The Heart of Our Home

I thought I'd take a moment to share some of the changes we've made to our playroom over the past year as we embarked on our first year of homeschooling.  You can see what our playroom looked like before. 

The biggest change is that we took out the big toddler toys, a workbench and a kitchen.  I was sad to see those things go because it meant the kids were growing up, but I have to admit, the moments that we experience in our classroom/playroom now are so much richer. 

Sure, there's been plenty of tears shed over not wanting to do school, feeling discouraged, or flat out having a bad day.  But there's also been many priceless moments of excitment, incredible teamwork, accomplishments and creativity. 

There's nothing too fancy about our set up.  We reused our IKEA Docksta table from another room and simply moved some things around.  Many items are from Target's Dollar Aisle.  My favorite part of the room are the IKEA Trofast storage units we have.  SOO practical and not too bad looking either!  It gives me plenty of cubbies for organization, plus a place for me to spread out... I need my piles.  :)

Harmony.  How lovely it is when it happens.  :)

Mission Control.  Our main school wall with our calendar, places to display projects, word wall and wipe board. 
All our papers, math manipulatives, and some toys are stored in the bins. 

Our classroom/playroom from the door

Our reading nook

Typical week... letter of the week with a verse of the week. 

Now, over my 10 years of teaching 3rd grade, I don't think there was a single year that I didn't move things around.  So, this room will definitely be progressing and changing throughout the months and years!

Lastly, of course, this post is purely about logistics and how we have set things up for our first year of homeschooling.  Some day soon, I'd love to share with you why we chose to homeschool and why we are commited to do it for another year.  In a nutshell... it was something that I never thought I would do, but felt a calling as our oldest was ready to head into kindergarten.  It's not for everyone, it's not the only way, but it's the way for us, for now.  :) 

WHY IT WORKS - A Boy's Room

Happy Monday!  This week's inspiration room comes to us from Australia.  I love how this room is clearly kid friendly, yet so well put together.  Here's what else I love:

WHY IT WORKS:



(via the style files)



• A full wall of shelving or display space.  Let's face it.  Kids have alot of stuff.  I love the idea of dedicating a whole wall to display and storage AND taking it all they way up to the ceiling.
• Color.  Another great example of keeping it simple.  White walls with warm woods always work.  This blank canvas provides the perfect backdrop to all the "stuff".
• Long work table.  I love long work surfaces.  This workspace here maximizes the wall space and works so well for the 3 kiddos in this family.

INSPIRATION:

• Corralling.  What makes this space work is that like items are grouped together and small items are corralled in pots or boxes.  Anything to lessen visual clutter.
• Monograms.  I LOVE monograms.  They are an expensive way to personalize ANY space in your home.  My favorite place to get them is JoAnns.  They're paper mache and you can easily paint them with craft paint.  They come in all sorts of fonts and sizes.  Its a good thing.  :)
• Mix it up.  Styling a bookshelf is both an art and a science.  Styling shelves in a child's space is no different.  Often, what looks effortless, takes quite a bit of effort.  (It does for me anyways)  :)  One tip shown here is mixing in objects with your books.  For example, the Darth Vadar mask next to the Star Wars books.  I also am finally ok with designating some things in a childs space as "look, don't touch".  I think there is value in including pieces that truly are just for inspiration, special objects that spark the imagination.

Here's another photo from this house tour.  How cool is that?  Clearly, any family who has one of these in their backyards, has some style and imagination!



(via the style files)



To see more photos of this family home in Australia, click on over here to the style files.

WHY IT WORKS - A Simple Playroom

As much as I love design and patterns, and fabrics and the fun and fluff... every once in awhile I come across something that reminds me that sometimes, simple is best.  This photo from of the Carlin Home from Traditional Home is a great example of just that!

WHY IT WORKS:

• With a plain and understated backdrop, each individualy piece has a chance to shine.  Do I need to say anything about that light fixture?  It clearly is the focal point and lets you know that even though this room appears simple, it's certainly not short on style!
• A white slipcovered couch can work in any space.  I'm a big proponent of having some "grown up" seating in a playroom.
• Children's Art.  When looking for artwork for a child's space, there are a ton of options out there, just browse etsy!  But sometimes, the best ones are created by the little artists in your own home.  Throw them in a Ribba frame from IKEA, and you have instant, beautiful and meaningful art! 

INSPIRATION:

When putting together a child's space, here are a few things that I try to remember.

• Lighting.  No one likes to be in a dimly lit room, especially kids.  If you want to create a warm, fun space where your kids will want to stay and play, make sure there's good lighting.  The use of ceiling lights and wall lights are great because they eliminate the possibility of anyone touching them and or anything tipping over.
• Seating.  Chances are there will be plenty of adults spending time in this space too.  Don't forget to include comfortable seating for the "big kids".  Their grandparents will thank you.  :)  And it's always nice to have a place to be able to cuddle and read books.
• Display.  Every child love to see their work displayed, even if it is the simplest of projects or drawings.  It's tempting to fill up every wall with artwork or decor, but don't forget to leave room for future projects.  You can do this bulletin boards, frames, or these great art cables too.  This ones from Pottery Barn Kids for $39, but you can also get IKEA's curtain wire for under $20.

Click here to see more photos of this beautiful home. 

Our Playroom

I've gotten a lot of feedback about how you really enjoy seeing real rooms and real projects on this blog.  So here's a little tour of one of the busiest rooms in our house, our playroom.

We're lucky enough to have a guest room right off of the main living area.  The first thing we did was paint the whole room which changed things dramatically.  Nothing in this room was big ticket, many items are from Ikea, the cabinet is mine from my childhood. 

One of my favorite changes in this room is adding the track light on each side of the large window.  The additional lighting really warms up the room.  The one overhead light just didn't cut it. 

Hope you enjoy the photos!

**  Disclaimers  **

No, the playroom does not look like this regularly, although we try. 

Yes, the toys always come out of the playroom and in they go again.  :)