You’ve seen the home decor shows that feature perfectly placed knick-knacks and folded blankets folded to within an inch of their life and placed neatly over the back of the sofa. Your first thought: They obviously don’t have small children!
The good news is that young children and a beautifully decorated home CAN coexist. You’ll just have to be more careful in your decorating choices to make sure both home and child are safe. Here are some tips to help get you started on the path to a well-decorated, toddler-friendly home.
1. Safety first
While you may want to have glass pieces resting on your end tables, it’s just not a good idea with small children in the house. The first priority should be safety, so no glass or sharp objects should be within the reach of curious little hands.
2. Keep it high
Focus your decorating efforts in places that are not affected by children. For example, choose fabulous prints for the wall or display your grandmother’s china on the top shelves of a tall, closed cabinet. Plus, you can still display your prized crystal pieces on shelves or in cabinets where little ones can’t reach.
3. Heavy Metal
For decorative items at floor level, consider metal pieces. Metal cannot be easily chewed, stabilized or destroyed. You can usually sit, drool, and write with few if any lasting effects. There are wonderful decorative metal items available at many home decor stores and online retailers. To improve the security factory, choose metal parts that are quite heavy. Your toddler will not be able to move the item. This eliminates any potential dangerous misuse of the item, such as throwing it down the stairs at a sibling or family pet.
4. If you can’t beat them…
The children live in your house and they are not leaving! Rather than fight this fact with your decorating choices, why not make the most of it? Paint a wall (or part of a wall) with chalkboard paint. This will allow your little Picasso an area where he can freely practice his art. On the same note, cover your coffee table in brown paper. When it’s full of colorful drawings, unfold some more! Take some of your child’s best and brightest artwork and have it professionally framed. You will be surprised how much these little masterpieces can add to your room in terms of decoration. One way to get some art that works with your room is to give your little one an assortment of crayons or markers in colors that will complement their decor. When they’re finished, you’ll have works of art in the perfect color for your room! Also, you can say that you know the artist personally! While it might not be appropriate in every room, these are great decorating ideas for kids’ rooms and the family room. You may like these ideas so much that you incorporate them into other rooms as well.
5. Be realistic and be happy.
You live in a house, not in a museum. Your couch will, at some point, be covered in crumbs and have a bright red (and totally permanent) Kool-Aid stain on it. You’ll find magic marker art on your freshly painted walls and your fabulous cushions will find their way into many “forts” made from your best linens. The good news is this: You have a toddler, or more than one. Sadly, they won’t be around forever, and one day, too soon, you’ll be able to decorate however you want. When that time comes, you might want the option of swapping out the fine china and crystal for a little longer with a crumb-covered toddler.