You know those rooms that get done-ish, but never quite finished? Meet our kids' room. A few months ago we finally finished things off and created a simple shared kids room that is neutral but still colorful. Here's the room reveal, before pictures, and a bit of back story behind the room that is shared by three of our kids.
We have lived in our house for 4.5 years and in that short span went from a family of three to a family of six (how awesome, right?!). We've slowly finished and checked rooms off the list, but the kids' room stayed relatively the same. Naps are gold when it comes to tackling DIY projects with kids around, so we added beds and moved em around, and that was about it.
Before:
Before:
Before:
We are selling our house by owner (check our house listing here), and I had no good pictures of the room. The dark trim kept it from looking like the rest of the updated house and it looked super tiny with three beds. Plus there was tons of crap under the bed which isn't good...
So we got to work and knocked that project out in a day.
We first took the crib out and made the decision not to put it back in. Patched walls, touched up existing paint, primed and painted the trim white.
When it came to decorating, I wanted to keep things as simple as possible.
The goal here was not to create an awesome room reveal (sorry, folks), it was to:
- make this room look big (it is 11'x10')
- not spend much
- keep it neutral but not bland
- use pieces that would work in a new room
I bought the gray and white twin duvets from IKEA ($30 each), the colorful triangle rug from World Market (on sale for $25), and shopped the house for accessories. I bought primer for the trim and a small can of paint for touch-ups, so the total spent was just over $100.
We have a nice sized closet, one standing dresser, and two huge drawers under the bed to hold clothes for our three older kids.
Normally, I would have had fun with this blank wall. But I needed this room to be spacious, not cram it with more stuff. Stay focused, Ann Marie! 😉
Minus a laundry basket in the closet for stuffed animals, we only store clothes in the room. Read about how we do toy organization, rotation, and keep the toys from taking over. The door there opens to a 3'x4' closet.
See, nothing. Super boring wall. 😉 But spacious!
Here's a closeup of that great rug. I can't find it on the World Market site, but it was still there a few weeks ago. I love the texture, color, it's super soft, and it could easily live in any other room of the house.
The bookshelf/bookrack was made from an old window opening by the previous owners. We added strips of poplar to hold books in.
The depth is only about 2-3 inches so it's perfect for displaying little treasures.
And the sleeping situation? Well, don't throw rocks at me.
Lily and Ben (5 and 4) used to use the bunk bed, Adam (2.5) used the crib. More than half of the time though, the two older kids would beg to sleep in the top bunk together. We needed more space and for the room not to yell "HEY! WE HAVE THREE KIDS IN HERE! WE NEED TO MOVE! DO YOU SMELL THE DESPERATION?!" when people walked in. So we took out the crib, put Adam in the bottom bunk (much to the dismay of his nap), and have Lily and Ben share the top bunk.
Is it weird? Do you probably think I'm the worst mom ever for having them share a bed? Maybe. Go ahead, that's okay. *dodges rocks* If it wasn't working we could bring in a collapsible crib for Adam. But when I hear them whispering and giggling in the dark, playing with stuffed animals in their hilarious high pitched voices, I know it is working out fine for now.
I've had quite a few questions on how we do storage in this room, organizing kids' clothing, and also questions about having a shared kids' bedroom, so I'll be working on a post answering those questions! If you have questions about toys, here's a post on how we keep toys from taking over and where they go.
What do you think of the space? If you have any questions you'd like answered, leave em below in the comments!
TMV
Don't know if you follow @loswhit at all, but he and his wife put a tripple bunk bed in a closet (just for sleeping) and then used the kid's old rooms for more living space in their old house. The kids loved it for the season they used it and the whole family benefitted.
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I read this when you first posted it and just re-read it again. I love it, and I love that your kids enjoy sharing rooms! My boys, 3 and 4, share a room. It's a pretty big room, we were able to fit both their converted cribs (full size beds) in there plus a dresser and I could add a desk or bookshelf eventually. I also keep toys out of there, it would be way too cluttered with them, and my kids have a 12x30 Sunroom turned playroom for all their toys. My daughter has the other room all to herself. My boys almost always end up in one bed after we tuck them into their own, and they hate going to bed at different times. Sometimes we have to do that for our sanity though ha! We do not plan to move EVER, so barring a winning lottery ticket affording us to add on, they will share that room forever. So I am glad that it is big enough for those beds, because I know eventually they wont want to share. And my husband and I are both giant freaks of nature, so Im pretty certain my boys may eventually be too tall to comfortably curl up in a twin. Cannot wait to see what you do in the new house. I've been following you since 40 bags, and I still walk around throwing crap away every day, plus I've made a little mad money selling useful 'crap' on local facebook yard sale pages. Get it out of my house AND earn money for a hotel room with my bestie for the ECU game this weekend. Super Win/Win! Keep it up, I'm always motivated when you post!
