Tag: kids rooms

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Bedrooms Kids Rooms

Inside Be My Baby author’s daughter’s nursery

Today, Be My Baby author Laura Greaves shares her daughter’s animal-themed nursery. We love how colourful and fun it is!

laura greaves nursery

Mark and Laura Greaves, who live on Sydney’s Northern Beaches, knew they were having a girl when they started decorating but, far from reaching for the pink and frilly, they went for something a little more eclectic. “All white, minimalist kids’ rooms are not for me,” Laura says. “I initially wanted the room to have a dog theme, but as it came together that expanded and evolved to include all types of animals; it has a bit of a zoo vibe now I think!

“It was also really important to me that the room be tactile and enticing for little fingers to explore, so there’s a whole range of different textures from the fluffy sheepskin rug to the smooth wood and velvet upholstery on the rocking chair. One of her favourite things is lying on her change table and running her hands over the raised polka dots on the curtains.”

laura greaves nursery 2

Laura didn’t want to spend too much on the basics (I”’d rather blow my budget on adorable clothes for her!”), so she repurposed and upcycled a few things. The chest of drawers, for example, was once bathroom storage, and the vintage rocker was a wedding anniversary gift to Laura from husband Mark. He bought it on Gumtree, then restored and reupholstered it himself. Impressive or what?

Laura already had two “fur children” and she splashed out on a custom mobile depicting Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retrievers Tex and Delilah! The plain Ikea wardrobes’ doors will soon be papered with her latest purchase: Thibault’s Best in Show wallpaper.

dog mobile

“It’s funny because, in my book, the heroine has to pull a nursery together out of nowhere when she suddenly finds herself having to care for her best friend’s baby – she borrows a lot of stuff and comes up with a few, er, creative design solutions! I always thought I’d be a bit haphazard myself when it came to creating my baby’s nursery, as the rest of my house is what I like to call accidental chic, so I was a little surprised to find I had quite a specific vision from the word go.”

Although the pair knew they were having a girl, they didn’t want anyone else to know! “I knew people would want to see the nursery as it came together, and I didn’t want to give away her gender by having lashings of pink everywhere! The few pink accents I did have in the room before she was born I would stash in the cupboard whenever anyone came over! Green is my favourite colour and I knew even before we found out the baby’s sex that I wanted a green cot, so the colour palette developed around that.”

toller

Just not interested in any of that that “pink is for girls nonsense,” Laura thought it more important that the room be filled with things she loves, and that she thinks her daughter will love, regardless of gender associations. “If she adores princesses and party dresses as she grows up then that’s fine by me, but I don’t ever want her to think she has to conform to some narrow idea of what femininity is.”

Laura says the room feels warm and inviting, and also interesting. “There’s quirky details everywhere you look. It feels like a very personal space to me. Although at the moment it’s mostly a reflection of my personality, I’ll encourage her to put her own stamp on her bedroom as she grows up. The nursery is also very light and spacious, which I love. That’s one of the advantages of living in an Art Deco house: huge windows!”

Where to buy:

  • Mocka Aspiring Cot in green, $169.95 (currently out of stock). Also available in white and can be converted to a toddler bed with a conversion kit.
  • Debbie Kendall Enlightened Hound (dog-inspired typography) prints via Etsy.
  • Custom dog mobile, made by Miranda Rommel and based on the pair’s dogs Tex and Deliliah, from Fiber Friends Online.

Laura’s first book, Be My Baby, was published by Destiny Romance this week. Available via Amazon, Kobo and Google Play.

BMB_Hi-res

 

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Furniture Homewares Kids Rooms

Up to 70% off kids’ furniture and linen at Lilly & Lolly sale

For one-week only, kid’s furniture and linen brand, Lilly & Lolly, are having a mega sale at their Sydney and Melbourne stores.

lilly & lolly
Starting tomorrow (31 May 2014), bargains on offer will include 70% off clearance linen, 50% off selected sheet sets, 25% off doona covers, pillow cases and cushions and 10% off beds.

Inspired by two mums who wanted to keep their kids’ bedroom doors open, Lilly & Lolly have all the products you need to make a kid’s room chic and sophisticated, and loved by both parent and child.

WHERE?

Sydney
: 1st Floor, PYD Building, 197 Young St, Waterloo. 

Melbourne
: 61 Cardigan Place, Albert Park

Categories
Homewares Kids Rooms

8 accessories for the ultimate tween bedroom

Designing a tween bedroom can be hard. Having a 12 year-old sister myself, I’m well aware of the need for things not to be babyish. Because let’s be honest, no one wants to be on the receiving end of that scrunched up nose, ‘What were you thinking?’ expression when you bring them home something new!

