes for your kids' rooms. Covered boxes, sewn drawstring bags from extra material, even an old suitcase under the bed make good storage. A wall of simple metal-strip utility shelving (they sell it in white, as well) can accommodate a large amount of stuff, especially for the older kids, and is relatively cheap at home improvement stores. I save old baby-wipe containers to store crayons, hot wheels, and that endless supply of useless toys from the fast food joints! You can cover them with contact paper. Try labeling what goes where, even for the older kids, so there is no arguing about what "putting it away" really means! Sturdy cardboard boxes covered with contact paper, fabric, or giftwrap from the dollar shop can be set on their sides, stacked and even attached together to make cubbies.
Finally, remember that you are making memories for your kids, not the neighbors. Bedrooms should be very personal affairs, so let your child feel his/her hearts desire in their special place, and not have to worry about what people will say if it's not the Barbie or Hot Wheels room like the kid down the street. Enjoy yourself, and give them the fantasy room of their dreams with your heart, not your wallet.
__________
Kathleen Wilson is an author, national columnist, and editor of The Budget Decorator. For more free decorating ideas on a budget, visit her at www.TheBudgetDecorator.com. Don't forget to sign up for her free email newsletter while you're there!
Kathleen Wilson is an author, national columnist, and editor of The Budget Decorator. For more free decorating ideas on a budget, visit her at www.TheBudgetDecorator.com. Don't forget to sign up for her free email newsletter while you're there!
TEEN ROOMS ON THE CHEAP!
by Kathy Wilson - The Budget Decorator ~ Used by permission
How to decorate a teen's bedroom is one of the most common questions I receive. Especially for those on a budget, this can seem like a daunting task! Never fear, The Budget Decorator is here!
Teen rooms are different for kids' rooms in that they should be treated more like an adult space, but with a fun flair. Involve your child and come up with a theme that helps to express who they are. (NOT what you want for them!) Be sure to give the theme a name, even if it's something like "Modern Plush in Blue", or "Country Princess!" Whatever will give it life!
Let your teen choose their colors, but give them some guidance. Buy a decorating magazine, and have them choose a color theme out of the pages, or surf decorating sites on the Internet. That way, they feel they have chosen themselves, but you are assured you two have chosen a proven color scheme.
by Kathy Wilson - The Budget Decorator ~ Used by permission
How to decorate a teen's bedroom is one of the most common questions I receive. Especially for those on a budget, this can seem like a daunting task! Never fear, The Budget Decorator is here!
Teen rooms are different for kids' rooms in that they should be treated more like an adult space, but with a fun flair. Involve your child and come up with a theme that helps to express who they are. (NOT what you want for them!) Be sure to give the theme a name, even if it's something like "Modern Plush in Blue", or "Country Princess!" Whatever will give it life!
Let your teen choose their colors, but give them some guidance. Buy a decorating magazine, and have them choose a color theme out of the pages, or surf decorating sites on the Internet. That way, they feel they have chosen themselves, but you are assured you two have chosen a proven color scheme.
Now, use these quick ideas for transforming your teen's room, on the cheap!
1. PAINT!!! Perhaps a teen's room is the most important room you could consider painting. Teens are very sensitive to color, and they are much more free with their sense of adventure. Use a bolder color on the wall behind the bed, and you have instant drama and a great focal point! (Teens LOVE instant gratification, the paint will be one of their favorite parts of the decorating project!) Cost of paint: around $12.
2. Bedding. The bed is usually the focal point of the room, and a favorite hangout spot for teens to read, do their fingernails, talk on the phone. So it definitely deserves some attention. An easy way to update bedding on a budget is to create covers for the old comforters. You can do this quite easily with two flat sheets the same bedding size as the comforter. Flat sheets are cheap, you can pick up twin size at your local discount store for less than $5! Sew the sheets wrong sides together on three sides, leaving one short side open. Turn right side out, then add Velcro, ribbons, or snaps to the inside of the short end. Insert the old comforter, and close! Easy, quick, and cheap! Throw pillows can easily be made out of flat sheets as well. Try using bright, funky colors on the bedding to make a real statement. Cost of four twin sheets for comforter cover and pillow? $20.
3. Windows. Light control and privacy can best be met in a teen's room with vinyl mini blinds. They are cheap, and easily replaceable. If an extra boost of color or softness is desired, add simple curtain panels over the blinds. Keep it simple here, fussiness is rarely a quality teens are looking for in their rooms. Remember those cheap sheets? These are great for sewing curtains because of their large size. No piecing panels of fabric together. You also don't need to worry about quality of fabric as much as color. After all, the blinds are really providing the light control. Cost of sheets or blinds? Less than $10.
4. Accessories. Punch up a teen's room with some funky details to add drama and style. Pick up some cool (and maybe a little tacky) fringe or beading from the clearance table at the craft store, and glue around the bottom edge of the lampshade, the hems of the curtains, even onto shelf edging. Save all those free CD's from Aol and the like, and then turn them over to the clean side and glue to the frame of a mirror, or to cover a closet door. Glue together in an overlapping fashion to make faux frames for all your kids' inevitable posters. Pick up wooden letters from the craft store in their initials, or to create a significant word or phrase. Then paint them one of the brighter accent colors of the room and hang over the bed, window, or doorway. Use old sports equipment picked up at a yard sale as curtain rods, hat racks, or magazine holders. Even hung on the wall as an art grouping, sports memorabilia can be meaningful for a sports buff. Total cost? Can be done for less than $15.
5. Finally, personality. Inject your child's own special personality into his special place. Hang those ribbons and certificates, frame a few personal photos of family vacations, or find a shelf for those special stuffed animals they aren't quite ready to part with just yet. Use this opportunity to recognize your child's individual gifts, and celebrate them. Cost? Not a thing. As the commercial goes; Memories? Priceless.
___________
Kathy Wilson is an author, columnist, and editor of The Budget Decorator. For hundreds of free budget decorating ideas, and to sign up for her free online newsletter and free ebook, visit her at http://www.TheBudgetDecorator.com.
No comments:
Post a Comment