Kid-Friendly Decorating Ideas
Did your house loose its sense of style since you had kids? Oh yeah, I know the feeling. We’ve all been there. As soon as the babies start pulling themselves up or crawling all over the place, the baby-proofing adventure begins. Good-bye oversized glass vases resting in the corner of the living room. Good-bye expensive décor items lying peacefully on the perfect coffee table. Before we know it, we are saying “yes” to those hideous baby gates. I am guilty of not only one gate, but four! What can I tell you? There is really no good and safe way around the baby gates, but you can certainly keep your house stylish if you follow these 4 kid-friendly decorating ideas below.
1:: Get the leather on!
No, I am not talking about your Saturday night leather pants. I am talking about choosing the most durable material for your sofas. When picking that gorgeous white linen upholstered couch, think about that dark sugary grape juice leaking from the oh, so well designed, sip cup and switch all those crazy thoughts to LEATHER! That’s what we do around here. Leather for the sofas, leather for the lounge chairs (even though we never lounge), leather for the kitchen stools, and leather for the dining room chairs! For this room, we chose a brown leather sofa and I am so happy we did it. To tone all the brown color down a bit, we’ve sprinkled on some pillows and a light-colored throw.
2:: Pillows must have zippers
When choosing your throw pillows, go for the ones that are affordable and have a zipper on so you can easily clean them out when needed. Could you imagine having your kids wear white pants at the playground? So why think you can have a pillow that won’t need a regular washing schedule when living with kids. My pillows tend to stay more on the floor than on the couch itself. The picking up from the floor and throwing placing them gracefully on the couch bothers me more than the thought of having to wash them.
3:: Display your magazines and not your expensive books
If you don’t want your fancy coffee table books to get dirty little hand marks all over them, replace those books with everyday magazines. Move your fancy books to the bookshelf and bring out your magazines. Every room in my house has a stack of magazines. I might have one too many magazine stacks really, but I love to read them when the TV gets stuck on the “Animal Mechanical” ordeal. Magazines are such an easy way to add a piece of décor to any space, and if they get ruined, well, it might just be ok.
4:: Choose décor that is durable
Having durable materials is the key when decorating a house with little kids around. Think wooden pieces mixed with some metal-made décor, or acrylic vases. Pick the items that can take a beating. Pick items that won’t break easily. You can still make the room pretty without having to use your most valuable pieces.
I hope these little tips will help you create a stylish space you can enjoy with little kids and the entire family. For more design tips visit us back soon. I have a couple of projects that I am working on and can’t wait to share here.
PS: have you seen this gallery-wall here. It is all about decorating with kids in mind. Check it out!
