When you want to decorate your home but you have small and young children to consider, you may think it’s difficult or impossible to do. Take heart though. If you remember two simple rules, you can have a pretty home design that works with small kids too.
The two rules? Safe and Washable.
When redecorating any part of your home, you need to be sure both your children and your decor is safe from each other. And of course with small fingers and hands about the house, designing with anything that’s washable is a must in order to keep it all looking its best.
Choosing cleanable decor is fairly easy to understand, particularly if you already have toddlers or any aged kids in your home. Children of all ages attract dirt and grime. They love to dig in the garden when they’re young, and dig into car engines or tackling each other in sports as they get older. They’re just really great at bringing in dirt magically!
So decorating your home with washable fabrics is a must when you have kids living there. This is true for furniture fabrics as well as floor coverings such as carpeting and throw rugs. Don’t forget washable walls too: Use high-gloss enamel paint will allow you to decorate beautifully and you’ll be able to give it a quick wipe down to remove dirt as needed.
One of the easiest ways to make your beautiful furniture easier and less expensive to wash is to decorate it with furniture coverings. There are a wide variety of designer slip covers to choose from these days, and many of these are also made with durable fabrics such as denim and canvas.
Area rugs are generally easy to clean too but if you prefer wall to wall carpeting then be sure to select a commercial grade version in the style needed for your room design. Commercial carpeting is made to withstand large amounts of foot traffic and it’s designed to resist staining too. So it will last much longer against the everyday wear and tear of kids than residential carpeting will.
Keeping your home decor safe from the kids – and the children safe from your decor – is another critical factor to consider when planning your new decorating theme. This is most important while the children are small, but it still plays an important role as they grow too.
If you like to decorate with breakable knick knacks, crystal vases, and antique collectibles you may find these are a big challenge while you’re children are still quite small. Keeping these to a minimum is the easiest approach, and be sure to place them in secure, stable locations which are high enough for the children to be unable to reach.
It’s usually best to avoid glass tables, crystal lamps, and fragile antique chairs while the children are still small though, because not only are these more likely to be broken they’re also more likely to hurt your child, especially while they’re young and like to climb on things.
Any large pieces of furniture such as tall bookshelves and wall entertainment centers need to be securely bolted to studs in the walls. Also be aware that the newer flat panel LCD TV sets are easier for small children to pull over on themselves, so be extra careful about attaching these securely too.
