Interior design tips to help your children get a good night’s sleep
Your child’s bedroom is primarily a space in which they should be able to get a good night’s sleep. For many children (and their parents), however, it’s also a highly personal space where young minds seek to investigate, experiment and explore broader horizons. Designing a bedroom for your children that prioritizes the value of a great sleeping experience offers some interesting challenges when it comes to creating a private living space where they will also enjoy playing and learning.
Décor for kids
While adult bedrooms generally work best when decorated in soft, muted colors that are conducive to rest, your child’s bedroom most likely needs to function as a combination space for playing as well as sleeping. If physical divisions such as screens are not an option, you can separate these spaces using colors and lighting – bright for play, softer for sleep. One of the chief aims is successfully signaling the end of playtime and encouraging your child to take note of the beginning of the time for sleep.
Natural lighting
Your body clock responds to the amount of light you’re exposed to – just think of those long summer evenings when you struggled to fall asleep as a kid. Aim to adjust the natural light your child is exposed to by incorporating blackout shutters into the design of the room. This means that no matter how bright it is outside, you can use movable levers to gradually dim external light and finally shut it out altogether. In many ways, this is a safer option than blackout blinds, as they often use chords for control, and so they can be a hazard in a young child’s bedroom.
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Artificial lighting
Secondly, make good use of the available facilities to dim internal artificial lighting, particularly the harsh overhead variety, opting for one or two softly glowing table lamps in your living room instead. In your child’s bedroom, a small reading light is sufficient for bedtime reading and a red bulb is preferable for nightlights if needed. Also check the bedroom for any lights from electronic equipment, no matter how small, as these can disturb your child’s sleep should he or she wake during the night.
Background noise
If you have ever watched a small baby snooze while the washing machine, TV or vacuum cleaner is on in the background, then you already understand the principle of background (or white) noise. You can use a sound machine to create background noise or a fan on a low setting, for example. The soothing, low hum helps one child stay asleep despite the noise from another – perfect in shared rooms or when baby is still waking through the night.
Clear the decks
Finally, make sure you and your child do a thorough tidy up at the end of a busy day so that tempting toys and games are safely stowed away. Good storage options make this a whole lot easier, and the ritual can become part of the regular bedtime routine before your little one settles down for a good night’s sleep.
8 Comments
sokioyiza
August 21, 2015 at 8:18 pm
Blackout shutters, good idea!
Emily
August 21, 2015 at 9:29 pm
Hi Sokioyiza, thanks for your comment. Yes and you can get portable blackout blinds for holidays too.
Bek Dillydrops
August 22, 2015 at 9:31 am
Our issue is the tidy bedroom part at the moment. The older my children get, the more toys they seem to leave on the floor. Having very few toys in their rooms used to help when they were younger but it just isn't practical any more. Great tips here. #SuperParentSaturday
Emily
August 22, 2015 at 8:01 pm
Hi Bek, thanks for your comment. Our twins room is tidy at the moment, but probably because the only time they're in it is when they go to bed. They don't play in their room as we have a playroom! x
Laura (Mind Mood Mommy)
August 22, 2015 at 10:31 am
Some great tips here. I agree with making sure there aren't any distractions in the room. If there's things to play with out, then that's what they'll want to do! Thanks for linking up to #SuperparentSaturday x
Emily
August 22, 2015 at 8:01 pm
Hi Laura, thanks for your comment. You're right, our twins room has next to no toys in it! x
Rachel @ Parenthood Highs and Lows
August 22, 2015 at 11:33 am
Some really great tips here. We try and keep their room as free from toys as possible (harder as they get older!), but they also have a bright red wall for their Spiderman theme, which isn't the best colour for a room!! Thanks for linking up to #SuperparentSaturday
Emily
August 22, 2015 at 8:02 pm
Hi Rachel, thanks for your comment. I imagine it does get harder the older they get!