Colorful Playroom For The Whole Family

When our monkeys (aka Kiddos) are really little we want them to be able to play where we can see and hear them easily while we go about our daily routine. We also don’t want that toy mambo jambo to spread like a sickness all over the house! That means devoting a room or a space for them to play and retain/quarantine (call it what you will) all their dolls, trucks, Legos, books, puzzles, balls, annoying noise making singing/siren gadgets, etc. That’s kind of a bummer to give up valuable space in your house a kid zone… unless you make it dual purpose through smart organization and an elevated yet fun design!

This family had two very small girls (1 and 3 years old). We had just finished every other room in the house (foyer, dining, master, spare bedroom, study, and great room). All of the spaces were beautiful, easy to live in, super functional, and perfect for entertaining.  Why should the playroom be any different? The space was wonderfully full of light, open, and begging for attention!

TASK LIST:

1. Remove the current window valances & repaint the room airy cream color
2. Add curtain panels hanging on long rods
3. Big storage cabinet to store large toy items
4. Tall bookcase for easy access books, puzzles, etc.
5. Chair in the corner for reading
6. Large rug in colorful pattern
7. Large oversized artwork over the cabinet
8. Lamps: 2 table lamp & 1 floor lamp
9. Change ceiling fan

First I had all the old window valances removed and tossed out. We patched all the holes and painted the room a beautiful light cream color. I replaced the old white & gold ceiling fan with a dark brown fan that had better lighting. I wanted to treat the bank of windows as one massive windows instead of multiple windows so we hung long ready-made curtain panels at each corner on one super long rod. I love this rod from Lowes. We use many of their metal rods, especially when we need long rods. {TIP: Add 6”-8” to the width of your window to hang the curtains just outside the molding and let more light in. Always buy the rod that the length you need is NOT in the upper maximum length. This will prevent bowing in the center of the rod when you hang it.)

A super fun multi-color zigzag rug goes down. As you all know, I buy 90% of our rugs from Overstock. They are better priced than anyone and you can shop for the exact size and look you want without wasting your life away roaming from store to store. Plus they ship for $3 or LESS!

Storage is a MUST with kids and the younger they are, the bigger their toys are. Go figure! Tiny people = huge toys. Bigger people (like teens) = tiny toys. Alanis Morisette probably sang about that once. Anyhow, I found this amazing sideboard/cabinet at World Market and since the wall was so long, we could fit 2 side by side and gain even more storage!

Some toys can be out in the open and need to be. Nadeau is our go to shop for well-made painted wood furniture and once again we found a fabulous gray open bookcase that was perfect! Bins on the lower shelves keep smaller items like building blocks contained and toys, books, and puzzles can go on the upper shelves. The highest shelves are perfect for decorative items like picture frames. A wicker hamper on the left is ideal for storing dress up clothes.

For bedtime stories, we added a modern chair from HomeGoods in the corner with a floor lamp found at Target. The dark grey chair picks up on the grey cabinets and the bookcase while the cute blue pillow pulls from the rug’s pattern.

Last few details are artwork and lamps over the cabinets. After looking around a good bit, I scored these fantastic colored glass lamps along with a bold floral canvas at HomeGoods. I love how they both pull from the colors found in the rug! Yay!

The final result is one that works for the whole family! The girls have a fun and playful space with everything at their fingertips and room enough to play while Mom & Dad have a space they can extend any gathering in or just enjoy with the girls as a family. WIN WIN!