Arranging a Baby Room

Every child values their bedroom. It is the one room in the house that is truly their own. It is where their choice is the final decision; the area through which they can express themselves and their identity.

As they grow up most children will inevitably change their mind about how they want their room to look. When they are babies it is completely the parents’ choice as to what the space will look like, as children they might want images of their favourite cartoon characters everywhere, as teenagers they might have posters of pop stars all over it, and as they enter adulthood if they are living at home then they may wish for it be more subdued.

This is the lifecycle of the children’s bedroom. If you have no plans to move house then it is likely that your child will grow up in the same room. So how should you decorate it to begin with?

The Walls

The walls are what make the biggest impact on the overall look of any area. We often associate colours with certain emotions: red with anger, yellow with feeling bright and happy, blue with the cold, green with nature, and more. With children it is traditional to associate blue with boys and pink with a girl which is why these colours are often chosen for baby rooms.

Typical Baby Colours

Farrow & Ball paints come in a huge range of different shades, from very vibrant blues and pinks such as Nancy’s Blushes and St Gile’s Blue (above) through to more neutral shades such as Shade White and Matchstick. Explore the different colours that we have to find the combination that suits you.

If you are not keen on the idea of pink or blue, then you might be interested to know that instead many interior designers suggest using creamy tones for a baby room. Colours such as Farrow and Ball’s Wevet and Ammonite (below) are much calmer than other colours, and they have the additional advantage of being accessorised with easily. 

Recommended Colours

As children get older, rather than continually reapplying “Toy Story”-like wallpaper of their favourite characters, you can accessorise with this sort of thing through fun bedding, cushions, toys, lampshades, etc. Leave the walls as they are.

If you want to add a bit more personality to the room, then why not alter one wall alone? Choose one statement wall to continually update with new wallpaper or your child’s favourite colour. This way your son / daughter has the bedroom that they want but without you having to continually spend hours altering it each time they enter a new phase.

Secure Bed & Supervised Play Area

The most important thing for any baby is safety. All new parents have that feeling of not knowing enough; that sense of being lost in the new world of parenthood. This is completely normal but the best way to gain confidence is to know that the bedroom is laid out in the way that it should be.

Choose a secure cot from a well-known brand. If you want to save money in the long run then you can purchase a cot that can later be used as a children’s bed. It is also important to make a space for supervised play. A small mat on the floor near the baby toys is a good idea; when your little one is restless during the night, you can sit them there for a couple of minutes before they get sleepy again.

Storage

You will be amazed by how much stuff a person as tiny as your baby needs. All of those nappies, baby wipes, baby lotion, cotton wool, toys, clothes, blankets, dummies, pacifiers, breast pumps, bottles, bottle warmers, baby towels, cleansers, etc need somewhere to go.

While you might think that you can store most of this in the bathroom – depending on how big your bathroom actually is you will find that you need to store more things in the baby room than initially expected.

Additionally, all of your well-wishing family and friends will have undoubtedly bought you more toys than you could ever imagine. While soft toys are brilliant for children in many ways, they can also gather dust in the bedroom.

Therefore storage is a major component of any children’s room so be sure to invest in deep cupboards and drawers. Although there probably won’t be anything dangerous in the room, you might still want to consider childproof latches on cupboards just so that the little one cannot open something and bump their head on the corner.

If you want to find some inspiring colour schemes for your baby room have a look at the Kent Blaxill Farrow and Ball paints where you will find all sorts of colours to choose from.