Project Playroom Makeover – Ideas, Inspiration, and Product Picks

“It is a happy talent to know how to play.” – Ralph Waldo Emerson… I’m in the process of totally overhauling our house. From painting, trim, and new doors throughout the house, to new flooring and fixtures. And as those rooms get jazzed up, they’ll need new furnishings and accessories too. Plus, a few of our rooms are changing their function… My brother and my 2 nephews used to live with me, but moved out last year. So, we changed gears on some of the projects we’d been planning, to take advantage of the extra rooms we’d have to play with. I was originally working on a master bedroom makeover – since Abby still shared a room with us and needed space to play, and my office was in there too. But now, we have a whole room to convert into a playroom filled with color and whimsy – and I cannot wait to get it finished up! Until then, I wanted to share some of the coolest ideas, inspiration, and product picks that I’ve come across while putting this all together, so maybe you can find something perfect for your little one too…

Tip One: Picking a focal point

When I plan a room, I like to pick one major piece to start with, and build the room around that. Either a piece of furniture, artwork or a photo, curtains or bedding, or an amazing rug. And I found the absolute perfect focal point for Abby’s room that totally meshes function with fabulousness – Flor Carpet Design Squares. These are absolutely perfect for a kid’s room – the tiles are mix and match, so you can create the perfect size, shape, and design to fit your unique style. And if kiddos spill or stain – it’s easy to take just one square out to clean or replace, easy peasy! We ordered this rug above – with a lighter grey for the solid. We did a trial set up to see how it would fit – we decided to create a more rectangle shaped rug, and it’s so cool that we’ll be able to change that later if we decide to move furniture again. Abby loved it right away – she would run around just the outside edge, then played a hopping game from square to square, and spent 20 minutes telling us the names of all of the vibrant colors around the edges. I love that this really stimulates her senses with the color, texture, and design! So, the rest of the room’s colors and accessories are inspired by this show-stopping piece!

Tip Two: Building a media center

I’m so torn when it comes to kids toys and gadgets… On one hand, I think it is so important to provide kids with toys that really encourage them to use their own imagination. Things like blocks and tracks and Little People characters to create cool scenes and act out creative scenarios. I try to limit what I call “toys that play with themselves” – things that have too many beeping, flashing, moving parts. But I also love technology, obviously. And there is a ton of value in letting little ones use tech – if done appropriately. I know that some experts suggest severely limiting screen time for toddlers – but Abby adores her videos.  She watches Baby Signing Time DVDs everyday, and knows over 100 words in sign already. And we love winding down in the evenings with our “Sprout Friends.” So, we bought her a new Insignia HDTV DVD Combo that could be mounted on the wall, and a cozy beanbag chair from Target to snuggle into. She also has a ton of learning apps on the Kindle Fire and her LeapPad, and a big bookcase filled with her favorite books – so this beanbag chair gives her a great place to sit and do “her work,” as she calls it. {Wonder where she hears that from? :)}

Tip Three: Organization

We’ve had some of Abby’s toys and gear in this room for awhile now – and it was always a disaster. But I really couldn’t blame her – there was too much stuff in there, and not enough storage, at all. So – we’re going to take advantage of all of the space in her closet, since her clothes are still stored in the bedroom with ours. {Due to her seizure disorder, her bedroom is still technically in the Master Bedroom with us.} We took the doors off of it, and will be filling it with an assortment of amazing storage cubicals like ClosetMaid Cubicals and Modular Cubes, accessorized with bright fabric bins in colors to match her Flor rug – I can’t wait to get it all set up! A couple more fun ideas that I might incorporate: Velcro strips to hold stuffed toys, and magnetic knife racks on the wall to attach toy cars.

Tip Four:  DIY Projects

I definitely prefer to make things myself, and love seeing artwork and accessories around the house that I created. For Abby’s room, I’ve got a big assortment of fun ideas to finish all of the details!

• Ribbon Wreath: I adore this sweet personalized wreath made from ribbons! Looks super simple to do, too.
• DIY Flower Lights: These will match perfectly with Abby’s new flower floor lamp I ordered from Target – can’t wait to hang a strand or two of these over the window. See the tutorial here.
• Wall Art: I love, love, love these adorable printables that totally fit the colors of Abby’s room – especially the “Keep Calm and Put Your Jammies On.” Definitely going to print a couple to frame.
• Fabric Flowers: This idea to make flowers out of fabric, versus the traditional ones made from tissue paper, is genius! These would be so pretty hanging in the corner, above her beanbag chair.
• Tree decal: My Mister has a professional vinyl cutting machine {he does design and vinyl decals for race cars – check out my logo on his winning car this season!} – so he’s going to cut a huge white tree decal to go up Abby’s wall, near her dollhouse. Something similar to this one on Pinterest.

All of these projects are super do-able, and budget friendly. We’ll also be repainting her walls – a light lavender-grey on 3 walls, and a darker purple {possibly with the Disney sparkle finish on top – so fun!} on one feature wall, and inside the closet. I’ve got about half of her supplies purchased or ordered – the rest are picked out, just need to be picked up! Within a couple more weeks we should have this all wrapped up and ready to share before and after photos with you. I can’t wait :)

Until then…. You can get more ideas and inspiration from my Playroom Ideas, and Creative Rooms for Little Girls boards on Pinterest. You might see a few more of my pinned ideas show up in the final room reveal soon too! I’m hoping to have it ready to show you in two weeks… But I’m also getting ready for another trip to Chicago soon too, so it might be a teensy bit longer. Who’s excited?? 

Let’s Chat: Have you ever done a playroom or kids room makeover? Do you have a favorite that you’ve seen online or pinned? Share some fun links and tips in the comments below! And be sure to pin any ideas you love from this post too – to reference later. Thanks for reading!

{This post contains some affiliate links that help to support this site. I received a complimentary Flor product to review – which is coming soon! I only share links to things I love and use – these are all total favorites that I’ve bought myself!}