How to Design Your Playroom

A wonderful playroom is a must-have for any child who wants to express their imagination and have a place of their own to store and use their toys. If you are planning on creating a new playroom for your child and are on the hunt for a few design ideas, take a look at our top tips.

Playroom Design Ideas

So, you want to design a new playroom for your child? This is sure to be a wonderful space for your little ones to spend time, but it doesn’t mean that the design process will be easy. Designing a playroom is going to have some differences when compared to designing other rooms in your house as you need to think about your child’s needs and wants while still making it a practical place within your home.

The first and most important thing to remember as you go through the design process is that safety should always be at the forefront of your design. The playroom is going to be the place where your kids spend most of their waking hours, so you want to make sure that your design is completely childproof.

This means everything from outlet covers to removing sharp edges on furniture to tethering furniture to the wall so it doesn’t tip over. If you have safety in the back of your mind as you move forward with your design process, you will be setting yourself up for success with all of your design options moving forward.

Think About How Your Child Will Use the Room

Step one when coming up with a design for your child’s playroom? Thinking about how your child will be using that room. Make sure that your plan is realistic and that your child will actually want to (and can) use the room based on their age and interests.

If you have little ones, you may want the focus of the playroom to be a soft mat that they can crawl on. If you have older kids who love video games, a big TV with comfy chairs may be at the center of your design.

Try writing out everything that your child will likely want to do in the room so you can make sure your design stays practical and will meet their needs.

Choose an Eclectic Mix of Furniture

The bulk of your design options are likely going to come down to furniture. However, choosing furniture in a room meant for kids can sometimes be a challenge. You want something fun and that goes with the theme of the room, but you also want something practical as well. Here are some other tips to keep in mind as you start finding furniture to fill the space:

• Keep things fun! The room is still for kids so don’t be afraid to try bold colors and shapes you may not normally have in the rest of your home.
• Be careful with furniture pieces that have sharp edges or that can easily break.
• Make sure any furniture with a potential tipping hazard is able to be attached to the wall.
• Look for durable fabrics that can handle wear and tear including those that can be easily cleaned.
• Adjustable furniture options are great because they can work for your child through many stages.

And lastly, think about budget when shopping for furniture. As most parents know, kids tend to be pretty tough on furniture in the home and will be spending a lot of time on their playroom furniture, so you don’t want to spend too much on furniture that may need to be replaced.

Have a Mix of Storage Options

Any parent who has seen that growing pile of kid toys knows that storage is so important with little ones. One of the biggest focuses of your new playroom design should be storage. You want lots of storage, not only with closets, but with closed door storage like cabinets, dressers, consoles and other pieces of furniture that can house your kids’ items.

Open displays can also be helpful when it comes to playroom storage. Open storage may not be the most visually appealing option, but it can help make things accessible for your kids.

Another storage tip for playrooms?

Invest in good bins. High-quality, durable bins that won’t break by being pushed, pulled and tugged are a great way to keep all of your kid’s favorite items safe and stored properly. Bins are going to get a lot of use and undergo a lot of wear and tear, so in addition to making them look pretty—make certain they will last.

Don’t Get Incredibly Specific With a Color Palette or Themes

There are a lot of ways that designing for a child is different from designing for an adult. Above all things, kids tend to change their minds even more frequently than adults. Your kids are going to go through phases, change their mind on their favorite color, and move on from one favorite animal to the next very fast.

With this in mind, don’t get too specific with a color palette or certain themes in your playroom, or you’ll be going back and redoing your playroom much more than you probably want to.

Get Rid of Old Toys

As you start to design your playroom, you’ll find this is the perfect opportunity to do a little spring cleaning as well. This means getting rid of all of those old toys that your child has outgrown. Whether you sell, donate or put them away in a long-term storage solution—this is a great way to have a fresh start with your new playroom.

Add Some Physical Play Space

What’s one of the best things to add to any playroom? Space for activities of course! In addition to being a place where you can store toys, a playroom should also be a place for kids to play. Make sure there’s an area for your kids to get some physical play in so they can have fun, move their bodies and get some of that extra energy out.

Designing a playroom should be an enjoyable process for you and your family as you create a space that is all about what kids do best—have fun!