Dallas House & Home - Index

Dallas House & Home - dallashouseandhome - Index

BEDROOM TO GROW
One day your child likes pink, the next day it’s green. Or maybe your
boy is in to dinosaurs, but next year race cars will be his passion.
Painted murals are a wonderful way to add a bit of whimsy to a
room, creating a fantasy land, but make sure it is something the child
will like for quite a while before making the investment.
Amy Dillard, local artist and owner of Ribbit-Ribbit, a home
décor and accessories manufacturer, says it is important to find a balance
between what the child wants and tasteful choices adults crave.
“Consider how a room is going to grow with the child, and make
choices that are easy to change out as the child’s tastes change,”
Dillard says.
Rather than adding custom pink tiles in a child’s bathroom,
Dillard suggests adding a wallpaper boarder that can be removed or
changed if the child’s tastes change or the home is sold.
Purchasing furniture that can grow with the child is also a good
idea, according to Christine Shanklin, owner of Closets by Chicka
22
RIGHT: Instead of entirely
child-proofing your
kitchen, make your kids
part of daily activities
and food prep. Kitchen
Design Concepts helped
this family with four kids
plan their kitchen so the
dangerous things are out
of reach and the children
have kid-level access to
art supplies, healthy
snacks and plastic ware.
ABOVE: To keep clutter under control, Kitchen Design
Concepts created a “parking lot” for backpacks, papers and
other things kids haul home with a hook and a drawer for
each child.
house& home | August 2008 | house andhomeonline.com
ABOVE: The
Thomas Extra Wide
Armoire from
Pottery Barn Kids
is great for TV and
game storage in
the playroom. The
armoire features
beadboarding,
crown molding,
dovetail joinery and
frame-and-panel
construction.
and president of the National Association of Professional Organizers
DFW. “You can get a crib that converts into a bed or a changing table
that will become a dresser,” she says. “You want to stay away from the
race car bed that your child won’t like next year.”
Sally Morse, director of Creative Services for Hunter Douglas, the
custom window fashions manufacturer, says you can use small decorative
elements that are easy to change out to reflect children’s shifting
interests. “Hang a tutu on the wall for a budding ballerina, and for
your little league star, create a window valance with a bat,” she says,
adding that decorative touches can be added using the company’s
Playful Possibilities Nantucket window shadings. “You can mix and
match fabrics and hardware in colors like Spinnaker Blue, Yellow
Canopy, Limeade and Cotton Candy.”
Of course bedding options with interesting patterns and colors can
be the spotlight in your child’s room. “When choosing bedding, be
practical,” Dillard says. “Buy washable fabrics, and don’t buy tons of
pillows that will just end up on the floor. If you do have decorative