SIMPLE CHILDREN’S BEDROOM

One of the next projects with our house restoration is to create a calm and simple children’s bedroom for Bailey.

I have a few really clear ideas of how I would like the space to be, but there is still lots to decide.

Here are some of the rooms I have been loving and looking at for inspiration. All photo credits are at the bottom of the post. I have of course been using Pinterest lots and it’s still one of my favourite ways to work out how I want a room to look and feel.

To create a simple children’s bedroom for Bailey I know that I want to use pale and light colours, and lots of wood, as always (painted or stripped back). I also want to use as much natural fabric as possible, linens and cottons. I’m loving this crumpled soft bedlinen from the Linen Works (pictured bottom left), they do a beautiful soft pink, Mireillie Rose which would be perfect for Bailey’s room.

There is also bound to be a bit of vintage pattern that sneaks in. I hand made a lampshade for Bailey’s bedroom in our old house when she was a baby. The pattern is a 60’s small floral print in earthy tones and I still love it.

Pink is a colour that I usually avoid, I’m just not naturally drawn to it, but pink is one of Bailey’s favourite colours. I have been thinking about we can incorporate pink in her room in a subtle way, and I have been inspired to see others use pink in their homes beautifully. I am therefore on the lookout for a really soft pink paint that’s not too sugary.

Of course I want Bailey to love her room and to be able to play and make a mess. However I also think it’s really important for her wellbeing that the room can be a peaceful and calm space when needed.

Two things that will really help with this is having adequate storage to tidy away toys etc and secondly making sure there aren’t too many belongings in the first place.

A job that regularly needs doing is sorting through Bailey’s clothes, books, and toys. As she grows and new things come into her world, it’s so essential to let go of the stuff that she has out-grown and doesn’t stimulate her anymore. Now that she is a little older it can be a bit of a battle to get her to part with things she doesn’t use or need, but I regularly take the time to explain why it’s important, and knowing that she can pass things on to her cousins really helps.

At the moment Bailey’s bedroom is far from tidy and organised, not like the lovely rooms pictured here. It has piles of books on the floor, toys scattered around, and lots of things out on the surfaces. This is partly because we need to decorate and sort her room, so I have let tidying it slip, but I am also wondering whether she likes it this way?

I don’t know what your six year old is like but ours likes to collect things; she picks up all the nature finds when we go for a walk, she picks up sparkly things (sequins mostly) and calls them her gems and jewels, she also has a collection of little things on her bedside table!

If all the surfaces in Bailey’s room are covered with clutter, I find it distracting and stressful. I’m naturally drawn to spaces that don’t have a lot of stuff in them. However, this isn’t my bedroom it’s Bailey’s.

I’m aware that I can teach her how to tidy her room and the benefits of this – you can actually find what you’re looking for and want to play with – but she still might grow-up to be someone who likes lots of things around her.

How do we realistically create a calm and tidy space whilst giving her the freedom to be the sort of six year old she wants to be? It’s a fine line between guidance and control, and whilst I know I need to educate her about how to look after her belongings properly, I also don’t want to squash her character. Six is probably a little young to let her have creative reign of her bedroom, but I have been wondering as she gets older how to support her in feeling more independent with the ownership of her room and things.

As always would love to hear your thoughts. What have you tried with your children? What works for you?

If you want to see more simple children’s bedroom inspiration head over to Pinterest and follow the board here.

Photo credits – all clockwise from top left

Image 1 – Bohannah @thesimplefolk_, Merrilee Liddiard @mer-mag, Lotte @Lillalovaknits, Casey Leigh

Image 2 – Mer Mag, Tessa Hop, School House, The Linen Works

Image 3 – Kendra Smoot, Les Choses Simples, Petit & Small, Source unknown