Top Tips for Decorating Kids' Rooms & Studio 5

photo by Jylare Smith Photography 

Today I went on Studio 5 to talk about my top three tips for decorating kids' rooms. You can view the clip above to see my tips or you can read this post go get all the tips I talked about on the show!

 I LOVE decorating kids spaces because I am a pattern and color fantastic and so I feel like kids' spaces are where I can really let go and go crazy! 

I see so many kids' rooms done wrong and it makes me sad because kids spend so much time in their rooms. They should be such happy places for them to be. I wanted to offer some of my top tips for decorating kid's rooms that I'll be talking about on the show.  

TIP 1 // STAY AWAY FROM A THEME

I don't doubt that your child has a certain fascination with a character, movie or other type of theme but that doesn't mean their room has to scream, "Star Wars!", "Toy Story!", "Princesses" etc. We all know that kids lose interest in things quickly which is why I say, Stay away from a theme. They might be into it at the moment but what happens a year later when they could care less about monkeys. Now their new favorite animal is tigers. But that doesn't mean you can't incorporate things they love.

For example say your little boy LOVES airplanes.

You maybe tempted to do something like the above picture. This room is fine but its lacking any sort of "wow-factor" and  since it's all the same color and the exact same graphics on everything the room becomes very one note and flat. 

Now let's take this room as an example:

photo via Under the Sycamore

You get the overall feel that these kids love airplanes but it's much more interesting than the previous room. It also has more of a "fun" element to it. 

photo by Britta Anne Photography of Jett's Room

You can also take Jett's room as an example. My husband is a pilot so I wanted to have some sort of airplane theme in Jett's room but I didn't want it to be too obvious or over done. So I had my husband take some pictures out of the cockpit while he was flying and we framed them.  I also have a couple of airplane figurines. Doing a theme in small doses is the way to do it.

photo by Jylare Smith Photography  of Jane's Nursery 

TIP 2 // STICK WITH SOPHISTICATED PIECES AND COLOR SCHEMES

When picking furniture and bedding for your baby or child think about pieces they can have for a long time. A typical changing table will really only be used until they get to big to lift up on it. Think about getting a dresser instead. A rug with little yellow duckies might be cute until they are 4 and then you are going to wish you'd bought something a little more versatile.  For Jane's Nursery I picked simple bedding, sophisticated furniture that can easily work in any room in my home and colors that can grow with her. 

photo by Jylare Smith Photography  of Jane's Nursery 

There is nothing in her room that is too "childish". Obviously you don't want a nursery to feel too formal or sophisticated. Her room is still sweet and fit for a baby girl but if you took out the crib it could easily transform into a toddler room and even a teen girls room.

photo by Jylare Smith Photography  of Jane's Nursery 

Just like your child is going to quickly grow out of a theme they are also going to most likely grow out of baby pink and baby blue. While these are fun for a nursery a year later you are going to be wanting something different. For Jane's Nursery I wanted to go with pink but I didn't want pink to overwhelm the room.  Also try and stick with a color scheme that doesn't scream "baby". Keep in mind they will  only be babies for so long. Ask yourself if you are still going to want baby pink and baby blue when your baby becomes a toddler. It's fine to use pastels but punch it up with some more saturated colors as well.

photo via Ish and Chi 

TIP 3 // HAVE FUN!! 

I love doing kids spaces because you can get away with things you wouldn't do in any other room. You can especially go a little crazier with color and pattern.

photo taken by me of Sawyers Room

 Don't be afraid to use wallpaper or paint the walls a fun color. 

picture taken by Chelsey Bell of This Nursery 

I loved designing this Nursery that is vibrant and full of life. I love that my client was brave enough to go with lime green on the walls of her son's nursery. And along with having fun I would say find ways to add a touch of whimsy. Children's rooms should be special and magical. Think of cute products you can add to the room that just bring a smile to your child's face. 

photo via Graham and Green

picture via Family Living

Add something unexpected. A child's room is a great place to add a giant stuffed animal, fun things hanging down from the ceiling, a swing! When you are designing a kids space try and connect to your inner child. What would you have wanted in your room when you were little? And do that! 

Your children are only children for such a short time. Make their rooms as special as you can so they are places where your kids can create lots and lots of happy memories. 

Want to check out my past Studio 5 appearances? 

Learn about curtains here. See my favorite winter decor items here. I rounded up my favorite sources for artwork here. Learn how to mix prints and patterns here. Get the courage to take risks in your home here. Watch my first segment on mixing up your furniture here.