Creative Kids' Rooms

Part 2: Fantastic Furniture

By Jacqueline Rupp

When you reach the point where you are beyond the walls – beyond color, beyond pattern and beyond murals – it's time to furnish the room. Here's some great places to start:

"I think one of the ways to decorate a bedroom is to keep bedding simple," says Pat Donahue, owner of Promises Fulfilled, a Blue Bell, Pa.-based children's decor boutique, specializing in hand-painted items. "Change the accessories in a room but stay consistent with a good quality bedding and furniture in solid colors, which will match with many different styles."

Above the bed is also a great place to focus your attempts to add whimsy to the room. "Canopies are one of the most fun and whimsical accessories for little girls," says Jane Parr, a.k.a. the Decor Doc, who actually does online decorating consultations. "What little girl would not like feeling like a princess in a canopy bed," she says. "This does not have to be a full four-poster bed canopy. You can rig one inexpensively by using yards of tulle or sheer fabric and some well placed rings in the ceiling. Drape the fabric around the bed and use ribbon tiebacks to pull it all back in the daytime. Fabric paint and glitter personalizes the canopy." Ikea also offers rainbow and giant leaf canopies both for under $20.

As for the bed itself, we've all seen those cute little racecar beds. Having a fun-shaped bed like this can really pull a room's theme together. "Since they are pricey and may not be loved for long, the trick is to make your own as inexpensively as possible," says Parr. Built around a standard bed frame, pieces of wood or cardboard can be cut, painted and affixed to the front and sides to give the impression of everything from a fire truck to a flower bed.

If you're willing to shell out for the right bed, imagine how much fun it would be to slide down a castle ramp on the way to breakfast, play princess in the loft and fall asleep surrounded by your kingdom. Available at HomeVisions.com, these beds come in castle, fire station, cottage and military designs. Although the beds run about $500, the theme accessories remove to show a solid hardwood traditional bunk that can last for years to come.

Want to see more?

• Cost-efficient Decorating: How to Jazz up Your Preschooler's Room and Stay Under Budget
• Harmony at Home: Feng Shui in Children's Rooms
• Moving on a Dime: Save Money, Save Time, Save Your Sanity
• Talk about it!