Where The Wild Things Are

As a child I remember loving nothing more than animals and all things wild. Perhaps it stemmed from my love of Disney’s The Jungle Book and The Lion King, or our family’s visits to Wimpole Farm, but my bedroom was filled to the brim with soft toys, animal themed curtains and wooden parrots hanging from the ceiling. Animal and nature themed bedrooms for kids are an innovative and fun way for your child to explore their imagination and if you’re looking to decorate along these lines then have a look at what’s around at the moment by some of our favourite brands and designers.

Story-time can be made a lot more comfortable and stylish with this range of cosy cushions and beanbag chairs, so that you and your child can sit back, relax and get lost in their favourite storybook.

This marvellous Quentin Blake inspired fabric pattern by Osborne & Little is a wonderful return to some classic children’s books, and is the perfect addition to if you’re sceptical about taking the plunge and going head-to-toe in a wildlife theme.

If you’re searching for a more classic English countryside landscape style then check out this cushion design by Designers Guild. This Happy Campers Kids Cushion with its aged pastel look and delightful little foxes is an adorable design.

This fun beanbag chair by Aspace comes in a wonderful mix-match pattern that would work perfectly in a child’s room, or even in your living room, the little strawberries and kiwis in the pattern are sweet touches as well.

Designers Guild have some lovely wallpapers designed for children’s bedrooms, and my particular favourite is this Daisy Patch design. The pattern is fun and bright enough to get the kid’s approval, and because the design isn’t too childish it means that the wallpaper could last until your child is in their early teens.

There are some really fun and creative animal and nature accessories to play around with when decorating your kid’s bedroom. Aspace has some wonderful ideas to spark your child’s imagination. This Felt Elephant Head is a fun, quirky accessory that both parent and child will love for years!

As is this adorable cloud- shelf idea, it’s both pretty and practical and is a great way to individualise your child’s room.

If you’re looking for something more than simply decorative, have a look at some of the toys by Designers Guild. I love these Carp paper mobiles, so much so I’m tempted to get some for my room! And this wooden wheel-along rabbit toy is both a super stylish and a fun toy. These toys are perfect for your kids’ enjoyment without you having to endure the usual garishness of kids’ toys.

A nature theme can also be incorporated into your child’s learning, whatever stage they may be at. This animal alphabet wall sticker by Feather & Black is a great learning tool, and is still something fun to decorate the walls with and for the kids to look at.

This adorable little tree bookcase from Not On The High Street is both great for storing books and odds and ends as well as being unbelievably cute.

And finally, just for some extra cute factor Not On The High Street is also stocking some sweet little animal head shaped mirrors that will give you and your child hours of entertainment.

So whether you want to dive straight in and immerse yourself in everything nature and wildlife related, or you just want to dip a few toes in the pool, I hope this has given you a few ideas about how to turn your child’s bedroom into a wonderful wild adventure!

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The Perfect Haven – As featured on the Cambridge News website

We love decorating children’s rooms, as they can be great fun but they do need careful planning to ensure the scheme has flexibility to grow with the child and won’t date too quickly. These photos are from a lovely project that we really enjoying working on for a little girl’s bedroom and demonstrate how to design an inviting space which keeps both parents and children happy.

With this project we started by creating a soft and pretty backdrop with hand-painted stripes in soft tones. We then added colour and interest through accessories such as these silver letters and fairy lights which can easily be updated at a later date if required.

Children like to collect lots of bits and pieces so we incorporated a desk and lots of storage in this scheme to keep everything neat and tidy. The open storage above the desk ensures that toys and books are still easily accessible and visible but we hung a swedish blind over the tall shelving unit on the right which can be rolled down to hide the shelving if it gets too messy!

The swedish blind at the window adds a bright splash of colour and is a clean, pretty style for a child’s room. Lack of space around the window meant that a roman blind or traditional curtains wouldn’t easily fit but this style is simple and compact. It also looks pretty when half open or closed as it rolls up from the bottom rather than the top.

We created a pinboard above the desk in a fresh green stripe to store favourite photos, cards and notes so there are still lots of personal items on display but focused in one area rather than taking up lots of wall space. An inviting desk area also creates an appealing place to study and will, hopefully, encourage homework!

The original pine bedframe was quite dark, so we gave it a fresh coat of white paint to keep the scheme fresh and bright. Overall our aim with this room was to create a pretty and appealing haven for many years to come.

Images: Angel+Blume, Styling: Gail Abbott

The article first appeared on the Cambridge News website.

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