Living with kids is like living with a tornado. All you have to do is turn your back for one minute and the entire living room is destroyed!It’s completely understandable why so many parents end up relinquishing decorating control to the youngest members of the family. The trouble is, that means your living room will just end up looking like a disaster zone until the kids are old enough to move out.You don’t have to live in a perpetual mess, and you don’t have to compromise style in order to create a kid-friendly space. Here are some tips that will enable you to decorate a living room that is as functional as it is beautiful, for you and the kids.
Streamline Your Windows
The windows can be downright dangerous to kids. With dangling cords, choking is a real possibility. Not to mention, the slats of mini blinds can easily become damaged and heavy draperies can be pulled to the floor.Instead, streamline your windows by choosing your window treatments wisely. For example, vertical blinds make a great choice for sliding doors, but they’re great for regular windows too.Because they hang vertically, they can’t become damaged like horizontal blinds. There’s no cord to worry about, and you can customize them for your home. For example, Just Blinds allows you to, “Choose between one way or split stacking for your vertical blinds.”
Think Plush Fabrics and Round Corners
Kids fall, and sometimes, their fall includes hitting their head. That’s why it’s so important to decorate your home to prevent accidents, but that doesn’t mean you’re stuck with ugly furniture!A few tips include:
- Replace that glass coffee table with an upholstered cushion
- Choose circular or oval-shaped end tables
- Pile on the pillows that can double as seat cushions
Secure Breakables with Museum Gel
When you bring home baby, breakable items are the first things to go. Anything that isn’t heavy enough to stand on its own gets packed away into boxes to be forgotten about for decades to come.There’s a simple solution that doesn’t involve packing away your favorite treasures for yearsmuseum gel.This versatile medium is used in museums, so you know it’s dependable. Simply place a little bit underneath items that you don’t want toppling to the floor and it will keep them steady, even if rambunctious kids go running by.However, you do have to think carefully about the placement of these items. Museum gel won’t stop curious hands from removing an item, so expensive and important knickknacks should be secured on shelves that are out of reach.
Give Your Kids a Corner
Toys don’t make the best interior decorations, but if you live with kids, they are going to be a part of your life. Instead of banishing your children to their bedroom every time they want to play, give them a corner of the living room that is all their own.The benefits of giving your kids their own space are twofold. First, it gives them a place to put their stuff so it doesn’t end up all over the living room floor. Second, it provides them with an acceptable place to play so they avoid making a mess of, and possibly damaging, other areas of the living room.Help them decorate their corner the way you would decorate any other area of your home. Give them a shelf with baskets to hold toys, provide them with a seat, and help them arrange their new space just the way they want.
Plan Cleanup Time Every Single Day
Your job as a parent is to raise children that will become functioning adults. Your job isn’t to run along behind your children and pick up after them at every turn. Your job isn’t to put up with their mess either!Chores actually benefit kids. They teach responsibility, and when that responsibility is caring for their own things, you can also teach them the value of what they own.So they don’t forget, schedule a time each day when it’s their responsibility to clean up their stuff, like before bed. They should also tidy up their area before company comes over.Don’t let your living room go to the kids! You may have to make some concessions to make sure it is safe and comfortable for your children, but that doesn’t mean you have to compromise on style. Not when you follow the tips on this list!
I’m a 20-something stay-at-home mother and wife. I have an amazing husband, a beautiful daughter, two loving dogs, and a lazy cat. I wouldn’t change my life for anything! I love to read, listen to music, cook and blog!
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