When designing kids’ rooms, tradition tells us that there is a specific color designated for a boy and a girl. Blue has been generally associated with boys and pink, with girls. Thankfully, over time, we have learned to design gender-neutral rooms that are appealing for both sexes.
Here are some tips in designing that shared bedroom for a boy and a girl.
Play it safe with neutrals
Paint the main color of the room in neutral shades of white, beige, ivory or taupe. Add accents of black and gray to give a classic touch.
What’s great about neutral colors is the variety of contrasting and complimentary shade for each tone.
Keep it interesting by bringing out the personality of the boy and girl through art, accessories, toys or collection of their knick-knacks.
Add a punch of color
If neutral colors are a bore, and you want a room that’s more alive and colorful, then these are your go-to colors to keep it gender neutral: orange, yellow, turquoise and shades of green.
Paint one side of the room with any of these vibrant colors to make an accent wall.
Or make a monochromatic color scheme by layering shades and bringing in textures. Whatever color you choose, it’s important to stick with one color to make one cohesive look.
Fair share
Divide the room equally. This is not only to establish a fair share of the room for each kid, but also to create symmetry. Aiming for a symmetrical look is the best trick in the book. It’s best to find the center and make it the focal point.
Then, create a mirror-like effect on the room by replicating the exact copy of furniture on one half of the room to the other half. An example is to place two beds, exactly alike on each side of the room.
Symmetry creates a sense of balance, which feels right in a shared room.
In case the room doesn’t have enough space for two beds, providing a bunk bed is the most logical option.
A bunk bed saves you space and optimizes the other areas of the room for storage. You can still pull off a sense of balance in the room by establishing one corner of the room as the focal point.
An example is to highlight a piece of furniture (could be the bunk bed or an artwork) and play with the differing furnishings in the room in terms of scale and proportion.
The Great Divide
A shared room doesn’t mean one should give up their privacy.
The boy and girl roommates should have their “me” or “alone” time separately. If there is enough space possible, placing a divider– be it a back-to-back wardrobe or storage cabinet of sorts– creates that much needed freedom to be alone.
Shared Space
It’s important to create a space for that mutual interest. There should be a communal space for the boy and girl roomies to just hang-out.
The room could have a cozy reading nook, a play area with shared toys for kids, or a media console with the TV hung on the wall for those gaming and Just Dance sessions.
Creating a shared space to spend time together is essential in creating that tight bond with a sibling, or a way to cohabitate happily with a roomie.
Make a theme
Take inspiration from shared interests to create a theme for the room. Do they share a love for the same sport? Or they both fancy the same cartoon character?
A nautical theme or a Lego themed room is concepts that appeal to both genders.
Designing a shared bedroom for a boy and girl can be a challenging task. One final thing to remember is you must draw up a plan so you can carefully consider everything—their needs and preferences.
Most importantly, in the most likely event of disagreement between the kids or the roomies, be the voice of reason.
Keep calm, use the above pointers, carry on, and succeed.
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