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Hey, if they throw rocks at you, they can throw rocks at me too. Gracie and Jack won't sleep in their rooms. So their room has a toddler bed and a crib. Our room also has a toddler bed and a crib, although Jack sleeps in our bed with us... so they can throw those rocks 🙂
Gayle
Looks awesome! Love the rug! Getting ready to surprise my 11yo with a room update that's more tweenish. Going to use gray on the walls. Hope it turns out as nice!
Janet
Where did you get or how did you make the striped piece propped on the dresser behind the globe? I think it is so sharp! What a peaceful looking room!
leanne
I'm pretty sure that in the not so long ago past lots of siblings shared beds and bedrooms too - how much easier and quicker to clean everything rather than four separate beds and bedrooms - phew !!
Pau
I love how the room turned out after the renovation. I will do the same for my son's. Great job!
Kristie
My three kids are on one room, with their own beds, but still most night they are all in the same bed. I think it's adorable!
Julie Kieras
Oh my goodness - I thought I was the weird one for having my boys share the bottom bunk (neither are old enough for safety up top). So I'm glad to know I'm in good company. Or.... we're just weird together! LOL. LOVE this simple and clean room. I also need to learn to "do less" with decor sometimes. I like to "see" everything! LOL 🙂
Nice job!
Christina
You have done a FABULOUS job and as long as the kids want to share a bed- DO IT! It sounds like they have a great friendship! When we moved out of our 3 bedroom townhouse I was due with number 5 and I always loved the comments from our realtor when people would remark "it's so spacious!" I knew I had done a great job staging. Less is more!
So I've been shopping and shopping and shopping and have YET to find a dresser like the one in their room. Any recs for where to find a nice solid dresser? We have a nice 5 drawer dresser in the 3 amigos room but it's not good quality. I had to finally throw a drawer out in the trash the other day as it just fell apart. Wood is best, boo to MDF. Goodwill seems to be the best place for find things but it's hard to shop there with SIX kids in tow! lol
Natalie
It looks great! I love that it's so clean and organized. We have white trim in our living/dining area, but not in the rest of the house. I've been wanting to update the trim in my kids rooms as well. And I think it's sweet that the two oldest want to share a bed 🙂
Katie
Great Job giving this room tons of space. I thin it's great that the kids are daring a bed. I love your mentality that if it works for now then why not. Plus just think about the memories they are making together! 😉
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I need to live where you live -- holy cow! An acre and 1200 square feet for that price! Your house would cost a gazillion dollars here in Los Angeles....OK, I exaggerate, but just to say you live in a very cute house and it's staged beautifully!
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Jenni
Love the kids room, it looks great, my youngest daughter and son share a room (not beds) but now they are older they hate it (and I don't blame them as they are 13 and 10!) but it is tricky, not ready to move house and the 'play room' that could be emptied out to make a small bedroom is so full of stuff it is terrifying! Just a curious question for you, don't you have 4 children? Where does the other one sleep? Really enjoy your blog!
Randy
You do an awesome job with your home space! I am trying to minimize and organize more around here but lack of time and energy often gets in the way. My 2.5 year twins keep me going (and going and going)!
Regarding the beds, my girls have been climbing into each other's crib and I separated them apart further so there would be more napping and less slumber partying but they have sometimes found a way to reach and pull them together again. I am afraid of switching them to beds because of the stories I've read from other twin moms about having to camp out in front of their kids' room at night to put them back in bed everytime they get out, and the naps stopping, and the room destruction. When it starts becoming a bigger risk (which is likely soon) I'll have to bite the bullet and do it.
On another note, I was wondering what primer/pain you used for your wood trims. I don't like our reddish brown trim, which is all over the house and would love to paint it white so it's brighter, cleaner and more updated looking. We tried it in the kids' room when we painted but it seems to be peeling off and it was a professional who did it. I'm wondering if the wood needed to be sanded first or how it needed to be prepped properly.
Thanks!
Erica
I think you're an amazing mom!!!! These momrnts will be the best years of their lives 🙂
Emily
No rock throwing from here! My 6 year old son and my 3 year old daughter are sharing the bottom bunk- It's a full size mattress so they have plenty of space- of course they still manage to do Kung Fu in their sleep and end up in the oddest positions! My son will read to my daughter bed time stories and it's the sweetest thing. They love having each other close.
