Having a tween is a TRIP (having 2 is even trippier) and I’m having fun with the hell out of it (apart from all of the driving round, thank god for carpools). In the course of the day, they’re making an attempt on all these identities, into and over issues so quick, however then at evening they need to snuggle with their mama. I wrote a PSA final yr about not doing something too everlasting of their rooms for this precise cause (Elliot is so over her wallpaper that she as soon as BEGGED for). She needs to redecorate her room day by day (I informed her we’d reassess at 13, which supplies the wallpaper a 5-year life span–I’m not happy with that, however I’m happy with it). Charlie, then again, doesn’t need me to the touch his room; he loves it and needs so as to add stuff, like posters and tchotchkes, and I believe he’s scared that I’ll add butterfly wallpaper. And since I’ve different fish to fry (and discovered my lesson with Elliot’s room), I clearly haven’t pushed something. However just lately, he wished to make an enormous change that’s not precisely an accepted design transfer, and being the “sure” mother that I’m, I used to be like, “positive go for it”.
However first … As a reminder, here’s what it regarded like for the primary yr we lived right here.
2023 – The Shared Room
They shared a room (their selection, Elliot’s sat empty) with two IKEA mattress frames and a LOT OF STUFFIES. It was really so cute and candy, they usually typically nonetheless drag a transportable mattress into his room to sleep for the weekend.
I began amassing all these cute classic or pop-y furnishings items that I liked that he appreciated, however solely in the best way {that a} 9-year-old boy may. However I didn’t actually do a lot as a result of I knew it was short-term.
2023 – Charlie’s Solo Room
Okay, right here was what it regarded like after Elliot moved out (age 8 and 10, I believe). The couch was cute within the nook, and this was earlier than he turned obsessive about the drums.
I really actually suppose this was cute. Not designed, however simply such a child’s room that had a variety of components that made me smile. The inexperienced bookcase is now in his larger closet (which is a catastrophe, TBH).
This shot was taken proper after the cabinets had been put within the smaller closet, so we shot it with the stuffies, nevertheless it shortly turned used for garments. Simply exhibiting you the structure of the room.
2024 – Making Some Upgrades
Charlie was now 11 and wished a much bigger mattress. We obtained a sponsor for an superior mattress and wished to make the content material just a little extra attention-grabbing, so we figured this was an important alternative to DIY an upholstered headboard with my classic material and a reasonable IKEA mattress.
The remainder of the room just about remained the identical. This was roughly the way it was till a number of months in the past…
2026 – The Large Shake Up
Lately, Charlie begged me to place his mattress within the nook, particularly that nook, so he may regulate his bed room door at evening (and likewise to really feel cozy). Brian resisted greater than I did – however since Charlie was having issues sleeping and was in our room quite a bit, I listened to him. He stated what Elliot has now echoed, that being within the nook feels cozier and safer. And I TOTALLY GET IT.
However he nonetheless wished his spherical couch there (which I discovered on FBMP), and it’s the place his buddies keep after they spend the evening. They love leaping backwards and forwards and being actually tough on it. Now this placement bummed me out, so I attempted to discover a completely different spot for it, however he was agency. He wished it right here so the remainder of the room was completely vast open to play basketball, wrestle, play darts, drums, and so on.
He began sleeping so a lot better, so there is no such thing as a probability we’re shifting it (for some time at the very least). It made me understand how fallacious I’ve been about youngsters’ rooms writ giant. I all the time thought that you just organize them like some other room, however with extra youngsters’ stuff. Positive, safer, extra storage, and keep away from white carpet or glass tables. However the identical structure, simply extra enjoyable. They clearly look higher with the mattress centered and, you already know, not slammed within the window towards two home windows. (BTW, I had security movie put in on the window, so in the event that they had been to interrupt, they’ll’t shatter; they’d simply be held along with a giant, clear sticker). However youngsters need flexibility and house. They don’t care about symmetry or steadiness. They need the mattress within the nook in order that they really feel cozy, after which a ton of ground house to wrestle.
The one different factor that Charlie is begging for is floating cabinets above his desk. He collects a variety of tchotchkes or prank toys/collectible figurines, they usually can muddle up his desk (he doesn’t like muddle – it’s so odd having a neat child!!). So I’m going to do this for him.
So What Are We Going To Do About The Mattress??
Nothing. At the least not proper now. If he’s glad, I’m glad. All I would like on the planet is for our youngsters to like being at their house (with us), so if he loves it like this, why would I care? Why would I create an issue that he doesn’t need solved? Now I do know I may make this “higher” with a nook mattress, one which has a headboard on the aspect (like an L), meant to go in a nook (and perhaps I’ll). I do know that I may swap out the world’s greatest spherical couch for a normal-sized large lounge chair (and I do know that this one would look good within the visitor cottage band/speakeasy room). So I suppose I may see that occuring subsequent yr (together with the drums shifting over there). He loves his artwork (Elliot has gotten him each the cat artwork and the brand new tapestry – each of which I do not know what they imply) and sword and darts. He needs cabinets and a brand new gentle in the course of the room (the one bulb doesn’t give sufficient gentle). I don’t know, all of it simply feels very tween boy to me in the perfect of how, so in a way I virtually don’t need it to be extra pulled collectively or higher designed. He’s on this huge life part of “figuring it out,” and this room is a mirrored image of that.
I really feel like I ought to care, however I don’t. I simply really feel just a little dumb that I’ve been a part of the issue, designing youngsters’ rooms with the mattress within the center after I suppose most of them need them shoved within the nook. I assume my concern is that if we invested in a single (and a few are tremendous inexpensive) or DIY’d one thing, that he would possibly once more change his thoughts in 3 years, after which a nook mattress could be very particular and fewer simple to search out the best place for it (however perhaps FBMP?). I believe what I may do for now’s have a giant cushion made out of extra indigo Boro material (lord is aware of I’ve sufficient). Though it’s simply an IKEA mattress that we hooked up the material to, and we all the time knew that we may take it off, plus that headboard is fairly dang excessive for these home windows. Anyway, I discovered a number of nook beds that I really may completely see in right here and some others that I actually appreciated however are much less his fashion. Right here you go:
1. Reversible Nook Mattress | 2. Velvet Tufted Nook Mattress
3. Scalloped Nook Mattress | 4. Low Tufted Nook Mattress
There have been some solidly cute ones at West Elm and Pottery Barn, however they had been extra like $2k, and since I do know it is a short-term state of affairs, that simply didn’t make sense to me. There may be all the time the concept of taking the material off the IKEA mattress and chopping down the headboard so it’s decrease, then constructing/attaching a side-headboard in the identical material and preserving the identical body (only for much less waste). Hmm… really, that does sound prefer it may very well be the best plan. After which as soon as the drums go into the visitor home, perhaps we put the couch the place the desk is and the desk the place the drums are. Perhaps sometime he’ll have a room that doesn’t fairly look this “hodgepodged” 🙂 Ideas???
*Photographs by Kaitlin Inexperienced
