Decorating a nursery or a child's bedroom can create a lot of excitement. You want to create something that your child will really love because you love to see them happy. But it's also important to keep in mind that children's tastes and favorite things change as they grow. Your child can be obsessed with dinosaurs one week and by the next week, they're all about ballet. It might be fun to decorate their room the first one or two times, but by the time their interests have changed five times, it's not so interesting. On top of that, you also need to change things like the bed as your child grows, ensuring the furniture in the room is appropriate for their age.
Designing a bedroom that will age with your child helps you to navigate this problem. You'll avoid having to redecorate every year, and your child will still love their bedroom.
Choose Flexible Furniture
Swapping a crib for a toddler bed and again for a single (and perhaps again for a double) can be a bit of a hassle. It might be ok if you're planning to hand down the furniture to a younger sibling, but it can otherwise seem a bit pointless to go through several beds. One option to minimize this is to choose a crib that will convert into a toddler bed. When it's time for your child to move to a toddler bed, you can remove the railings from the crib.
Go with a Neutral Backdrop
If you want to avoid repainting (or wallpapering) too often, the best thing to do is to choose a neutral backdrop for your child's room. Go with neutral colors for the walls, as well as for the floors, and you can use other ways to add color. White is an easy option, but there are also other neutral shades you could use if you feel like white is a bit too cold or bright. A neutral shade on your walls is also much easier to maintain. It's simple to paint over someone's drawings or scuff marks if you just need white paint to do it.
Leave Favorites for Easily Replaced Items
You might want to allow your child to incorporate some of their favorite characters or other interests in the design of their room. But if you do this, try to avoid any design choices that are permanent or more difficult to change. Instead of wallpaper or a mural that features their favorite things, pick things like bedding that can be changed easily. That way, when your child gets bored or whatever their current interest is, you won't have to put in a lot of effort to make any changes. You can simply swap out the items that they no longer want for something different.
Pick a Timeless Look
A child's bedroom can last a long time so that it looks good when they're little and all the way into their teens. You can even design a bedroom that will continue to look good once your child is no longer using it and you want to turn it into a guest bedroom. One of the best things you can do is choose a timeless look when you're buying things like window dressings and furniture. Using plantation blinds for your home is a great choice if you want to create timeless windows that will look good for years. The right bed frame can last for a long time and continue to look good years from now. Start by making your kid's room look a little more grown-up and it will last longer.
Give Your Child Decision-Making Powers
Even as you create a room that will last through the years, it's important to let your child be involved in their own room. However, it's also ok to remind them that the room is still part of the whole house and that there are some things they can choose and some things that they can't. Decide what you want to let them have some more control over and which parts of the room they can customize. This will allow them to make choices about their own room while still keeping the design flexible and easily updated.
Use Broad Themes
If you want to pick a theme for the design of the room, choose something that's not too specific. Using favorite TV shows or the latest obsessions might seem like a good idea now, but your child's interests can change. There are other options available for decor themes, such as different patterns or color schemes. These will last much longer and don't necessarily need to be changed as your child gets older. You can decorate around them and change minor things instead.
Think About Future Use
Consider both how your child might use their bedroom now and how they might use it in the future. They might like a table and chair to sit and do some drawing or arts and crafts, but when they get older, a desk where they can do their homework will become more important. Rather than buy a toddler-sized art station now, you might be able to set up an area that they can use now and that will be useful later. Maybe you could have a desk with adjustable height so that it lasts through the years.
Use Lots of Storage
Storage is important in any child's room and might need to be used for toys, clothes, and more. Having plenty of storage to use will ensure you can keep everything neat and tidy, no matter how old your child is. Look for storage that can grow with your child. While a tiny dresser might seem cute, it probably won't be very useful once your child gets older. A bookshelf can be useful both now and when your child is older, giving them a place for both books and toys.
Design a bedroom that will grow with your child so that you don't have to keep making changes to it as they get older.
