Guest Post: Decorating a Boy's Bedroom with Blues

This guest post on decorating a boy's bedroom is by Stacy Watts. She loves using blue for boys' rooms, and why shouldn't she?  Even though I went for more neutral yellows and greens for my own boys, it was hard to resist blue, one of my favorite colors.  Take it away, Stacy!

There is no end to a child’s imagination. Why not decorate a child's room to reflect that? Children’s rooms are probably the best places to go the furthest in expressing their creativity. By borrowing ideas from favorite children’s books and movies, you can create an amazing setting for your child to grow up in. In order to do that, the basic elements you can use are:

• vibrant colors
• wall murals or decals
• big plush toys
• fun-shaped furniture
• other cute objects that will set the right mood for a boy’s room.

Though some people are not fans of clichés like “pink is for girls, blue is for boys,” can you think of a better color for a boy’s room than blue? Neither can I. Blue is the color of two things covering the biggest areas on Earth - the sky and the sea. That’s where all the adventure happens!

Creative Ways to Decorate Your Boy’s Room:

The Sky

 

The first step to creating a cozy place for your little pilot is to paint his room light blue. Choose a color that will go well with the bed, closet and other pieces. You can paint some clouds and birds on the walls, too. If you’re feeling adventurous about the project, you can decorate your child’s room in the following manner:

• Place your child’s cradle or bed next to the wall and paint a huge airship above it, as if your child’s bed is hanging from it.

Image by Decodice

• Buy a rug that depicts a town, so that it looks like your child is flying and seeing the city from above.
• Find a lamp in the shape of the sun, or paint the sun on one of the walls.
• Place cute plush toys around the room.

The Sea

Creating a sea world in your boy’s room is similar to the “sky” idea. You’ll also paint the walls blue, but instead of birds you’ll have paintings or decals of sea animals on the walls. Clown fish, jellyfish, dolphins, crabs, coral reefs and other wonderful creatures can all dance on the sea-blue walls.

What you’ll need to order to have specially made are:

• A boat-shaped bed, with mattress and soft blue bed covers from memoryfoamexpress.
• A stroller with a blue float on its upper part.
• Fish toys hanging from the ceiling.
• If the boy is not too young, an Air Swimmer would be an excellent addition to the room’s collection of wonders.

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If these ideas seem too extreme, you can just go for a quieter option and use blue curtains, rug and bed sheets to make the room handsome, calming and sleep-friendly. You can cover the walls with murals of animals or popular cartoon characters while leaving enough space for your child to express himself through painting.

 

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Last But Not Least

 

If you can get a nice big fish tank for your child’s bedroom, it could probably be the most interesting blue element in there. If your boy is still a baby, he will enjoy watching the fish swim in circles, which might even be a way to calm him down before bed. If your child is a big boy, he can practice caring for others by feeding the fish and cleaning the fish tank.

 

No matter what option you go for, the color blue will make sure your child has the most wonderful dreams in his personalized space.

 

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Decorate Your Child's Bedroom Cost-effectively, with an Eye on the Future

This guest post comes at a great time, as I’m currently decorating the nursery for our second child. (See the latest installment on how it’s going.) Lisa Jolan writes about many different topics, from home interior to sports, and keeps a blog on home interior tips. Here she doles out her best tips for decorating a child’s bedroom in a lasting, cost-effective way that won’t leave you replacing expensive furniture every few years. I used some of these strategies while decorating Nathan’s nursery and updating it recently for toddlerhood. They really work, so enjoy!

When it comes time to decorate a bedroom for a child, there are all sorts of ideas and techniques to build upon. It’s especially helpful to employ decorating strategies that make it easier to make changes to the room as he or she gets older. Here are some great ways to decorate from birth to the teenage years without completely overhauling the bedroom for each age transition.

Buy furniture to last from infancy to adulthood

The easiest stages to decorate for are infancy and the toddler stage. The furniture needed for a comfortable and cozy room doesn't take up much space. The essentials are a crib, dresser and changing station. A chair for comfortable nursing or bottle feeding can be included. Aside from the crib, changing table and nursing chair, furniture is best chosen with thoughts of the future.

Dressers and beds to last

Instead of buying a gimmicky infant dresser with cute, tiny drawers and baby-related decorations, a dresser made out of real wood looks great in a bedroom for any age and has the potential to last a lifetime. The same idea applies to replacing the crib when baby outgrows it. When it comes time to replace the crib with a bed, there is no need to buy a tiny toddler bed or a bed shaped like a cartoon character or vehicles. While a child will enjoy these items for a short time, it’s expensive to replace them frequently.

Source: babyecotrends

However, a twin bed will service a child from the toddler stage and on. A bed with a sturdy wooden or metal frame will stand up to all sorts of abuse a kid can dish out, and twin mattresses are fairly inexpensive to replace as the years go by. (Spending a little more on your toddler’s first mattress will ensure a longer life – you may not need to replace it until he or she goes off to college!) 

The same goes for pillows. Pillows are used for pillow fights, lounging on the floor and propping up in bed while reading. This can break them down fairly quickly, which makes them less useful for sleep. While more expensive than other mattress and pillow types, those made out of latex or memory foam can last for 10 to 20 years without degrading. This means that a child can enjoy proper spinal support and ideal sleeping conditions from the moment they leave the crib until the moment they leave home without parents ever having to buy another mattress.

 

Source: Memory Foam Express

Ideal walls for all ages without a hassle

When it comes to the walls, many enjoy putting up murals or decals for the baby to enjoy and to give the room character. The problem with painting the images directly on the wall or applying wallpaper is that they can be extremely difficult to remove when it's time to decorate for the early childhood and preteen stage.

