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Decorating a child's room requires a lot of forethought and planning. One has to be aware that sooner or later the child is going grow up into a teen with entirely different preferences. It will be prudent to keep this in mind when you draw up the budget and decide on the furniture and furnishing.
- The walls
Pastels are what go best on the walls of a nursery. Try to use one pastel shade on which you can get stenciled various designs to suit your baby's age. So begin with a pale pastel, move on to brighter colours and finally when the kid is in the teens, use dramatic or subtle colouring according to his tastes.
- Fabric
When a new baby is expected, the parents generally go wild planning the perfect nursery with pale colours and frilly, lacy fabrics that would suit an infant's room best. All this is fine - but can you imagine the effort that has to go into maintaining such a room? Once the baby starts to move around, it is a very different story. A toddler cannot be expected to have clean hands nor can he be expected to sit quietly in one place. Result? An unholy mess where all the delicate lace begins to look grimy and soiled. Washable, good, lasting material is preferable. Avoid window dressings with hanging cords - it is dangerous with small kids around.Solution: Use materials that can be washed frequently instead of delicate fabric that will need a lot of care. It should also be at an affordable range so there will be no heartaches when you decide to discard it as the child grows older. Can you imagine any teenager these days who would appreciate a room filled with frilly stuff?
- Flooring
Some parents seem to like the idea of carpeting the kid's room. Maybe the idea is to make the room look good with matching floor and furnishing. But is it really practical? Can you imagine the carpet once the baby starts moving around? And the stains? It's just not practical and it will also be a breeding ground for dust mites that can cause allergic reactions in the baby. A floor that can be easily kept clean (with probably a few random rugs that can be removed for cleaning) is definitely a solution.
- Storage
A baby needs a lot of storage. There are clothes, nappies, toys,diapers, medicines, shoes, socks, warm clothes, summer clothes... the list is endless. Check on how much closet space is actually available in the room. Can you have a few built-in cupboards, or even a regular wardrobe so that you don't have to worry about closet space as the child grows older? It is better if you don't go in for anything that can suit only an infant, or you will find yourself spending on all this within a couple of years. You can have modular units that you can mix and match as the child's needs change. What once housed toys can later accommodate CDs and cassettes or books. Wall shelving can take care of all this. Keep all this planning for the future in mind when you begin to decorate the kid's room.
- Furniture
When choosing furniture, go in for light coloured painted furniture which can be changed to a darker shade at a later date. For example, you can use the same chest of drawers when the child is older by painting it a different colour. Stick to furniture that is easily maintained - even laminated tops are good and can be renewed with different colours.
As you can see, all that is required is a bit of careful planning and forethought that will save you spending double when the same things can be effectively used with just a bit of juggling.
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