making home: a shared kids room moodboard
In the spirit of actually getting around to the many daydreams and plans I have for our new rental home, I’m starting a new series on the blog where I can share my vision (board) for each space.
I’m nobody’s interior designer, but I am an oversharer and have put an unruly amount of hours into thinking about how to make our home beautiful, functional, and personal. I initially made these moodboards (yes, there are more) for myself, but I think the process of how non-designers/non-home influencers make our houses homes don’t get enough attention.
In my dreams, I’m not on a Target/IKEA/secondhand treasure-hunting budget, but the reality is, I am. Creating a moodboard like this helps me see what is truly on my shopping list so I don’t get distracted by the neverending options that are out there—even at Target.
All that to say, here’s what I’ve been dreaming up for the bedroom my two older children share (our youngest is still nursing and so still sleeps in our room).
shared room for siblings
FURNITURE
One big essential for any bedroom is a space for clothing! We took the sliding doors off the closet to make it feel more open. The antique armoire fits perfectly in the space and easily holds all of the kids’ clothes (a perk of heavily editing their wardrobes) without compromising floor space.
Next came the beds. We sold the IKEA Kura bed we’d been hacking into a bunk bed on Facebook Marketplace and opted for the IKEA Utaker stackable bed. It comes as a pair of bedframes, which can be stacked to form a platform bed or arranged as two separate twin-sized beds. It’s perfect for the room since I wanted to have a low/floor bed frame for my older kiddos.
The lavender nightstand was the next thing on the list. It brought in some much-needed storage and a whimsical color while also filling in the space between the two beds. This one from Wayfair is one of the better-quality flatpack furniture items I’ve ordered! We swapped out the hardware for some handmade knobs to bring in a more organic feel.
SOFT FURNISHINGS
I started with the rug. I knew I wanted the room to be cozy and plush but also something that didn’t cost a fortune since — being a kids’ room — the rug is bound to end up stained by crayons and foot traffic. I went with an off-white shag rug from Target which has lost some of its plushness due to vacuuming and definitely shows where the walking areas of the room are, but overall it’s holding up to the daily wear and tear of three young children. I will say, it’s much more white than off-white, but I don’t mind that.
For bedding, I turned to trusty Targée for affordable ivory fitted sheets and block-printed shams. I plan to add an additional pillow to each bed so I can tie in the dusty blue color to the room, but I’m hoping to achieve that by dyeing some white shams I have on hand. I’m also (ambitiously) planning to dye the pair of H&M duvet covers that I bought before I’d really solidified my vision for this room.
I love the idea of having a mossy olive green duvet cover to bring a punch of color to the space, but I’ll be honest I’m super intimidated by the idea of dyeing fabric! I have such a specific color in mind that if I had $300 to spend on the linen duvet covers, I would! I’m working up the courage to try anyway. I’ll update you when that happens!
Finally, I’m hoping to echo a bit of that warm brown from the antique dresser and the block-printed sham with a cognac brown euro cushion like this one from Crate & Barrel (pricey I know but perhaps worth it for the color). For the final bedding accent, I’m toying with the idea of adding a touch more blue to the room with a round accent pillow from IKEA.
My dream is to make patchwork curtains inspired by this blog post but in the meantime, some simple white sheer curtains will do!
LIGHTING
I’d love to bring in a bit more organic texture with a rattan lamp and an olive green lampshade. I think it would be the perfect little compliment to the duvet covers! Leave it to me to want to spend more on a lampshade than on bedding! I can’t help who I am. Eventually, I’ll think about replacing the flush mount in this room, but we rarely use the overhead lights anyway, so it’s not a priority right now.
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