Hopefull, these beautiful products will help (and I even got my sister to give them a once over and in her words: “They’re so cool!“).

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Clockwise from top left

1. Clam Lamp, $155, from Have You Met Miss Jones.

2. Studio Lisa Bengtsson Hugo Poster (A3), $35 (also available in A4), from Norsu.

3. Dorte Agergaard Water 50cmx50cm cushion cover, $95, from Norsu.

4. Keep Calm and Listen to Music, $16.95 (also avaliable is 50+ different phrases and colours), from KeepCalmShop.

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Clockwise from top left

1. Sir Stag Small Wood, $19.95 (also available in five other patterns), from Typo.

2. Daisy Peace Giant Wall Flag, $399.95, from Blacklist.

3. Bolivian Frazada Rug/Blanket, $298, from Leif.

4. Melway Removal Mural Manly, $619.95 (available in your choice of address within Melbourne, Sydney and Brisbane), from The Wall Sticker Company.

Categories
Kids Rooms

8 smart tips for designing the perfect kid’s bedroom

A bedroom makeover can be tricky. You have to consider theming, colour selection and personal style, as well as available space and budget considerations.

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Forty Winks Saturn Bunk

And when the bedroom you’re making over is your child’s, everything gets a whole lot more complicated!

Here are some top tips on creating a child’s bedroom that is not only a good place for sleeping, but for entertaining and working as well:

  1. When preparing for a makeover or update, it’s important parents include their child in the planning process in order for them to fashion their own individual style to create a room they’ll love spending time in.
  2. Encourage your child to choose a theme or colour scheme that is reflective of their personality and that they’ll love for years to come.
  3. Regardless of room size or budget, there are clever ways to update the bedroom without spending a fortune. If restricted by space, consider furniture or bed suites that feature clever inbuilt storage solution for those tighter room dimensions.
  4. There are various bed options available that will sleep a child from their first ‘grown up’ bed through to their teens. This means that they can maintain the same bed as they grow and will save money over the course of their development.

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    Forty Winks Aztec Cabin Bunk
  5. Bunk beds have become increasingly popular over the past 12-to-18 months with an even greater variety of styles and options available, including bunks with work stations and added storage.
  6. Innovative products such as King Koil Breathe Active and King Koil Breathe Energy mattresses, provide chiropractic support for your child. Endorsed by the National Asthma Council Australia, they also feature breathable technology for added protection.
  7. For those children that suffer from bed wetting, Protectabed is an easy to fit mattress protector. It’s ideal in any situation requiring waterproof protection including bed wetting and toilet training. It also features hygienic and anti-allergy technology that is absorbent and breathable.

    Forty Winks Dakota Suite (linen by Aura)
    Forty Winks Dakota Suite (linen by Aura)
  8. To add the finishing touches, bed linen and accessories such as pillows, rugs and throws are a great way to introduce bursts of colour.

— Wayne Borg is Forty Winks‘ national merchandise coordinator.

Categories
Bedrooms Homewares Kids Rooms

10 great finds for kids rooms you can buy online

I love the personalised name pillowcases from Little Louli. Hand screenprinted and $35 each.

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Fromage La Rue’s new, smaller letter lights, Petite Vegas, are not quite available yet but you can get your name on the waiting list for your little person’s letter (or indeed your own initial!). They’re about 30cm high and with safe, low voltage LED lights, perfect for a night light. They’ll be $150 with free shipping.

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The new Cotton On Kids bed linen is fun, very affordable and available to buy online.

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Shop at Sydney’s My Bespoke Chair for a custom chair (and even coordinating cushion) for your little prince or princess. You can even design it yourself online with their clever tool. From  $850 with free delivery.

Cupcakes chair and cushion with Megan Hess book and ceramic rabbit

If I had a child, they’d have one of these Incy Interiors beds. I just love the rose gold version as it’ll go with most colour schemes and I mean really, what kid wouldn’t want a gold bed?! From $649 for a single, it’s a great update of a classic shape.

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I’ve been a big fan of Aura linen for a long time, so I was happy to see they now do all their quilt covers in kid-friendly single size too. The brand does mix and match so well, you’re bound to find a cool combo for your kid! PERFECT for tweens and teens too.

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These gold foiled prints from Papier d’Amour would look great in a child’s bedroom. $30 unframed or $80 framed. Buy online.

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little-miss-sunshine-pinkArmadillo & Co are pretty much Aussie rug royalty and if you’ve got money to spend, you should definitely consider something from their Junior Collection. They’re not too childish so they could easily take a child from toddler to teen years. From $255.

