That little room of dreams

If there is one adage that certainly rings loud and true it has to be that “life changes after kids”. The same adage applies to homes. With the changing dynamics of the
relationship between children and parents, designing and/or doing up homes to suit a child’s needs is seeing a marked shift.

Changing trends

Earlier, a child’s room was all about having a bunker bed, along with a study table and pink or blue colour walls and some stuffed toys. With changing times and the Internet, children are smarter and more aware than ever before. A child’s room is a place where they start learning and exploring the world, so parents are working together to assist the child in creating that personal space.

“For children, their room is like their world. Parents are doing more neutral colours, but with accents that are colourful. So you may have a room that’s grey, but the accents are pink, purple or yellow. It’s advisable not to go bright on the rooms as the toys are colourful. It depends on the child and the parent, but generally the room needs to be updated about every five years,” advises Radeesh Shetty, director, The Purple Turtles, a
designer lights company.

“Designing a space for children in a house is something where the parents need to be most careful. It is necessary to baby-proof the room. Make sure the plug points and wirings are not broken or lying open as you do not want to feed an inquisitive mind,” says TV anchor Samir Kochhar.

It is important to make sure that the products used for building the room are children-friendly and the room paints are not harmful. “Even the wood used for cots and beds shouldn’t have nails sticking out. As my baby is just 50 days old, I have stuck glow lights on the ceiling for him to stare at and be fascinated by. A lot of fun posters and colourful stickers around the room help making it more interesting and vibrant for the children,”adds Samir.

“Environmentally-friendly and sustainable solutions such as water-based paint solutions that emit close to no emission and recyclable wood are the best bets. Focus on longevity so that the room grows with the child instead of it lasting only for a short period of time. Look for convertible and multi-functional furniture solutions – for example, beds that can be turned into storage, study table that can be hidden when not in use, moveable bedside tables on wheels,” adds Payal Karumbiah, director, CC India, a home interiors company.

The new craze for neon reflects in the current fascination for metal and wood furnishing. “The vibrant neon colour is a lively wake-up call for your child! You can also use stylish children’s toys that can double up as decor for the room,” says Krsna Mehta, design director, India Circus, a home decor and personal accessories company.

Doing it right
Children’s lives are complex, unique and inherently spatial, situated in time and place, and their spatial patterns will be a reflection of a web of factors including gender, ethnicity, family culture, and local and global characteristics.

“Sometimes parents worry about decorating rooms to their child’s tastes
because their child’s interests change regularly. Choosing a theme based on the interest of the children is important. If the child is into a particular type of sport, filling the room with sport-related decorations is pretty good start – like a basketball hoop headboard for the bed. The space needs to be planned in such a way that the child has a lot of scope to constantly add new things to the space. If a child is into a sport, instead of making everything football-inspired, use posters, carpets and other accents that can liven up the space. So that if the kid does find a new interest, it is easy to work with the space,” opines Radeesh.

Involving the child
Knowing your child’s personality traits and corelating his/her personality with your overall plan and sense of design with that of the entire home is the need of the hour. Parents today share their plans with their kids for opinions on what they like and don’t. Design the child’s room with a viewpoint of making it a multi-functional room as the room shall not only be a place to sleep, but also to study, play, develop and grow. “Natural light and fresh air are those elements of the nature which bring freshness, health and happiness along with them,” says Radeesh.

The decor of the child’s room should be driven by his interest rather than anything else. In school, generally, a child has restrictions, but let his home and room be his dream and workplace.

“Parents are open to experiment and change the interiors often, so that the child feels comfortable. Also, it instills a sense of responsibility in him/her. For instance, for a young child, it could be bunk beds with colourful decor items; in the early teens, some inspiring quotes and personalities along with some fun and informative games; at some later part of a few books and racks, along with family photographs. This has a huge psychological impact on them, and also motivates them in some way,” explains Avi Jain, co-founder of Homesake.in.

Safety matters
Besides basic safety requirements such as ensuring all soft corners, and antibacterial surfaces, the most important aspect is to ensure creating a space that allows the child to be free thinking, creative and responsible adults. “The most important aspect is child proofing. Making sure there are no sharp edges like edges of bed, study table and wardrobe,” opines Saniya Kantawala, an interior designer.

Plan the room in such a way that there’s at least one ventilation opening  for fresh air. Windows in kids rooms should either be placed relatively higher or should be well shielded with a properly-fitted grill. Also, ensure thatyou go in for safety sockets so that kids cannot push their pencils or toys into them. “These days many brands and
parents alike ignore the importance of the quality of products. Products need to be in compliance with RoHs standard, which ensures heavy metals are not above the standard limit as it can have some long-term health effects,” says Avi.

Light up
The child’s room should be well-lit and natural lighting is the best. The room lighting should be functional as well as comforting. Coloured lights might make a room look beautiful, but functional lighting that brightens a room enough to reduce shadows and makes reading easy should be the focus. You could even have a night light placed in yourchild’s room. “Having another light near the bed that can be turned on and off without getting up can allow kids to ward off darkness without leaving the safety of their covers,” says Radeesh.

So, get together with your child and bond again over your home.