Self-adhesive decals are possibly the hardest to remove. Murals often need sanding and two primer coats to before the walls are ready for fresh paint. Wallpaper and self-adhesive decals have to be removed with harmful chemical peelers that can leave residue that may have long-lasting effects. These are not the best substances to be using in a kid's room.

Instead, applying wall decorations that affix with non-stick technologies is a better choice after painting with non-toxic indoor paint. Decals can be removed and reapplied a number of times without losing their cling, and they make it easy to transition walls as children get older. The decals can have an even longer life when applied to a painted surface with a semi-gloss or glossy finish. It's best to use a semi-gloss or glossy finish in a child's room, anyway, because they’re easy to wash and colors stay brighter longer time.

As a child gets older, decals can be removed without trouble and replaced with more grown-up changes, such as art or new paint.

Source: decals

Making a child's room comfortable and productive as the years go by

As children get older, their needs change. There comes a time when a child no longer wants or needs a toy box in the bedroom. Instead of buying an obvious toy box when he or she is young, buy a chest that can be used for other storage later on. Again, wood is a nice, long-lasting choice.

At some point, a child's art station will be replaced with a desk. A larger desk will allow for crafting and drawing and for homework and other studies when they’re older.

And if you purchased a well-made twin bed, new, more sophisticated bedding is easy and affordable as a child gets older.

Source: mercantila

About the author:

Lisa Jolan writes about many different topics, from home interior to sports, and keeps a blog on home interior tips. You can follow Lisa on Twitter at @lisajolan.

Guest Post: Fresh Trends for Fall Décor

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Today fellow writer and decorating enthusiast Christina Johnson is sharing ideas and trends for freshening up your home décor for Autumn. Christina, thank you for sharing your great seasonal ideas with Creating a Family Home readers!

As summer gives way to autumn and the air turns crisp, now is the perfect time to revamp your home decor. Bring some of the rich textures and colors of fall indoors to create your own cool-weather sanctuary. Take a peek at some of the fresh trends in fall decor.  Here are my favorite ways to freshen up my home for fall.

Take Advantage of Fall Colors—They’re in Style Now!
 

Painting is a simple, affordable way to reinvent a space. Imbue your home with fall's popular warm, cozy colors. Whether you want to go bold or stick with neutrals, this season's palette offers something for everyone. Among the trendiest paint colors are soft gold, burnt orange, mocha, creamy beige, asparagus green, earthy browns and tans and shades of gray, ranging from peppercorn to a pale gray-violet. In a neutral room, an accent wall in a bold color can add depth and interest. Some popular choices are creams and beige with a warm brown or deep, burgundy red accent wall.

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Accessorize with Color

Use accent pieces, such as throw pillows, candles, art, sheets and comforters, slipcovers, floral centerpieces and knickknacks,  to complement the color of the room and add a fun or sophisticated feel. While neutral furniture has been the standard, don't be afraid to experiment with your accessories and use them to add a splash of bold color—it’s easy to swap out accessories with the change of the seasons.

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Copper, red, black, chocolate brown, brass, wine, and funky patterns are popular this season, although shades of orange have been stealing the show. Add some burnt orange pillows or a few pumpkin-orange vases to make your home feel like fall.

Mix Up Your Styles

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You no longer have to worry about sticking to a single style or aesthetic for a room. Eclectic decor is one of the bigger trends for fall. Mix masculine and feminine, antique and modern or combine artwork in different mediums and styles. Try pairing your antique coffee table with a modern sofa. Or try adding a splash of pink—or vases full of flowers—to an otherwise masculine room. And when it comes to style, location no longer matters, either. Whether you live in a Manhattan Rental or a country colonial, wherever you call home should be decorated based on your personal style and tastes, even if it’s in stark contrast to the world outside your door.  It’s your sanctuary!

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Up-cycled Home Goods

Eco-conscious? One of the biggest trends in decorating and crafting is up-cycling—take recycling to a whole new level! Whether you want to take on your own craft project or browse Etsy, the range of re-imagined materials and possibilities will amaze you. Recycled-content kitchen counters have seen an increase in popularity lately, but they’re still unique enough to earn  heartfelt compliments (they can be really interesting looking!). Accent pieces, like clocks made from old records or bowls made from magazines, can be as chic as they are functional, while keeping objects out of landfills.

Simple Window Treatments

  

Lush, heavy window treatments of old have been abandoned for more streamlined versions. Design aficionados are predicting that linen panels will be huge this fall. These simple window treatments can soften any room. The classic, timeless fabric comes in a variety of colors and patterns to complement the colors of just about any room. With lighter fabric, the late fall days may not seem so dark and dreary as fall gives way to winter (but of course by then we’ll be ready to freshen for winter, right?).

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Add Texture with Wallpaper

Bold, neutrals, solid colors and patterns can all add texture to a space. Wallpaper has become easy to apply and remove, making it an affordable way to update a room. Metallics can add glamour to a room, while printable wallpaper allows homeowners to customize the design to their own personal tastes.

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My First Guest Post - All Things Fee

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I'm happy and excited for my first guest blog post ever!  Today I'm guest posting on the crafty blog All Things Fee about knitting for babies and toddlers. I think knitting for babies and toddlers is fun because the projects are super adorable and they knit up really fast.  But the best thing about knitting for tots is that they have no choice but to wear what you put on them, so you know your knitted objects will get lots of use.  : ) 

In my guest post I highlight some of my favorite patterns for babies and toddlers, plus a few non-baby ones. Please visit this fun crafty mama's blog.  Thanks for having me, Felicia!