Our Playroom is finally complete...
Designing the girls' playroom in the new house has been a labour of love. We have always lusted after a space where they could play undistracted, away from the TV and in a place they can lose themselves in for hours. As a parent, I've always dreamed about having a separate space I could shut the door on at the end of the day.
When designing the room, I kept it simple and followed these 5 top tips for an organised but well-loved space where imaginative play is the main focus.
Keep scrolling to see more of the space and follow our tips for a kids Playroom that the children will love and grown-ups can enjoy and maintain (hopefully with a bit of help from small hands).
No. 1: Create a Design Feature
This is a space especially for them, so make it fun! First, inspire play through an innovative paint feature such as our sun mural, or introduce a charming wallpaper. Then layer in play zones to captivate their imagination. I chose the paint colour Setting Plaster by Farrow & Ball, as I liked the juxtaposition of the sun (which traditionally would be yellow) with a more modern and neutral tone.
Paint: Farrow & Ball Setting Plaster, Dulux White Cotton
No.2: Design the room around the Storage
You need to be able to tidy away quickly and easily (hopefully with some help from small hands), so Storage is one of the most important things to consider.
What toys do they have, and how big are they? What ones do you want to hide from the eye (ahem, bright coloured plastic toys... we all have them), and what do you want to keep out of reach for parental supervision (paint, glitter etc).
My girls love Crafts, so we used the IKEA Ivar Cabinet to store colouring books, stickers, paint, play-doh, glue, paint and glitter. I used our stackable Crates inside to organise. Then we used the IKEA Trofast storage units to manage their smaller toys such as Schleich animals, lego, dolls and accessories. Our maxi Stackable Crates are brilliant for larger toys that need a home, such as puzzles.
Shop Storage
No. 3: Don't have a TV in the Playroom
This is our most common question; "should I have a TV in the playroom?" We vote no. Why? The TV will always be the dominant distraction, and kids will always default to it, meaning they never get lost in the wonderful world of inventive play.
No. 4: Create Zones
No.5: Leave Some Floor Space
Try to leave some floor space for open play; this will also help you tidy at the end of the day. There is nothing worse than digging tiny toys out from under sofa cushions, so we decided to forgo a sofa despite having the space, in favour of opening up the opportunity to create dens, play puzzles, and crawl through a pop-up tunnel; when we feel the need!
