Showing posts with label personal details. Show all posts
Showing posts with label personal details. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 1, 2012

my favorite "real" kid bedrooms


Yesterday, I shared some inspiration photos that I felt were good examples of "lovely but real" kid bedrooms. I did not, however, share my favorites. I've saved those for today's post. I had two of them to share, but then I clicked on that messy Pinterest room (which was, indeed, Swedish) and just decided to add that in to the mix, too. I can't seem to refuse a good Swedish room these days.

Here was the photo I shared in yesterday's post.



And here we have the rest of the same room... I think. I admit, it's a little confusing to me. The castle may have been photographed in more than one room over time. Regardless. It's such a great room.







Do you see that in the corner? That is serious coolness.



What kid wouldn't love that?



Sweetness.

I think one of the keys to this room looking so great, despite its large accumulation of stuff, is that the room itself (minus the kid stuff) is severely simple. All white - it's Sweden, after all. The bed is white. The walls are white. The windows are white. The castle is white. The floor is white. The table and chairs are white. The side table is white. And all these major furnishings are simple. Nothing elaborate. This first layer is 100% WHITE! And then, bam! Color, color everywhere. And all the mess doesn't look like too much. It all "goes" because none of it "goes" and just about anything could fit in and still look happy and pretty. Even a Spiderman costume looks completely right. I just love this.

So, that room was a happy little bonus added on to what I was originally going to share. The two rooms I mentioned before.

I'll just warn you now. They are both a little over the top.

And one is Swedish.

What can I say?

First up. A tween girl's bedroom that was featured on Apartment Therapy.

Source: re-nest.com via Jacci on Pinterest



When I first came across this room, I just stared and stared at it for the longest time. It was so relaxed, so real, but - at the same time - so perfectly done. Interestingly, this room was done by a designer working with the young "client". I was so impressed when I realized that. Not that a designer had been hired, but that a designer had managed to pull off such an authentic and unpretentious room.

SweetP is dying over that hanging chair.



Who makes polar bear wallpaper look this good? I mean, seriously.



Do you like this at all? Am I crazy? I would never in a million years have come up with these combinations. On paper, it would've made me cringe. But, I like it. To me, it just looks like a room you want to be in.



It looks so effortless. So collected. But, it's crazy chic in a kid-friendly way.



I would love to hear the designer talk about her process of working with this young girl. I could go on and on. But, I think you've heard me babble enough. I like this so much. (One negative... the mismatched tiny little lamps. I don't get those. But, who cares?! The rest is super cool).

Okay. The second one. I'm not sure if this is currently my favorite real kid's room or if the polar bear room takes top billing. It may be a tie. This one, believe it or not, is even busier and bolder than the polar bears...



I cannot think of a single little girl who would not walk into this room and immediately FREAK OUT.

In a good way, of course.



I almost think it's too much. But, then, I think it's only "too much" for adults.

Actually, there really is a rhyme and reason to this space. There's a color scheme. At first I couldn't figure out how the green got in there. Did the mom just know it would work and went for it? In reading the room tour Q&A, though, I found out the green had come from the little leaves in the wallpaper. It's really a fun interview. The pinterest pics link to it if you'd like to check it out.



Nobody in Sweden seems to care if a "tacky line" gets crossed. Wrap red polka dot fabric around a deep pink curtain rod? Why not! She'll love it!

I could use more that "why not?!" with our own rooms.

Who cares? It makes you smile, right? Then nail it to the wall, already!



The bed had been the mother's when she was a child. So personal. So heart-felt.

So, these are my favorites. These are rooms that make me want to move in and re-read my Sweet Valley High books and tape up posters of Kirk Cameron. These rooms are all about kids. They are, admittedly, a little crazy. But, it's such a nice kind of crazy.

Just filled with love.

So, I want to know. What made an impression on you in the days of your youth? What was your favorite thing about your childhood bedroom?

Posted by Jacci at 9:59 PM 1 comments
Labels:

Monday, April 30, 2012

REAL kids' rooms


A post in which I share my opinion. (Hopefully, graciously).

