Teen Room Decorating
Tips for teen room decorating to help keep the peace. Who decides on what?
Three Not So Simple Steps To Decorate Teenage Rooms
- Gather your thoughts
- Pick your battles
- Step up, make a plan and get started
Where do you start with teen room decorating?
They are between 13-19 years of age. Fads come and go so fast it makes your head spin. They're not children any more, but they aren't adults quite yet either. Do you want to stop the insanity?
This is where you might start making some big changes in their bedrooms. And the good news is, they're old enough to help you with your teen room decorating project!! In fact, they may want to do most if not all of it themselves. Depending on their age you might provide the budget, and a guiding hand and leave them to their own devices.
1. Gathering Your Thoughts (Both Of You):
Whose room is it?
Decorating your teen's room might be a total headache. But come on, it's her room, not yours. Granted it's in your house, but it's all about compromise. So stop fighting, right now! That's enough, both of you!
You were a teen once . . .didn't you want your own hang out?
A teen's room is their haven, their retreat. It's where they go to be alone to think about life and their dreams. They 'live' in that room. It literally is like an apartment, with the exception that I assume no cooking goes on in there, but no doubt eating does, at least in most teens rooms!
Teen room decor should provide for all the activities, such as homework, tv, game playing, talking endlessly on the phone, cranking up the stereo, having friends sleep over, craft projects, primping etc.
By 'providing' for all these activities I mean choose furniture, fabric and wall decor and storage that will be appropriate and will withstand all the activities for the long haul!
Each of you get some paper
- Both of you make your own list of what you envision for this teen room decorating project.
- List things in levels of priority, with number one being most important to you.
- List colors, theme ideas, furniture, window treatments, bedding and so on.
- And yes, all of this will be up for discussion.
2. Pick Your Battles
Now sit down and talk
Yes talk, about your lists. And on the first couple of points (priorities) you may need to come to a compromise. Here's where the negotiations begin. Work it out!
If each of you can come up with a couple of options for the major items and sit down and discuss it. Both of you should be flexible and willing to actually to consider the others thoughts and feelings.
Did you ever watch that show called Designing for the Sexes? The man and the woman have total opposite ideas on how to decorate, and get nothing done because neither one of them will budge from their decorating perspective.
Well, they need to do one called Designing for the Teenager... all about teen room decorating challenges. You heard it here first!
3. Make Your Plan And Get Started
You both might like to read the Quick Start Guide To Kids Decor for some basic budget and planning help and to figure out what steps you need to do what.
Do You Need To Patch And Paint The Walls?
If your young one demolished the previous paint job, you may have some work to do on the walls. But if it's just the lower portion that's bad and she's happy with the main color, you could just treat this part of the wall.
Try using some type of paneling treatment (beadboard paneling looks nice), faux paint finish or wallpaper. Then add a chair rail molding with a wallpaper border above it (if you used paneling) or a border above or below if you did a paint finish or wallpaper.
When you're decorating a teen's room you'll probably be making a complete change in the bedding and window treatments as well, and possibly the furniture.
He will probably want a room that looks more like his own private space, more apartment-like. You will likely be adding to the existing furniture or replacing it entirely for a more 'grown-up' look.