Camille
I think the room looks great but why not hang a colorful poster on that blank wall? It's just me but I like stuff on the wall.
Meridith
I think anyone who has a problem with the way your kids sweetly choose to snuggle up together to sleep has problems they, themselves, on their own should address, somewhere else. I think it is darling, and I like the room! Someday they will want or need their own beds, but this time of life is so brief and they know what they want, so letting it be is the natural way to do that. My god daughter and her terrific baby brother still sometimes have sleep-overs with each other and laugh all night, though they don't share a bed or change in front of each other anymore, and they are *gulp* young teens. It makes their parents extremely happy to know that despite the bickering and rolling of eyes that they have a lot of love for each other!
Bethany - I was promised more naps
I LOVE that built in bookshelf!! I'm seriously coveting it right now.
Also, two kids in a bed? SO not a bad thing. Think of all the valuable lessons they're learning about sharing! 🙂
EJ
My 6 yr old and his 3.5 yr old sister love sharing his top bunk! And, they begged to share their room in the first place. You're working with what you've got and doing an excellent job of it!
Haley
Love the simple and inexpensive makeover. Just goes to show a couple changes can make a big difference.
Ellie
I think our generation is the first to not share beds, let alone rooms! Sometimes I think it's ridiculous to expect a family of 5 or 6 to have that many bedrooms. Sharing teaches kids great life skills, and if your kids are happy, why not! Love the simple room! And I'm so curious to see where you'll go when this house sells!
Crystal
No rocks thrown here, at 2yrs old i removed my youngest daughters crib and she was assigned the bottom bunk which my oldest always wanted to share with her. Now at 11 & 8 with a loft bed & bunk bed i still find both my daughters curled up together on that bottom bunk, building strong sisterly bonds!! I applaud you !!
miranda
Room looks great and I also wondered what color is on the walls. Nothing wrong with sharing the bunk....I'm just amazed you can get three kids to actually SLEEP in same room. It's 'divide and conquer' here, LOL!
Ann Marie Heasley
The color is Valspar's Oatbran, it's a great beige that's on the cooler side. I tried to edit the pictures to get the true color so what you see up there is pretty much what it looks like. 🙂
Hahaha! Well... some nights are interesting, some nights are easier. I used to stagger bedtimes but lately that results in everyone staying up later. I think it's been okay since they've always shared? I used to be more "ahhhhh, just go to bed already!" but lately have felt like those little conversations and giggles are important too. I will say that my youngest likes his new freedom and has been using it to his advantage as often as possible, lol. Which leads to me thinking "ahhhhh, just go to bed already!!!" often. I think it would be trickier if any of them were in school. 🙂
marytoo
I wish I had a bathroom closet!
marytoo
Sorry....IDK why this comment went here. I was trying to comment on the bathroom closet post. :p
Ann Marie Heasley
haha, no worries! 😉
That is one thing I am NOT ready to give up once we move! That big built-in has been amazing. I'd like to give the person who designed it a big hug, haha.
Stephanie
My kids 6 and 7 frequently share a twin bed (when they are not sleeping in the guest room queen sized bed together) and they are opposite gender - we are getting ready to move to a somewhat smaller house and we plan to have them sharing a room, at least at first since that's what they want to be doing anyway and are doing for all intents and purposes. We'll just go with it and let them decide when they want their own rooms again. We're doing a gender neutralish bedspreads too . . .
Bridget
We have a similar situation! Right now we have my 5 year old boy and 3 year old girl in the one room before the baby moves in there, but I suspect visitors might raise an eyebrow when they see only one bed. I didn't see the point in wasting space with 2 beds because they always like to sleep together as well!
Jenny
I think it looks beautiful. No rock throwing from this direction. Having your little ones temporarily share to get to your goal of selling seems like a smart idea to me.
Just wondering what color paint you used on your walls. Love it!
Ann Marie Heasley
Thanks, Jenny. 🙂 I have a feeling once they don't need to share, they will still sneak into each others' beds, haha.
The wall color is Valspar's Oatbran, it's a great beige that a little on the cool side. The rest of our house has been updated with greige colors, but this beige is so great we just touched up.
Wendy
Our kids, Maya (7) and Liam (5 1/2), share a room and have "sleepovers" on all non-school days. They choose to share the top twin bunk! You are not terrible for having them share, and nobody should be throwing stones! Let kids be kids. I'm sure they love it! That's all that matters!
jennielynn
They can throw rocks at me too, because I don't see a thing in the world wrong with them sleeping in the same bunk. Wishing you a short and successful time on the market.