You know there's this big trend right now toward sophisticated kids' rooms. Nurseries with chevron and designer prints, little girl rooms with glam mirrors, gilt cribs, etc. It's all in answer to the years of overly themed kiddie rooms. Kids' rooms these days don't have themes, and the overall aesthetic of the rest of the home is flowing over into the kid spaces more and more.

I've spent a decent amount of time looking at kids' rooms over the last year. Room tours on Apartment Therapy. Pins on Pinterest. I've read books. Lots of grown-up nurseries and stylish, "designed" bedrooms for children.



And I've thought about this whole idea of ditching a kiddie look in favor of more stylish spaces for children. Kind of a lot.

I gotta say it.

I'm not a fan.

I understand why someone might choose that direction for their home, though... I do. And, really, many of the kids' rooms out there right now are knock out gorgeous. They're so well done! I see the appeal. But here's the deal. Honestly, the only way I could have an of-the-moment-ultra-designed kids' bedroom like those in my own home, is if I ignored what my kids wanted. Basically demanded it. Disregarded anyone else's preferences. Made it happen... my way. Like perfectly arranged bookshelves that I obsess over on a daily basis. Like a recently vacuumed room I won't let the kids walk on. I know that's not true for everyone. Some children want the glam, grown-up room. I don't want to insinuate that every trendy, chevron-bedecked kid's room has some uptight, type A, overly particular momma behind it. That's not the case. But, it would be true for me, and - because of that - those kinds of rooms give me a negative impression. They feel uptight to me.

When it comes down to it, our choices for our homes are just so personal... what communicates one thing to one person easily communicates something completely different to someone else. A single room can stir up totally different emotional reactions in different people. Like colors. Some look at yellow and think it's happy and cheery, while others look at the same yellow and think it's loud and tacky. When I look at a bedroom... designed for children... I want it to look like it's obviously for children. Not for adults. Regardless of how well it's done, how beautiful it is, if a child's bedroom doesn't have a sense of imagination, of play, of childhood about it... it just doesn't grab me.

I like order. I like symmetry. I like traditional, classic foundations. But, more than I want those things, I want my children to really love their rooms! And to look back on those rooms fondly as an especially sweet part of their childhood. In decorating their rooms, I want to show them that their preferences, their personalities, their individualities matter. That what they think is beautiful has worth.

Now, it's not all pie in the sky. I know that. Reality comes in and I do have to guide them. We have to make choices that will last for a while. At my children's ages, neon orange walls probably do not have staying power. Maybe I help them work the neon in some other way. We need to try to avoid scenarios where someone totally dislikes their choices a year later. And, since all of our children share rooms with one another, I need to mediate between what often prove to be two very different visions for a single bedroom. I also need to be a good steward of our time, money, and other resources while I'm attempting to steward the children's plans and ideas. It has not been easy to try to hit this balance so far. But, I feel like I'm learning so much from the process.


I have a few images I've been referencing. But, "real" kids' rooms are hard to come by on the internets. Everyone stages rooms into oblivion for photos. There have been, happily, some exceptions. I want to share a few that I feel really get to the heart of what I mean. If children didn't have direct say in the look and feel of these rooms, it seems to me that at least the adults making the choices were very sensitive to what would naturally appeal to children.

Cozy. Homey. Childhood.










This summer, I'm really hoping to make great gains in all three of our kid bedrooms. I'm guessing some of my choices would not have made sense to you without this post. Especially given the little sidebar list of things that define our style. I'm not going to lie, my style is sneaking in there. I think it's inevitable that it will. But, my children have different senses of style, and those are - I really hope - going to come through, too. They don't necessarily mesh with the whole sidebar dealy. One thing has already become very apparent... my children don't care much for neutrals :)



Found this last one after I originally posted this. Pinned with the caption "a real room". Made me smile, because it's so true. But, it would make me crazy if that were my child! ha ha. I have to draw the line somewhere! I haven't followed the link, yet. How much would you bet that's in Sweden or Denmark?

Anyway. Do you all have any links to great, "real life" kid's rooms? Not too so-so, now. Not too picture perfect. I would *love* to have some more resources!

