Designing a Playful Bedroom
This mother of two young boys wanted a shared bedroom that offered smart, affordable storage solutions and space to play.
18/11/2018
ikea
This mother of two young, active boys wanted to re-design their bedroom to incorporate plenty of affordable storage solutions, with space to play freely and let their imaginations run wild. With an interest in animals and nature, and working with a designer, low cost storage solutions were looked at for the bedroom, and character and colour introduced using fabrics and textiles.
Growing boys need plenty of space, and this working mom wanted a bedroom that would also double up as a playroom. Nina was adamant that the room needed plenty of storage, but this had to be affordable, practical, and also complement the furniture already in the room.
The first solution for the bedroom was to look at storage. Since there was very little storage already in the room, a wall of pine shelves were made to accommodate assorted plastic storage bins. The storage shelves are very simple to assemble and are designed around the size of plastic bins that can be fitted within the frame. The shelves themselves were securely fastened to the wall, while the storage bins can be moved to let the boys carry their toys from room to room without any hassle.
Since the boys share a fairly large bedroom, there was plenty of space to incorporate playtime. It's not always easy to create a harmonious shared bedroom, but you can experiment with a suitable layout that will encourage togetherness as well as private time. To allow for quite time, an area was created at the front of the bedroom to take advantage of deep set bay windows. This area can be easily closed off to create a quiet reading corner or a private den.
For a fun element, washi tape was used to bring walls and floors into play for fun activities using a bean ball. On the wall above the storage shelves numbered triangles turn math into a fun game, while a taped-out hopscotch game provides lots of fun and encourages motor skills. With technology playing a major role in children's lives these days, sometimes it's nice to go back to traditional values and old fashioned games.
The bedding and fabrics in the room were an easy choice, since both boys love animals and nature. Spending a lot of time outdoors, mom shopped around for linen and curtains that would add colour and interest to the otherwise neutral bedroom. Most of the furniture is pine, which is great if you want to add your own pieces later on. Keeping
it neutral also means that mom can swap out linens anytime the boys get bored with the look and want something fresh.
