Room To Grow

When creating a dream nursery, you create a room to share with your baby that ultimately reflects your own taste. But kids grow up so fast, and soon, your bouncing baby has a personality of their own, and their space needs to adapt to their favorite things. Starting with a strong design style that is adaptable over the years gives your child a personal space they can live and grow in. 

“Children’s rooms are just so special,” says Katy Bell of Katy Bell Interiors, a Tennessee-based firm also serving the Emerald Coast. “I love the idea of a colorful room [with] some architectural elements, as well as some furniture that can grow and change.”

Convertible Furniture

Kids can be ready to move out of a crib between 18 months to 3 years old. A solid, classic convertible crib easily transitions into a toddler bed when the time comes. Some models even offer conversion kits to transform the toddler bed into a full-size bedframe, so it really does grow with your child. Let your child pick the bedding for their new “big kid” bed so they feel a part of the changing times.

Additionally, a dresser with a changing table attached is perfect for storing diapers, wipes, and clothes. When it’s no longer needed, the changing table top can be removed. Be sure to properly anchor the dresser to the wall to prevent it from tipping over.

Wall Color

Color psychology shows that soothing, cool tones on bedroom walls help to create a more serene environment for sleeping. Traditional light blue or soft pink, or a pale green, lilac or a light gray, even a soft white or cream shade can serve as a timeless, neutral background for a child’s room. Wall art, bedding, and other accents can provide pops of color that can be easily swapped out as a child ages and tastes change. 

Another option is wallpaper, either all-around or as an accent wall. Mural wallpaper features fanciful, colorful scenes and images designed especially for nurseries and children’s rooms, and you can build out from that design with décor elements that reflect the scene in the paper, such as stuffed animals, coordinating pillows and window treatments. 

Activity Space

A child’s room is not just for sleeping—play space is also essential. As your child gets older, the play area can morph into an activity area with the help of a small table. 

“Use that [table] to lay out a puzzle. Use that for a craft project,” Bell says. She suggests filling interesting containers with colored pencils, markers, or crayons and setting them out on the table to encourage creativity. 

Another way to stimulate creativity is to paint the closet door with chalkboard paint. Bell notes that “it’s functional because it’s a door to the closet, but chalkboard paint makes it easy to turn that into an art area.”

Book Nook

“The other thing that I think is really important is to create a cozy space for reading,” Bell says. “Reading books when they’re little is so important and then fostering that love of reading as they get older.” 

Ready-made bookcases lined up against the wall (and mounted safely) create a library effect. “If you want to add customization, you can always add trim to those bookcases, so they feel a little bit more built in,” she adds. 

Another option is, if possible, creating a window seat with storage underneath for toys or linens. Bookcases can be placed on either side to keep with the built-in library feel.

Let There Be Light

Kid’s room lighting can range from a simple flush-mount ceiling fixture to something with a whimsical theme—a sparkly chandelier, maybe, or a spaceship, depending on what the room is wired for. Simple lines fit in with any décor or theme. “You could even go a little modern, like a ‘Sputnik’ [style] to add a bit of fun but still keeping it classic,” Bell says.

 She also loves sconces for kids’ rooms. “Sconces are so easy because they don’t take up any physical space like a lamp would on a bedside table.” Plug-in varieties don’t need to be hard-wired into the wall, and the industrial look is a plus. “In the kid’s room, that [style] tends to contrast well with all the colorful toys and different forms. A clean sconce that’s maybe metallic, black, or brass plays well with almost everything and visually is not cluttering but still
super functional.”

Unique Storage

Kids have a lot of stuff. To avoid clutter and keep things semi-organized, storage solutions are a must. Baskets and other unique containers are great for keeping toys and other essentials out from underfoot. 

“My favorite storage is just tried and true—a large, lidded basket,” Bell says. “It looks pretty. It adds a woven texture, and it hides all the big, bulky multicolored toys.” Smaller baskets that fit on bookshelves are an attractive way to collect craft supplies or smaller loose items.