And what do you think of the photos in this post? Too wild looking? Too chaotic? Would you let your kids choose Pepto Bismol pink? What are your thoughts on the highly-designed vs. real life kids' rooms?


Posted by Jacci at 11:31 PM 5 comments
Labels:

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

Handmade Home



Hey, guys.

You know how in Monday's post, I elaborated on the "unexpected FUN" part of our design style? Well, after I wrote that post, I started thinking more about the other elements of our (still very much developing) style that I've listed in the sidebar. I enjoy little exercises like this. They help me think through my preferences and ideas. They give me a more concrete direction. Anyway, I took a good look at my sidebar list and thought for a bit.

It got me thinking about what "personal... with details from the heart" means for me. I said I wanted it, but what would that actually look like in our home?

Partly, I think I mean including our past in our home. Sentimental items, photographs, things associated with fond memories. But, I also mean handmade things. Things for our home, made with love, either by our own hands or made and given to us by those we love. I particularly want this element to come through strongly in Baby's nursery, but I'd like some of it in other rooms as well.

It's not really showing up in this house, yet, though. So, it's kind of hard to explain exactly what I mean. I turned to Pinterest and did a few quick searches. One of the homes I searched was Lindsey's from The Pleated Poppy, because it has a lot of handmade loveliness.





Now, like the Swedish rooms in my last post, these photos are not exactly what I'm going for. They are influences for one part of the whole. The handmade, crafty part :)



Lindsey's home is creative and happy, but it's still very orderly. I don't do well with a chaotic, crafty space. I admire photos of rooms like that sometimes, but I couldn't live with it. I'd just want to dust it all of the time... which there's no way I could... and it would feel dirty to me. Because deep down, I'm a freak like that.

But, like I said, Lindsey's rooms are tidy and ordered. So, no one has to know about my neurosis.



We like to do crafty stuff. I've always been into something or other creative. I use to cross-stitch a lot, then I quilted for a bit, crocheted, I've sewn for a while now. These days, my girls are getting in on the crafty action. They use up my fabric! And, as you know, we all love to paint and draw a lot.



So, there's lot of craft stuff around. And we homeschool - so there's school stuff around, too. (Lindsey also homeschools, by the way). I hide most of it away, but some of it needs to be out. And, it's cheerful stuff. It's us.



I like the feeling of this house. It's very welcoming. Unassuming. Comfortable. Personal. Like I said, not completely what I'm going for, but part of it is. This house is how Lindsey makes a handmade home. My home will be different, because I'm me... not Lindsey :)



A great resource for crafty, handmade home ideas is Home Made Lovely. A new house tour is featured every week or so (I think). Now, just to warn you, these are some seriously crafty homes. Like... Craft Weekend in every room. Most are way too much for me. But, here and there, an idea pops out. And maybe I'll make something like it one Thursday night for my Mama Night. Another personal little touch for our home.

The tricky thing is knowing how much is enough and how much is too much with this kind of thing. Worse case scenario, though, I can just give something as a gift if it's too much for the house. Or store it away to switch out with something else when the mood strikes. There's really very little risk with handmade details, because they're often so quick and inexpensive. Things like quilts and afghans, though... not so much. They take serious time. I'm finding I prefer to buy those vintage, instead. They're still cozy and welcoming even if Aunt Etsy makes them instead of me. If they get used often, they soon become personal, too.

I'm not sure, yet, exactly how all these little elements are going to come together to make a cohesive whole. Can granny square afghans, Swedish-inspired painted rocking chairs, and glam swing arm sconces happily coexist in a room with a traditional Persian-esque rug and modern, graphic pillows?

I think so.

I hope so.

We're still rooting our home in tradition. The big decisions are still by and large classic. The first layer is still the same. I'm just getting excited about playing around some with the rest. I spent so much time and effort researching and defining and considering for the first layer because those choices were expensive and permanent. There wasn't much room to make mistakes there. But, choices like pillows and wall decor are much more forgiving. It's okay to make mistakes with them (ahem... living room bookcase). It's part of learning what works. And what doesn't.

Part of making this home our own.




(photos used with permission from The Pleated Poppy)



Posted by Jacci at 10:59 PM 0 comments
Labels: , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)