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These colourful wire baskets from Lilly & Lolly are brilliant for chucking toys or laundry into and come in a variety of colours and sizes. From $22.

The Booksee is a great way to display kids books, making reading appealing and adding colour and interest to their walls. $199 for a set of two from Ubabub.

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What are your favourite places to shop for kids rooms? I’d love to hear about them.

Categories
Kids Rooms

Children’s wall stickers without the cliché

When illustrator Talya Baldwin went shopping for children’s wall stickers, she was inundated with graphics of hearts and text like “Mummy’s little princess’. There was nothing she wanted to put in her own child’s bedroom, so rather than complain, she decided to create her own.

dunnock and teal

In partnership with her designer husband Mark Rochester, Dunnock & Teal was born. Together, they create hand drawn vinyl stickers with pens and pencils, giving them a unique depth, texture and detail.

Working from a studio in England’s West Yorkshire (don’t worry, they ship to Australia) all designs are created in-house before being sent to the printers and turned into removable stickers.

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The current sticker range is based on the childhood classic Thumbelina, a tale that has a special place in Talya’s heart. “As a child, I had a big book of illustrated fairy tales. It now belongs to my little girl! I often realise when I’m halfway through a drawing that it has been inspired, at least partly, by that book.”

After the success of the Thumbelina collection, a new pirate range is set to be released soon. Shipping to Australia is £8 ($15AUD). Shop online.

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Bedrooms House Tours Kids Rooms

Real rooms: A stylish nursery that both mum and child will love

Designing a nursery that’s stylish rather than babyish is no mean feat, but one that Shah Bahpyu has certainly managed.

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Shah, whose daughter Helaina is seven months old, spent three months creating a contemporary space that was clean, fresh and uncluttered, but also contained some meaningful pieces.

With a soft pink and grey colour palette, her favourite features are the black and white photographs of Helaina’s grandparents, the Helaina in Wonderland art created by her godfather and the pink princess pedal car.

Helaina nursery pic2

And while it looks beautiful now, it wouldn’t be true home design if there hadn’t been some hurdles to begin with. “I was stuck for ages until I came across the wallpaper, then I knew exactly what to do,” explains Shah. “I find that I always struggle in the beginning to find a jumping off point, but once I find it the rest always falls into place relatively easily.”

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While Shah doesn’t currently work in interior design, the process has inspired the possibility of a career change. Now that she’s successfully designed her own, nurseries have become an area of interest, in particular designing a room that is pleasing to both mother and child.

“My husband and I always joked that babies didn’t understand anything and parents decorated nurseries for themselves, but once she came along, my feelings changed. I wanted her to have a great room, and yes I’ll admit I designed the room for me too!”

You can read more about Shah’s designing adventures on her blog Hammer and Heels.

Photography by Andrew Campbell.

Categories
Bedrooms Expert Tips Kids Rooms

Colour blocking kids rooms for dummies

Source: Very Rosenberry

By Maya Savanovich

Colour blocking is a new trend in home decor; making use of two or three harmonious colours that look great together, then repeating them throughout the decor theme.

very rosenberry
Source: Very Rosenberry

A kid’s room is perfect for trying colour blocking, giving it a stylish, colourful and playful look and feel. The dynamic result adds a fun element, with the added bonus of having your child happier about spending more time in there. If you’d like to try colour blocking in your child’s room, here are some ideas to get you started:

Be brave and bold with colours

A combination of blue, green and an unexpected orange can result in a striking look. The trick is to work with colours that are close to each other on the colour wheel for a balanced harmonious look, or those that are opposite to each other for a dramatic contrasting look.

Source: Diigo. Link: https://www.diigo.com/item/p/qqasasezbspsrqdbezbcpobbor
Source: Diigo

You don’t have to go overboard to achieve colour blocking

Paint the walls in a bold colour. Then create one accent wall (for example the wall behind the bed or the wall with the bookshelves and study table unit) by either painting the entire wall in a different colour, or choosing artwork to achieve the same result. Let the same colours be used for upholstery fabrics, curtains and bed linen to get the perfect colour blocking scheme.

The good thing about colour blocking is that you can choose as many colours as you want and still achieve a sense of balance by using accessories like pillows, cushions, rugs, toy storage units and books to unite the many shades together. If the feature walls are a bright, funky colour like violet or yellow, the storage units can be infused with splashes of contrasting colours that complement each other.

Source: Very Rosenberry
Source: Very Rosenberry

If you think that incorporating your child’s favourite colours into the decor is becoming too bright, try to throw in some neutrals to achieve a sense of balance. Neutral coloured furniture, accessories and decorative items can help tone it down.

