Aged eleven, your child is careering towards being a (whisper it) teenager. While they may pretend they don’t, they do still want to play and indulge in a little make-believe, but their room is also a study and frankly somewhere to get away from you.
By Kerry Young
Ikea Odda furniture range
Plan Ahead
Plan at least three years in advance – hard to imagine now, but in a couple of years that lovely child will be inviting her/his mates home to listen to rock music.
Storage, Storage, Storage
You cannot have too much storage – even teenagers gather stuff at alarming speed, plus they'll have a burgeoning collection of homework folders and books that you'll need to accomodate.
Let Them Have Their Way
Where once they wanted fairies on the walls, now they might want all black. Hey, let them have their way – their bedroom should be a retreat (from you) and somewhere they can express themselves. Let them feel at home (and keep the door shut so you don’t have to look at it). So they love Arsenal and want all the players on the wall? Paint the room a deep red to match the team colours... You get the drift.
Ikea Malm bed and Frederik workstation
Keep it flexible – it’s a study, it’s a bedroom, it’s a hang out. If you’ve not got space for everything, rework it. Replace the bed with a good sofabed, get them a raised bed with a desk beneath… The options are endless – and you needn’t spend a fortune – somewhere like Ikea is a good place for inspiration.
Sound Proof It
Door abit flimsy? A good, solid fire door will help keep noise down in the rest of the house, as will a nice thick carpet instead of floorboards. It works both ways – they’ll need peace and quiet to study, you’ll need protection from their ‘music’.
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