From the category archives:

Kids Room Ideas

Toddler Boy Bedroom Theme Ideas

by THAT Painter Lady on Wednesday, January 20, 2010

Plane and Cars Theme Toddler Boys Room Choosing a decorating theme for your toddler boy bedroom isn’t always easy. Your child can make it easy on you, however, if he has developed definite interests at a young age.

My twin toddler boys love cars, trucks, boats, trains,
motorcycles, anything with an engine in it. For months I debated how to update their nursery decor to a more big boy theme.

We were willing to spend a little money to do it, so I wanted to
make sure we changed to a theme they could grow up with, at least for several more years.

The first thing we chose for their new bedroom was a paint-by-number wall mural from Wallnutz.com. You can choose from a large selection of murals for boys or girls. We chose their transportation mural. We painted this mural on two walls of our boys room. There is a road that runs along the wall that has two cars and a semi driving on the road.

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I also have another article here about Boys Theme Mural

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There is a large biplane in the sky.

Bi-Planes and Airplanes Peel and Stick Wall Mural

There are also big white clouds in a blue sky. Our boys love it.

How To Paint Sky Murals

My husband traced and painted it in a weekend. You trace the mural on with carbon paper that is supplied with the outline, then paint the mural like you would a paint-by-number kit (paint is not included in the kit, you can buy it at any craft store).

It really easy and looks great.

Next we purchased our boys a play mat that has a play town on it, complete with roads for their cars. We found this play mat at Lowe’s. The colors matched the colors in the mural really well.

Click Here to purchase Giant Road Rug Online!

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Toy and Book Organizer

For toy storage, we purchased a shelf and bin system.
They have one in primary colors for boys and pastel colors for girls.

These bins work great for small toys and the colors were also perfect. Watch your sales fliers, they often put these on sale for almost half price.

Ready For Take Off Art Print -24″x18″

Also I found some great pictures to hang on the walls.

This one is all about airplanes!

The pictures have a light blue background that fit into the room perfectly.

To complete the old-fashioned theme, we found some replicas of antique biplanes to hang from their ceiling. They match both the wall mural and the wooden pictures perfectly. One boy picked a red one, the other one is yellow. They’re great! I have seen these planes at several stores that sell collectible items.

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Biplane Bookends

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BLACKOUT Textured Thermal Insulated Tab Top Curtain PAIR 84” x 63” long – Navy

Finally, I found some long, tabbed navy blue curtains and a black metal curtain rod that tied the whole room together.

The boys room now looks perfect, a boy’s auto and airplane paradise!

Here is a breakdown of the room’s costs:

Transportation mural and paint – $75
Play mat – $20
Curtains and rod – $50
Pictures – $60
Airplanes – $85
Toy organizer – $60

Total: $350

Plane and Cars Theme Baby or Toddler Boys Room You might notice I didn’t mention bedding – our boys are still in cribs so I am waiting until they move to toddler beds to buy new
bedding.

Olive Kids Trains, Planes, & Trucks Sheet Set

I did notice at however, that they had some really cute toddler bedding with old-fashioned looking trains, planes and trucks on it.

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Article by: Rachel Paxton is a freelance writer and mom who is the author of What’s for Dinner?, an e-cookbook containing more than 250 quick easy dinner ideas. For more recipes, gardening, organizing tips, home decorating, holiday hints, and more, visit Creative Homemaking at www.creativehomemaking.com.

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Decorating When you Don’t Know the Baby’s Gender

by THAT Painter Lady on Thursday, April 23, 2009

It can be a challenge to decorate your new baby’s nursery when you have decided not to find out the gender of your baby during pregnancy.

Wallies Murals Clouds Order
Thankfully there are a lot more choices available for us today than what our parents and grandparents had when they were having babies.

Back then there were 2 basic baby colors – blue and pink.

But now, with the availability of every paint color imaginable we have the entire rainbow of colors to choose from.

Before you put anything into your nursery, it’s a great idea to tackle the walls.

You’re going to want something gentle and soothing that will work with all kinds of ideas that you come up with later on.

Without being girlish or boyish, you can go for a simple blue sky scene using a several shades of light blue.

Add in some fluffy clouds and then you have a great backdrop for just about anything. You can even purchase cloud wall decals like the ones pictured.

Carry this same theme over into curtains with some fabric paints. Just about any fabric color you choose for the windows will look complimentary.

Most nurseries have four basic elements of furniture.

The baby’s crib and changing table usually match.

Then you have a dresser and a rocking chair for Mom.

You may also have a cradle, but that’s more likely to be in your own bedroom.

Since you won’t know the gender of the baby until you bring him home, and you certainly won’t feel like shopping for furniture then you will probably want to go with natural wood tones. If you pick up some unfinished pieces, you can add color and design elements later when you have more time.

The next step in decorating your baby’s nursery might be all about the functions of the nursery.

If you’ll be spending time in the nursery late at night, a little side nightstand with a lamp next to the rocker will be nice. Find a plain white lamp and lamp shade. You can always pick a lamp shade later on that will coordinate with either a boy or girl.
Large Glass Ball Lamp with White Starburst Shade

Look for two or three large shelves, two or three feet wide, at least eight inches deep and hang these up strategically around the room. Choose a natural wood tone to match the furniture or stick with white until later. These shelves will be a blessing to you for things like a small stereo, some books to read your baby, or a few favorite decor items.
These basic elements are so versatile and can flow with any ideas you come up with later when the baby is settled in. Whether you end up adding butterflies or frogs to the room later, the blue sky and neutral additions will fit perfectly.

This is a room with a really nice canvas of sky and all of the basics in place.

You can wait for baby to reveal his or her gender to really dig into a decorating theme, or just choose to go with something that isn’t girl or boy specific to get everything done in advance.

Whichever you choose, don’t be afraid to be daring remember, the nursery gets redecorated in just a few short years and you get to have the fun all over again.

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Creating A Beautiful Bedroom For Your Child

by THAT Painter Lady on Tuesday, March 3, 2009

If you have children you will know that decorating their bedroom can be both costly and all too frequent as they outgrow different trends and themes. Setting yourself a budget with each redecoration project is essential. After trawling through many furniture stores I have personally found Homebase Bedroom Furniture to be of a decent quality and can easily be purchased within budget.

Refurnishing and decorating a childs room doesnt have to be very expensive. There are plenty of lovely wall papers and paints available with colours to suit every childs taste. As well as the essential bed, you may also want to look at adding a desk and chair. Children like to have a place where they can be creative, they also like a little personal space where mom, dad and other siblings are not constantly looking over their ˜work. As they get older a desk can also be used a place to complete homework or other projects.

Once the furniture and colour scheme has been chosen, look at lighting. If a child is doing their homework or completing creative projects, poor lighting will lead to eye strain. If they have a desk area choose a table or desk lamp that will give ample light so they can see what they are working on. A bedside light is also another option which should be conveniently placed for them to reach when they need to.

Globe 5203801 Energy Saving Desk Lamp, Metallic Silver

The final additions to a childs bedroom could be alarm clocks to help get them up for school and a radio or music centre to help them relax after completing their homework. Children may also want to add photographs of their family and friends. With these additional few items a childs bedroom will soon be complete without breaking the budget.

Be ready for a few rows when undertaking this project as you cannot always please everyone.

photo credit: vieux bandit