Source: Very Rosenberry
Source: Very Rosenberry

If you are new to playing with colours and aren’t sure about painting the walls in a bright colour or picking colourful furniture, you can also achieve colour blocking with accessories. If the furniture and walls are a neutral colour, try a bright, fun patchwork rug that covers the floor in blocks of rich colours. Then choose accessories like pillows, cushions, toy storage units, books and graffiti artwork in matching colours to let the theme run throughout the room.

Source: Very Rosenberry
Source: Very Rosenberry

Maya Savanovich loves writing about fashion, weddings and interior design (especially about kids’ rooms). A mother of two little rascals, she spent a lot of time decorating their rooms before deciding to try colour blocking in daughter Ania’s room. She also works for Bambinohome. 

Categories
Kids Rooms

Screenprinted-to-order linen for kids rooms

I’m often told there’s not much cool stuff for kids rooms out there so when I find some, I make sure to share it!

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Little Louli is very cute bed linen for children, screenprinted to order in Australia, by former women’s fashion designer, Lucy Miller.

Continue reading “Screenprinted-to-order linen for kids rooms”

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Bedrooms

Kids’ bedroom decorating workshop in Brisbane

Photo by Anastasia Kariofyllidis

Interior stylist Tahn Scoon, author of New Vintage: the Handmade Home, is running a workshop on 1 March called Decorating Kids’ Rooms and Family Spaces.

Photo by Anastasia Kariofyllidis
Photo by Anastasia Kariofyllidis

Learn tips and tricks for how to create gorgeous interiors for children and families on any budget.

Continue reading “Kids’ bedroom decorating workshop in Brisbane”

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Designers Expert Tips House Tours Kids Rooms The Block

At home with The Block judge Darren Palmer, and living with pets and kids

Jen and Darren

With a four year-old, two dogs and a cat, interior designer and The Block judge Darren Palmer knows a thing or two about keeping his home looking stylish and organised but still, of course, fun!

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I was lucky enough to have a look around his new Paddington home recently. Although he has some ambitious renovation plans for the future, its character features mean it’s full of charm and warmth. Great bones!

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Dogs Doris and Pepi and Charlotte the cat follow Darren around like Dr Dolittle and son Hugo’s lego can be seen peeking out from under the coffee table, but this is not a home full of plastic or mess and there’s definitely no doggy smell. So, I sat down with Darren and asked him how he does it and if the house is always so suspiciously tidy?

Continue reading “At home with The Block judge Darren Palmer, and living with pets and kids”

Categories
Bedrooms

10 fun ways to update a child’s room by PottyMouthMama

By Lexi Kentmann

I am a massive fan of colour. I think it helps lift your mood, makes life more fun, and in a kid’s room – it’s a no-brainer. Kids naturally love colour.

My approach to kids rooms? It’s pretty relaxed. I’m not matchy-matchy, and I love collecting bits and pieces that tell a story, or have a function. I am huge on products that do double-duty (like a stool also acting as a bedside table), I’m not a fan of treading on LEGO, and I adore storage. Because let’s face it – when you have kids – you need storage. And lots of it. I’m not into licensed kids products. Gosh. No siree. However my kids ARE. So where possible, I steer them away from that stuff, and into good stuff. Non-merch stuff.

1. Giant Corn Cob Stool from Third Drawer Down: 

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Look – I adore the big things Australia has. The Big Banana, The Big Pineapple, The Big Ram, The Big Prawn. For so, so long I have adored this! It’s fun, quirky, and certainly not something you’ll see in everyone’s home. What’s not to love about an oversized corn cob that you can sit on and do story time on. Plus I think just as it might appeal to a small person – I can easily imagine this being quite at home in a teenager’s bedroom.

2. Kip and Co pretzel sheet set: 

These pretzels don’t make you thirsty – and if they do, don’t come out and ask for a glass of water 76 times stalling bedtime. As a kid I always loved having my own special sheets. These are SO on my wish list! Of course for my daughter’s room *cough*, and not mine.

Continue reading “10 fun ways to update a child’s room by PottyMouthMama”

Categories
Kids Rooms

Product picks for an eco-friendly kids room

By Emma McDonald

With the rise of the more conscious, sustainable consumer — think fair trade, organic and environmentally friendly — some talented interior designers have been busy turning their creative minds to designing products with this ethos in mind. There are some truly beautiful homeware products available today, created by designers who place sustainability and fabulous design on equal footing.

We decided to go shopping, and style an eco-friendly kids bedroom. By sourcing sustainable products, not only are you purchasing a beautiful and often unique piece, but you’re purchasing their story, and we love our products having good ones. So happy shopping, conscious shopper. Your kids’ bedroom will look amazing!

