Hi Everyone!
You may have noticed there are two rooms you’ve never read me mention here on AHFOC. My children’s spaces. For those of you who don’t know I have two babies. A 10 year old daughter named Bryanna, and a 5 year old son named Michael. When it comes to design and my plot to makeover pretty much every inch of this house, every room is fair game EXCEPT my kid’s rooms. Their rooms have been off limits to mommy’s influence. (not to be confused with mommy’s rules that they be clean and tidy)
I know this may not make much sense to many of you, but its something I feel very strongly about. I gave myself the order to stay away because I really, really, really wanted them to explore and find their own design style, free of my influence. I believe a child’s room should be their safe haven and sanctuary. Its where they go when they are scared, upset, in trouble, and to rest. To me that space should be highly personal and should make them feel as if its something they have all to themselves in the world.
When I was a child I spent SO MUCH time in my room. Its where my love of design started. I cant tell you how many times my mom would pop in and ask “you changed your room again?”. I loved my room, and I tried so much to put my own stamp on it , but it was always undercut by what my mom wanted rather than what I wanted. I told myself, if I ever had children I wouldn’t do that.
My kids reached major milestones last week. My daughter started her first day of middle school. MIDDLE SCHOOL people. That’s HUGE, especially for a girl. My son started is first day of first grade AND his first day in public school. They both celebrate birthday’s in September (10 days apart actually) and they feel so incredibly grown up to me.
Coincidentally, and at separate times, last week both Michael and Bry told Naomi and I they wanted “new rooms”. He wants a big boy room, and she wants something fresh and fun. Automatically the wheels started turning and I had mentally designed both their spaces in about 10 seconds flat! I had to put the brakes on a bit and realize THEY would be designing their own rooms and I would be there to make sure things end up cohesive and aesthetically pleasing, oh and making all the purchases of course.
The kids are complete opposites in personality. Michael is an old soul. I really think he was born in the wrong era! He’s obsessed with HOW and WHAT makes things work. He’s incredibly shy and does not easily trust. He’s quiet upon first introduction and he’s a really good judge of character. I’m pretty convinced at this point that he’s going to be an engineer when he grows up. He has very refined tastes to be so young and he’s a total techie.
Bry is our free spirit. She’s a social butterfly and is incredibly outgoing and nurturing. She’s also very artistic, and in fact attends an academy for the arts. Being older, she has a pretty good idea of what she likes and thus far we can tell she’s drawn to very fun and whimsical spaces. She content to sit and draw, or paint, or crochet in the corner for hours. She also happens to be eerily neat to be so young. I think that may be a Virgo thing. She likes lists and organization.
Their rooms will be so much fun to work on and I cant wait to get started. We’ve decided to start with Michael’s room. Up until this point, both of their rooms have been fairly generic and utilitarian. With the exception of removing their closet doors, which we did in all the bedrooms, I haven’t focused on design so much as I have function. I’m really excited to get going Here’s the current state of Michael’s room. (please excuse the cell phone pics. I cant photograph their rooms with my dslr because my lens doesn’t zoom out)
The only things staying in this room are the wall color and his bed. I cant wait to get a design plan in action.
Until next time….
XoX-Shavonda
Jesse @ Scout & Nimble says
Oh fun! I cannot wait to see what you do! And I was exactly the same growing up…changing my room’s layout all.the.time. Oh and I would get so excited to order new bedding…I would get giddy when I got the domestications magazine!
Katrina@ChicLittleHouse says
Looking forward to seeing Micheal’s room!! I know its going to be fun ~
Darnetha {ChippaSunshine} says
Can’t wait to see what your son will come up with! I love the no closet doors!
Cassie @ Primitive & Proper says
oh i love that they can do it themselves- how fun and creative!!!
Mrs. DeVore says
Can’t wait to see what you do and to see how you work with their ideas! I remember my mom letting me redecorate my room when I was in 5th grade, I loved it so much and got to pick out the color scheme and everything.
Julia Konya says
Can’t wait to see your kids design their rooms. My boy doesn’t really care to be involved at all. He tells me you do it and it’ll look good. Now my girl on the other hand is just like me.
Kristin@bliss-athome.com says
My boy’s room needs some help too. Can’t wait to see what you do 🙂 xo K
Brandi says
Fun! Can’t wait to see how you incorporate your son’s ideas into his space.