Children may be small people but they have big needs, and this is especially true when it comes to their bedrooms. Youngsters have always spent lots of time in their bedrooms, away from pesky adults, in the one part of the home they can truly call their own.
If the present junior generation seems to spend even more of their lives there, it shouldn’t really be a surprise – so much of a child’s time is now spent playing on tablets, communicating or doing homework on laptops, as well as more traditional reading, writing and listening to music, and the bedroom is where most of this activity takes place.
Good News for Grown-Ups
Of course, from an adult’s perspective, keeping the mess, noise and other disruption from kids out of the way in their bedroom is obviously an attractive solution, even if it is sometimes a battle to get the youngsters down for dinner!
If you want your children to get the most out of their bedrooms, it pays to be smart with the furniture in there. Make sure that there is plenty of space to play, ample storage and lots of comfort for kids and their friends.
Remember, a child’s room should be designed with their happiness and relaxation in mind.
So long to the Single Bed
This may go some way towards explaining why sales of single beds have dropped by 9% in the last four years. Increasingly, parents are putting double size beds in their children’s bedrooms, and it isn’t hard to see why. A double bed gives your child space to spread out more – they can relax with both books and tablets or laptops around them, whether they are playing or doing homework.
There can be lots of storage space underneath, too, to help keep all that kiddy clutter out of sight. Let’s face it, given the choice of doing homework in the bustle of a kitchen or the comfort of our bedroom, most of us would vanish to the bedroom.
Spoilt for Choice
Retailers have cottoned on to this trend and many of them now sell children’s bedding in double sizes on the high street, so there’s plenty of choices when it comes to adding a splash of colour via duvet covers and pillowcases.
You might even use the purchase of a double bed as an excuse to redecorate Junior’s room – what’s right for a three-year-old probably isn’t right for a nine-year-old, after all. Of course, the more parents opt for double beds in children’s rooms, the more kids are going to ask for double beds! At least there are sensible reasons for children to pester their parents on this issue…
And Here’s a Bonus
Of course, your children are going to be thrilled with a double bed but there’s an additional, extremely practical, reason why you should be pleased, too. You see, you’ve just added a double bed for guests to sleep in. When the need arises, Junior can sleep on a blow-up mattress in another room, while your guests get a proper double bed in which to snooze. Yes, they’ll have to put up with some odd posters on the walls and a Star Wars light shade, but they’ll get a proper bed in which to spend the night.
All Grown Up
Double beds for children are an attractive and practical alternative to that other staple of the kid’s bedroom, the bunk. Not only that, but children don’t outgrow double beds the way they outgrow bunk beds. And, who knows, if they ever actually move out, you will still have a perfectly useful piece of bedroom furniture as the basis for a guest room.
One piece of advice: don’t be tempted to scrimp on storage space when you decide to buy a double bed. Do use under-bed boxes – there is a lot of space under that bed – and do have lots of drawers and cupboards, because kids gather lots of ‘stuff’, regardless of what bed they sleep in. And ask about mattresses – you’ll want your child to be comfy but also healthy, and you’ll want to be sure a mattress can put up with the rigours of children bouncing around and entertaining themselves.
Short of Space?
One final thought – if you need more sleeping space but you also like the idea of a double bed for your child, you can get the best of both worlds with a triple-sleeper bunk. That way, there’s a double bed on one level with a single-sleeper bunk above. It’s ideal for sleepover guests and looks cool in a kid’s room, too.
When it comes to putting a bedroom together that will keep you and your child happy, there have never been more options to help you get the most out of the available space – and give your child a bedroom they can be proud of.
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