For the floor

Armadillo & Co are an Australian rug company who create wonderful floor coverings. Their artisan weavers are seen as integral part of their design process, using generations old, hand weaving techniques. As well as providing fair trade working conditions for their weavers, they also support education programs for the children in the villages. The Armadillo & Co Junior Collection comes in a range of bright, wonderful colours.

Armadillo-kids

Junior Collection Carnival Stripe in Orange and Junior Collection Braid Weave in Pink

Continue reading “Product picks for an eco-friendly kids room”

Categories
Kids Rooms

Big kids’ spaces

By Simone Lenneberg

Two things I remember being the most excited about upon hearing the news I was expecting: the first (obviously) the baby, and the second, the new design world opening up for me when decorating said new arrival’s room.

As keen lovers of design, particularly vintage and modern retro pieces, my husband and I couldn’t believe the number of cool pieces (furniture, lighting, artwork, you name it) that could meet our brief and that we also liked!

We steered away from the typically childlike options out there and set out to find a number of key pieces that would sit comfortably in a kid’s space, but reflected our own taste and eye for design. What’s more, we wanted to be able to reuse these pieces in other parts of our house when junior grew out of his younger space and progressed to the next stage.

The trick is to select a number of statement pieces that work well with children’s items such as objects, toys, bright patterned bedding and cushions, but keep the right balance of their personality and yours.

Here are a few ideas…

1. Vintage storage

The classic lines of this minimalist yet modern Henrik sideboard by Matt Blatt would be at home in any boy’s or girl’s room storing toys, books, even clothing, but could also feature in a dining space, hallway or study. Its clean lines, vintage shape and neutral colours make this piece a winner. A vintage sideboard or tallboy from your local antique shop would work equally well.

MattBlatt sideboard

Continue reading “Big kids’ spaces”

Categories
Kids Rooms

BedNest and Cultiver team up on kids bedheads and linen

Bednest, home of upholstered bedheads, and linen brand Cultiver, have collaborated on a classy and classic children’s range.

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Wanting to offer an alternative to parents tired of the garish colours and clunky bed designs crowding the childrens’ market, Nicky Line of BedNest and Nicolle Sullivan of Cultiver joined forces to come up with something altogether more sophisticated but kid-sized.

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Categories
Bedrooms Styling

Learn how to decorate your kids’ bedrooms from Megan Morton and Arent & Pyke

If you’re ready to tackle your kids’ rooms once and for all and are up for an intensive all-you-need-to-know, three-hour decorating workshop with stylist Megan Morton and interior designers Arent & Pyke, clear your diary for Thursday night! Megan fans will know she has just launched her latest book on the topic, I Love My Room, and Juliette Arent and Sarah-Jane Pyke are a mum-to-be and a mum-of-one respectively, as well as being award-winning interior designers.

megan morton i love my room 1

“What this is not is a repeat of the book in any way, nor is it a master class,” says Megan. “What it is is a potentially house-changing decorating workshop dedicated to one of the most hazardous rooms in the house — your kid’s bedroom!”

megan morton i love my room 2

This class will cover the pitfalls and the opportunities of kids rooms. “Children’s bedrooms are loaded with trapdoors, as anyone who lives with them well knows! Explore the potential of yours with a class that talks to all age groups, styles and budgets. How to make the most of the area, how to avoid common traps and how to think like a kids room decorator are all covered,” Megan explains. Special guests Arent & Pyke will show and share their best ideas for rooms that can work for all budgets. “All in all it will be inspiring, great learning and could potentially save you hundreds of decorating dollars on the real rooms of the house!”

Continue reading “Learn how to decorate your kids’ bedrooms from Megan Morton and Arent & Pyke”

Categories
Bedrooms Kids Rooms Styling

Megan Morton’s new book for magical kids’ rooms

I don’t have kids, but stylist Megan Morton does, and she can often be found creating magical experiences for other people’s little ones at The School too. On this basis (and the fact her last two books were fabulous) I was pretty sure I Heart My Room, a book about children’s bedrooms, would be great fun. And it is. 

Kids’ bedrooms can be a series of challenges and charms from precious first drawings to piles of toys and dirty washing. I Heart My Room showcases the charms and presents solutions for the challenges. It’s keeping it real and I love that.

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Rather than a collection of immaculate children’s rooms created by interior designers, the pages are filled with spaces which celebrate the young occupants themselves. From whimsical nurseries to expressive teen rooms, you will find clever storage methods and inspiring ideas on how to decorate in a way that is true to your child’s personality. And if you can’t have fun with kids’ rooms, when can you?

Continue reading “Megan Morton’s new book for magical kids’ rooms”